shortridge

* Look at the T-2-1 requirements and base some activities off them. I'd disagree with Eagle92's suggestion to base the activities on the Webelos pins - that's old hat, and you should be giving them something new to whet their appetites for Boy Scouts. * Try a few wide games. * Outdoor cooking is always a great way to build interest - food always gets people swarming. * Be sure to have plenty of flyers/handouts, photo displays or videos from your recent trips/HA treks, etc.

If a unit goes on a high-adventure trip, a long-distance canoe trek or a substantial backpacking expedition, it would make sense that the Scouts would complete large chunks of the MB requirements during those trips. But I'd question an event with the sole purpose of getting Scouts through the requirements. For those of you on the East Coast, there used to be (and may still be) a winter Scouting event at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, with MBs taught by midshipmen - usually on such scientific topics as Atomic Energy and Oceanography, drawing on the resources at the Academy. It was a

"I mean really, all males at our Council's campsites MUST wear a RED bracelet at all times so we know they are OK to be on the property. Can you imagine if BSA did something like that with women?" My local BSA council camp requires all visitors, male or female, to wear paper bracelets (I think they were yellow). I'd worked there for five years and was a tentmate of the camp director his first year on staff, but I still wore one when I visited this summer.

If the trend continues, consider developing your own unit-specific patch. Or try to get a district/council-level award/honor started up for multiple-50s. It might spur interest from other troops to do some long-distance treks.

Or hold it within the confines of the fenced-in pool area.

A slideshow/video of how one troop in these parts did a Hawaiian luau, including building the bar: Looks pretty bizarre to me, but whatever floats your boat...

Anyone have any advice for an adult interested in learning how to throw? There aren't any mountain man-style rendezvouses in my area, and I haven't ever heard of a similar event in my council before, so I have very few people to tap into. Any books or Web sites for self-study to learn the basics?

If you're looking for advice of a legal nature, consult a lawyer. If you're looking for advice on BSA rules and regs, you need to provide a bit more information to let folks help you. The terms "incident" and "legal action" could mean anything under the sun.

If your troop has a really strong objection to zippers (and why is that, if you don't mind me asking?), consider working with your Scouts to make their own tarp-tent abodes. There are plenty of plans out there online, with lots of variety in materials. The beauty is that you can customize them to meet your needs - floors or no floors, zippers or ties, etc. Working on such a project will also help the Scouts learn the virtue of thrift and the need to keep from damaging others' property. It becomes a whole different ballgame when somebody puts a hole in the tent you spent a good many hours

"To be precise, the Scout Staff seems to have held a larger place in the Scout World at one time. It is obvious that a bunch of standard size and marked staves (!) have a multitude of uses." I wonder how much the advent of trekking poles changed that, or whether the popularity of staves just gradually declined for other reasons. I recently did a long-distance hike using a pair of lightweight collapsible trekking poles, and they were a godsend. I can't imagine using two wooden staves for the same purpose. The staves sold at our council camp trading posts get ridiculed by a lot of Scou

A few links to rules: http://www.pack39.org/Events/raingutter_regatta.htm http://pack152.net/AllDens/RainGutterRegatta/CheckList.htm http://www.pack948.org/RGR/2004/RGRUnlimited2004.htm

Another option: I have heard of, but not yet tried, "smoking" a staff to decorate it. From Indian Scout Craft and Lore, by Charles Eastman (Dover Publications, p. 92), discussing "wand games": "To decorate in Indian fashion, you must take off with a sharp knife a long strip of bark; then, having scraped off all the rest, wind your ribbon of bark spirally round the peeled wand. After fastening each end securely, hold it over a smudge fire until it is well smoked. Then remove the strip and you will find a spiral of white against the deep yellow of the uncovered wood. Sometimes two strips ar

I would have thought "Achy Breaky Heart" more appropriate.

