The Boulder Valley Umpires Association (BVUA) was established in the late 1960's and was comprised of a handful of Boulder area men who were interested in the future of amateur baseball, semi-pro as well as high school. Some of the original members were President Bill Burns, Ken Furman, Jim Graham, Ken Bell, and Lee Merlino. Other members who joined shortly after its inception were Jim Reidy, Greg Childs, Larry Allen, Duke Benz, Gene Yost, Dave Boles, Cottrell "CB" McGowan, Dick Ryan, Fred Reichert, and Tom Smith.

The BVUA logo was a piece of cloth depicting the flatirons with "BVUA" embroidered across a silhouette of the flatirons. A wife of one of the umpire's sewed the logo on the white, short-sleeved shirts worn by umpires at that time. The rest of the umpire uniform in the 70's consisted of a skinny black tie and navy blue pants. The most recognized piece of plate umpire protective equipment, in those days, was the "balloon" chest protector. This was a dark blue or black "shield" that was held firmly under the umpire's chin. Stitched to the back side of the protector's cloth cover was a strap through which the umpire placed his hand; protecting his arms and elbows from stray pitches and foul balls. Its construction provided some humorous moments, most notably when a missed pitch or foul ball hit the protector creating a loud "thud." It was also entertaining to watch someone of slight stature leaving the confines of home plate to cover third base, dragging this cumbersome protector along, especially on a windy day. It was akin to windsurfing!

Scott Carpenter Park, named after the Boulder High School graduate who later became an astronaut, was the primary field for baseball in Boulder. Fairview High School, after moving from its location on Cherryvale and Baseline (presently Nevin Platt Middle School) in 1970, designed and constructed an unlighted field on its present Greenbriar Boulevard location, but the favorite field for summer American Legion games was always Scott Carpenter Park. Boulder High School's games are, to this day, still played at Scott Carpenter. Other schools in the 1970's were Louisville High School and Lafayette High School, which were consolidated into Centaurus High School in 1972. Broomfield High School also had a ballpark located at its present location, adjacent to the school on Main Street and Eagle's Way. Another field in the Boulder area was the "Chief" Prentup Field used by the University of Colorado until the late 1970's, when baseball and various other sports at the university were unfortunately eliminated due to budgetary constraints.

It was a rare summer's night when a baseball game was not being played under the lights at Scott Carpenter Park. If neither Fairview nor Boulder teams were playing, then the semi-pro "Boulder Collegians," a team comprised of many future Major League Baseball stars and managed by Bauldie Moschetti, were hitting numerous home runs over Scott Carpenter's relatively short outfield fences. Scott Carpenter Park was also the host of numerous American Legion Tournaments in the 1970's, 80's, and 90's. In 1976, Scott Carpenter Park hosted the American Legion Class 'A' State Baseball Tournament. Teams from Colorado Springs, Aurora, Pueblo, Denver, Bear Creek, Broomfield, and Boulder competed for the title, which was won by Bear Creek. Boulder umpires Ken Furman, Larry Allen, Greg Childs, and Tom Smith worked the tournament and were joined by Denver umpires Al Ragland and Bud Schoepflin.

In the 21st century, the Boulder Valley Umpire's Association membership has swollen from the original fifteen founding members to a membership approximating 50. Of the original fifteen members, only Tom Smith is still an active member and working official. Our area of "officiating responsibility" has also grown to an area that includes twelve high schools in the Boulder Valley and St. Vrain Valley School Districts. Today, some of its members are graduates of either Harry Wendlestedt's or Jim Evan's Schools of Professional Umpiring. Its legacy of professionalism continues through today's training program, which commences in mid January and continues through April. This excellent program consists of weekly classroom lectures and practical "field" clinics. Today's new members can expect to be assigned a veteran mentor umpire and become immersed in hours of classroom study which includes video training tapes and detailed positioning and mechanics training sessions as standardized and sanctioned by the Professional Baseball Umpire Corp (PBUC). As an ongoing training program throughout the year, all members are formally evaluated, by highly qualified, experienced and well trained veteran umpires.