Gold Winger

"Do you honestly need to know all that for a weekend camping trip?" A weekend camping trip is car camping at the state park where you can run to Wal-Mart when you find that you've forgotten the Grey Poupon for your hot dogs. I think that Don is a bit light on the water, I drink about a gallon a day (two lexan bottles plus my Platypus bag) and then another half gallon at night. I'm sure that I could get by on less if I really had to but I don't like dehyrdation. A Scout on one of our hikes didn't bother to drink for a good part of a warm day and keeled over. Not too worried about the bears? Small or large they can still do some damage. No, it's not too difficult to tie the food up in a tree but you have to remember the bag and the rope and know how high you should hang it as well as how close to your tent you want it. Divers say, "Plan the dive, dive the plan" and I think that test pilots say something similar. However, if you want to head off on a two day hike with a package of hot dogs, a book of matches, and a bottle of Evian, more power to you.

" So just because you put out a lot of coin, doesn't mean your boots will hold up." However, it is more likely that they will. I started out with a pair of inexpensive but comfortable boots. After a couple of hikes on the AT, I relegated them to "hanging out and looking cool duty." Having done little more than wearing them to work and to hang out, after a year, they're shot. The soles have held up but they're dead. When I reffed basketball, the conventional wisdom was that a pair of shoes lasted a season. You know what, they were right. The uppers might look great, the soles were perfect since they never saw anything other than a court. But, the shoes were shot. Didn't matter if you bought Nike, New Balance or Converse. One season and they were dead and relegated to "emergency back-up shoes."

" As for your "bad" experience where were you with your wisdom before the boys left home? You couldn't tell cheap from inexpensive?" Wasn't my job. I was neither the lead adivsor, the SM, nor the boy's father. I still say that it was luck.

I would argue that a Committee meeting is NOT part of the Scouting program. The Scouting program is what happens with the Scouts. The campouts, the meeting, the ritual sacrifices. We always say, "The Scoutmaster is in charge of the program." That's not a committee meeting.

I did an 80 mile trek at Philmont last year. To get ready, I was at the gym four or five days a week, spending 30 minutes on the stairmachine and 30 minutes on the treadmill. After that, I'd hit the weight machines concentrating on leg presses. For hikes we did montly hike on the AT, usually about 15 or 20 miles for the weekend with some big elevation changes. 800 up, 600 down, 700 up. Level. Never saw it. I would also walk around my hilly neighborhood with a 30 lb pack. After all of this training I droppd about 1,000 lbs of blubber. I never became as fast at the youngsters but I never had any muscle soreness hiking around Philmont. Training is important. I ran into some adults at Philmont who hadn't done any training and they were in sorry shape.

Honestly, have you ever known a man to intentionally buy uncomfortable shoes because they look good? I haven't. However, I have known more than a few women who done silly things like but a pair of size 7s when they really wear a 7.5 because they can squeeze into them and they look cute. Beauty knows no pain. Women do many incomprehensible things like walk around nearly nekkid and then get upset when menfolk look at them. Of course, they get equally upset if the menfolk don't look at them. I'd got on but Dave Barry would get ticked at me for intruding on his realm. Standing by for flames. Okay, in fairness, men will continue to wear clothes that are two sizes too small rather than admit that they've gained weight (just look around at roundtable). "Yep, I still fit a size large" as the buttons threaten to explode and the seat of the pants stretches to the point that it is nearly transparent. (This message has been edited by Gold Winger)

I once made the suggestion that the SPL come to the committee meetings to report and offer feedback. You woulda thunk that I suggested that we sacrifice a virgin instead of saying the national loyalty oath. The SM said that HE was there to represent the Scouts. I still think that it can be a good idea, especially when setting up the calendar or talking about fund raising. I know that in my son's troop the boys never had any idea of what anything cost and most never made the connection between the new tents and popcorn selling. No one ever said, "Guys we need new tents so you have to get out and sell!" (not that they would :-( ) However, if the SPL was included in these discussions, he might offer advice on what sort of fund raising the boys would like to do and also be able to communicate WHY they were raising funds.

"$200 hiking boots that make your feet hurt by sundown are not the answer." If they make your feet hurt they probably don't fit properly. Sheesh! You make it sound like we're womenfolk who buy shoes because they're cute and don't care if they fit. You were lucky with your $50 work boots. One of our crew had skimped on boots and bought a pair at Target or Kohls and wore them on the training hikes with no problem. Two days into Philmont, the sole of one came completely off. We were able to have base camp send us a new pair but until they reached us, he was being held together with duct tape.

"Units are restricted to one each year," Not quite right. Units can nominate one adult per 50 Scouts or fractions thereof. So a troop with 49 Scouts is limited to one adult nomination but a troop with 51 Scouts may nominate two adults.

One does not have to be a merit badge counselor to help a boy earn a merit badge. One must be a registered MBC to sign off that a boy has earned the merit badge. Too many today think that a merit badge counselor is supposed to spoon feed you the information for the merit badge. Not in this guy's mind. The counselor is there as exactly that, a counselor, a guide or mentor. The boy is supposed to go off and explore and learn on his own and then come back and show what he's learned. I used to counsel the sports merit badge. Everyone thought that I should offer a "class" where the boys would sit down and I'd tell them how to fill out the packet for the sports merit badge. At first that seemed like a good idea so I put out a sign up sheet and about 20 boys signed up. I later thought better so I grabbed the interested boys at a troop meeting and gave each the packet from meritbadge.com and said, "I know that all of you play soccer or football or baseball or swim so what I want you guys to do is to complete this package, bring it to me and we'll discuss your work. If you have any questions, call me." Now, the sports merit badge is pretty easy. You have to play two organized sports, one must be a team sport. You need to explain in simple terms the basic rules of the game. Draw a picture of the playing field. Along with a standard first aid explanation. Pretty simple. I know that the troop had three or four Sports merit badge pamphlets but no one checked one out. How many finished the merit badge out of 20? Two (2). Since it wasn't being spoon fed to them, they weren't interested. End of rant.