Unspoken was the reason: "But that's when We get to hang out, get a break from our families, drink coffee and show off to each other!!" You're right, of course. 'Cause a campout without a Friday night leaders' meeting, pre-programmed events, a morning coffee station, awards ceremonies or a Saturday night cracker barrel isn't a real campout. Going into the woods with one other adult and a group of pimply-faced kids is too boring. I sometimes think the Girl Scouts in my council may be on to something. They hire part-time outdoor skills instructors to teach on a unit-by-unit b

Do you mean a plaque with an arrow mounted on it? I've seen lots of packs do that. There are some professional suppliers out there (google Arrow of light plaque), but your best bet may be to find a parent in the pack or troop who's got skills. The Scoutmaster of the troop I was joining made my den's AOLs and wrote a personal message on the back, so it made a very powerful impression. You can use real arrows from an archery shop (with target tips, not broadheads, of course) or make your own. However, unless you've got someone with serious skills, I'd suggest using real arrows. My little br

Our council has run Cub Family Weekends for a few years now. They're very popular, but as far as I know, the OA lodge has nothing to do with them. They seem to mainly be handled by summer camp staffers who volunteer their time, and are run by the council program director/resident camp director (one guy, about 10 hats). It seems to serve two purposes: (1) Giving Cubs an overnight experience, and (2) getting them psyched up for summer camp where the weekends are held. Seems like a perfect opportunity for the OA to get involved.

evmori - I know laser tag seems to be up in the air in G2SS, but I was actually inquiring about paintball, which seems to be unauthorized unless it's strictly target practice. The high adventure base in Texas has human-shaped targets.

From G2SS: "Pointing any type of firearm or simulated firearm at any individual is unauthorized. Scout units may plan or participate in paintball, laser tag or similar events where participants shoot at targets that are neither living nor human representations." After reading this G2SS section and recent threads, it seemed pretty well established that paintball is generally prohibited in Scouting. I was therefore kind of surprised today to click on the Longhorn Council's HA base ad on this site and read through the leaders' guide to find this description (at the Area 51 Outpost, p. 9):

moxieman - I love that story! For another '80s retread reference, there's also the Cobra Kai dojo in the Karate Kid movies.

I agree with everything said so far - jblake hits it right on the head. A few more points: - I hate it when kids have to sit on the floor separated from adults. I've seen it devolve into chaos too many times at library presentations, story hours, etc. Any time kids sit on the floor, you have to have something that holds their attention EXTREMELY closely. As soon it gets boring, they start looking, poking, whispering, punching, getting tired and lying down... a recipe for a big mess. Sitting them in individual spaces breaks them up and you lose the "mob." - Den leaders and den chiefs

We ran one at the summer camp I worked as part of our rotating "Pirates" theme. We had old metal raingutters, and keeping those suckers from leaking was a huge pain. We set them up on sawhorses with C-clamps and blocks. The Cubs made and decorated their ships during Handicraft sessions during their week, so there wasn't much of a chance for parents to soup them up. If you're doing it outside - which I heartily recommend - you can turn the raingutters into a great treat. After the regatta is over, take the Cubs away out of sight of the site for a couple of minutes - maybe for a quick game

And to think that before yesterday, I had no idea what fake dog poop was, let alone that it could be sprayed! The things you learn at Scouter.com...

I'd probably get swatted down if I suggested this today, but camp promotions doesn't just mean promoting your council camps. OOC camps qualify as well, IMHO! Camp is camp! My council has a DVD. I can't imagine a situation where a unit wouldn't be able to provide a DVD player and TV if given proper notice. It's a few years old, so everyone has seen it, probably multiple times. The Scouter you referenced may have had good reason for not wanting to talk - the OA is youth-run, and he's an adult; perhaps he's not a good public speaker; maybe he didn't have a good experience at summer camp

If costs are a concern, you might want to consider alternative outdoor meeting places, which can be used for most of the year. Is there a community park, state park, open field, farm or large back yard that the troop can use? Outdoor meetings are preferable to indoor ones any day of the week. If really bad weather comes up, cancel the meeting. If it's just raining, put up patrol tarps and continue.

Please let us know how it goes and what he has to say! Sounds interesting.