LovetoCamp

Hops, I meant that on the USMA Shooting Team the members are very experienced in Smallbore and Air Rifle to get on the team. If you get into one of the service academies, you will probably get schooled in firearms. But, I wouldn't know. I was Wire Dog for 11 years. You would be surprised how little training in weaponry we actually got. But, I can roll some WD-1. P

Hops, I'd be willing to bet that the student athletes that make the Rifle Teams at the service academies are already experienced Smallbore and 10 M Air shooters. I'd also say that if you are a self-starter, which I'm guessing you are, there would be plenty of tourneys, clinics, and competitions that you could find that you could do in addition to football, basketball, and baseball.

Vmom, I'll bet it would be quicker to go from Ashville, NC to Carbondale, IL than it would be to go from Chicago to Carbondale!!! Well maybe not, but it would be close. The Crew wants to finish the BP'ing elective next summer. We come and do a couple miles on the AT and you folks stay for awhile until we get the Shooting Sports completed. Bet it would sound good on paper. A friend of mine's 13 year old daughter mentioned that she wanted to shoot 10 M Air with Mr. Trail Pounder's team. Hmmmmm, she can't be in our Crew yet, but I wonder if the powers that be would have a problem with her joining our American Legion Jr. Shooting Team.

I get misunderstood a lot, I get rambling and mount up on my high horse and everything gets garbled in transmission. I'll probably never be known as The Great Communicator, but I sure love to fish!

http://369.columbus.oh.us/ CubsRgr8, Here's an example of a Youth Ministries Crew.

Bob White, in that scenario, you would be sending me home, and I'd be checking my liability insurance. P (relax Bob, I'm joking, can't you tell.)

tcd, I guess I'd have to be in the shoes, before making a call like this. If we just have "stupid" than we can fix it. If we have Ted Bundy, then we act accordingly. P

Youth Ministries Crews have been a popular theme throughout my traveling through the internet. I haven't had any real world experiences, but I know there are more than a few out there. If I can find some info, I'll post it for you. Best Wishes!!! P

I think there's a difference between a gangbanger and a tenderfoot. I cringe every time I hear the words, "I'll kill you". But, occasionally I still hear them coming out of a kid's mouth. Instead of helping the parties cool off and telling them that "I'll kill you" is not acceptable language, should I contact the council, the sheriff, the state's attorney? You can tell the difference between a kid with a problem and a kid with some exuberence a mile away. Ruin the kid's day, but not his teen years for pete's sake. These Male Soccer Moms have outlawed butter knives and Gi Joes, but have they ever thought the problem could have started when they allowed their sons to wear black lipstick and pierce their noses.

They wanted to shoot and camp and do challenging activities, that's where the backpacking comes in. We're just ramping up. While the Shooting Sports elective will be a slam dunk for all our members, the backpacking and cooking Ranger electives on all our trips.

Hey Air Force, We'll sure let you know when we tackle the R to R. Stayed at The Inn at Scott AFB last year. Had a small reunion with some army buddies and went to see Cubs v Cards downtown. Went to the NCO Club later Saturday night. It was empty. In all the years I was in the army, I never saw an empty NCO Club. What gives?

Most are High Adventure. We're calling our Crew a Rifle Team that backpacks. We shoot in 10 Meter Air Rifle Competitions. What does your Crew do? P

I see that the Ranger Award is a medal that can be worn for indoor type events and activities on the Venturing uniform. Does the Ranger Bar come as a separate item that is only the Silver Bar that can be worn across the pocket flap or above the pocket flap? I also read that there is a cloth strip Ranger Bar. Where does that go? Thanks in advance, Pounder

VMom, Awesome. We're have a 15 miler at the end of this month. We're also planning a 15 miler in the middle of November, the weather on November 15th could be all over the place. I have 2 from our Crew and 2 from the troop. I am convinced that these four hardy Backpackers will spread the word to the others and we'll just grow from there. We're going to try the 50 miler in April, 50 miles of the River to River Trail in the Shawnee National Forest. Reading peoples AT trail journals is becoming my favorite reading. http://www.rivertorivertrail.org/ Here's a link to where we're headed, a map and several trail jounals from some through hikers. Pounder

Teenage boys need to be shown the proper way to handle the knife and the proper way to act when they have a knife. If we threw out every teenaged boy who said something stupid at the wrong time..... He should be taught the proper uses of the knife (outdoor tool), and that making threats even in jest, is the wrong thing to say and why. Teach them. Train them.