Hitting the AT is not for the uninitiated. It isn't like just going for a jaunt in a state park. Are your boots broken in? Do you know how to use trekking poles? Are you taking tents or are you depending on the shelters? Some rude people will set up tents in the shelters and refuse to give up the space. My son's Scout master told me that he ran across a Scout troop that had taken over the shelter and wouldn't budge for the people who were trekking light without a tent. Where will you get your water? Chemical treat or filter? Water is more important that food. Food? Cooking? Fuel? Do you need to worry about critters looking for food? BIG Critters that won't be detered by your tent? Do you know how to rig a bear bag? Not trying to discourage you. Just want you to look before the proverbial leap.

What I've observed is a lot of "Johnny needs to be PL so he can advance so let's elect him. Okay, guys?" Better yet, in New Scout Patrols, we have "elections" every month, forced upon them by some idiot "advisor", so everyone "gets a chance." Looking back a my son's troop, in five years, I can't think of one PL that got the job because he wanted to lead or even just motivated by the idea of being "in charge." All were drafted and all just went through the motions.

He's not the most robust young fellow but he's smart, hard working, and determined so maybe force of will got him out of the infirmary. (This message has been edited by Gold Winger)

The Cubmaster and Den Leaders serve at the pleasure of the CC and the COR. If the CC is happy with the job that you son is doing, then he should be secure. If a Den Leader is jockeying for a "higher" position, maybe he shouldn't be involved. Some consider that Den Leader is far more important than Cub Master because he has the most contact with the boys. Forty years later, I still remember my Den Mother but couldn't tell you my CMs name if my life depended on it. I'm pretty sure that I never even knew his name.

Probably the worst Philmont experience that I know of was a Scout that I know who was stricken with altitude sickness at base camp (6,000 feet). They medicated him and kept him in the infirmary for three days and then staff drove him into the back country meet up with his crew. He did Baldy and doesn't regret the experience. Of course there are the occasional Scouts/Scouters who run afoul of a bear or mountain lion. That might be a truly bad experience.

Some places do offer privvies but once you learn to poo in the woods, it isn't that bad :-) Of course, we menfolk have a slight advantage.

Our ranger worn running shoes as well but they aren't carrying a 40+ lb pack up and down mountains. Our guy carried a bit of food and his tent, maybe 15 lbs. total and we didn't climb any hills. I could do that in my bare feet. :-) Okay, not my bare feet but I could do it my good sandals.

"I would consider OA neckwear similar to the OA sash appropriate for wear during OA activities." That's when you wear the sash. The bolo, patch, dangle, belt buckles, tattoo, and earrings are for other times. I'm also not sure that you need to wear the neckerchief to set the standard for your Scouts. If you do want to wear the necker to be an example, you could save your bolo for wear when you go to UOS, Roundtable, Wood Badge, BALOO, WLOT (or what ever it is called this week).

We were there in August and had hail, thunderstorms, reaaaaaaly cold nights and I had the time of my life as did the boys. Shakedown hikes are really, really important because they give you the opportunity to find out what gear works and what doesn't work. What you need and what you don't need. And why those $50 hiking boots from Target aren't going to do the job. Our training hikes were on trails that were intensive enough that Philmont didn't throw and big surprises at me. Then again, your son is a lot younger than I am and youth have that wonderful characteristic of reselience.

Can a nurse give a physical?

As they said in Grease, "Tell me more, tell me more!"

I wouldn't call it an addiction, obsession might be a better term. I know two young men who are brothers. Both were good students in high school, multi-sport varsity athletes, off too college where they are good students. However, both are obsessed with video games. They've always bought their own games and game systems and have progressed from Nintendo to N64, to X-Box 9billion and PS-19 (or whatever). The newest game system and newest game is what they have to have. What I've seen is a crippling of their social skills. They have friends but when they get together with their friends, they just play video games. They usually don't even compete. They drag the games from their house to a friend's and set up five or six systems and play by themselves. When I'm visiting their parents, these young men don't come out of their rooms to say hello or good-bye. Dinner is served, they appear, eat and then vanish back to games. My son and his game obsessed friends are the same way. They get together only to play video games. Real games like touch football or Horse are lame. Ride a bike? Come on, get real! Banish them to the out-of-doors and they sit on the porch and mope because there's nothing to do. It is sad. Truly sad.

Groan!!!

I took an LED headlamp by Black Diamond to Philmont, used it every night an never needed to change the batteries. I have a Dorcy 3 Wattt Luxeon flashlight that uses three AAA batteries and it's still on the original batteries from two years ago. Since LEDs don't generate much heat, you get more bang for your buck. By the way there are MAGlite conversions for their 2 and 3 cell big lites.

" Any flavor that the beer would have imparted to the meat will be in it and the rule will still not have been violated." I don't know about that. The alcohol has seeped into the meat and could be sucked out by a really desperate Scout.