Whirrrrrrrrr, Grzzzzzzzzzz, that's the sound of an axe starting to grind!

Heading to Powder Horn Oct 3-5 and 17-19 in Ky and Indiana. Nice little drive but gives me a chance to stay with an army buddy on Thursday night. The Course Directors seem to have their stuff together and I'm looking forward to some Good Training. We'll see how the measure up to LBPU!!! Anybody been to Powder Horn? Comments? will it be good for me, Nick the New Guy, to attend? Thanks in Advance. P

VMom, 50 Miler! Did they backpack 50? Details please. Pounder

Confiscation of the knife, Safety lesson from the SPL and SM, and several hours of scrubbing the latrine area I believe would instill a huge lesson to this young man. You folks are subscribing to this "zero tolerance philosophy" that is so ridiculously out of control. The kid who forgot that a butter knife was in the bed of his pickup truck suspended for having a weapon. The kid suspended for having GI Joe with a 2 inch M1 Garand. Suspending the 5 year old for sexual harrassment for planting a smooch on a classmate. No tolerance. How's that overly friendly kid going to handle that label? Zero tolerance replaced common sense and we took another step backwards.

VMom, Just getting started. Been out training, buying gear, and reading journals but haven't went as an organized unit yet. We'll go at the end of this month. 16 Total miles. I like the idea of counting the miles under a pack. I keep looking for a pewter lapel pin of a pack or boots that could be awarded after 100 miles under a BP. Pounder

Hi Venture Mom, We're going on Sept 26 for a weekender. 2 from the Crew and 2 from our troop and 3 adults. I'm hoping that the boys will have a challenging tiring backpacking experience that will make them talk to their friends about the challenge and we'll end up growing our program by the shared experiences. Pounder

Thanks for the great responses. We aren't co-ed yet. I know how my dogs were screaming after humping that full loaded 5800 cubic inch monster 8 miles in 85 degree heat last month. We went 8 miles in just under 3.5 hours. I was soaking wet and had to tape/moleskin one blister. Do the ladies carry equal weight and are you backpacking at least the distances to count toward the MB or Ranger Elective? Just wanted to know the experiences you've with the sport of backpacking and the co-ed crews. The sounds of a solid backpacking program have me motivated through the ceiling. Camping is great, but the challenge of backpacking add to the experience exponentially. Throw some trout fishing in there and you've got a world class event. Pounder

OGE, Bob, and Mr. Hopper, Do you have co-ed Crews? Do the female Venturers go backpacking? I'm thinking here that the Hiking Merit Badge and the Backpacking elective require 15 mile totals to count as an event toward completion. A backpack, sleeping bag, change of clothes, and water are going to weigh in around 30-35 pounds, then add in a share of the food and equipment and soon your going to have the equivalent of a full combat load, how do the young ladies cope? Secondly, do you gentlemen have a female associate advisor who pounds the trail with you? Curious. Pounder

Regarding Shooting Sports, have any of the successful, high-speed, low-drag Venturing Crews out there done any of the Shooting Venues like the American Legion Jr. Tourney, The NRA's 3 Position Postals, The National Guard Bureau Tourney? What's your experience with these events and do you know of others similiar that are out there. Our Crew wants to be a Rifle Team. We've got a long way to go. Pounder

hops, we're going to do the River to River Trail or at least we're going to do the 50 miler over Easter Vacation next year. Are you going to be ready to go with us?