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"Wish-I-had" this when I took wood badge:


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Hi to the forum:

 

Any of you wood-badgers have any good tips of gear that a trainee might want to bring to the training sessions?

 

The list of "standard required items" is easily found, but I'm curious about hearing about some experience "wish i had: ____ when I was a trainee..."

 

Thanks,

 

craig

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For most courses the lists provided by the CD and his or her staff cover what you need.

The first weekend does entail way too much time in the sitting position.

It's kinda hard to engage brain when you have a sore behind. A cushion helps.

Many people going to the course worry about The Ticket.

This is covered really well and their is lots of people that are willing to help.

Your Patrol will be asked to do a presentation as a Patrol.

The Troop Guides will have done one as an example for you to see when you arrive at the course.

You might however want to bring some copies of Scouting and Boy's Life Magazines which might help you and the Patrol come up with an inspired idea.

As skeptic posted the course is very intense so getting a good nights sleep is important. Anything that helps you more comfortable at night is a good idea.

If you have a special skill that might help your Patrol you might want to bring whatever stuff goes along with that. However you need to not go overboard with it. Playing your ukulele at 0200 is not going to win you very many friends.

Eamonn.

 

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Umbrella.

Extra pen and felt tip marker. Sketch pad.

Pad for seat.

Canteen/waterjug on shoulder strap.

Star chart/binoculars for clear sky.

Clear sky.

Duct tape.

The oldest Scout Field Book you can find.

Pocket knife, recently sharpened.

Every old camp song and cheer from your own Scout days...

 

 

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Any nifty campfire snack recipe you might want to share.

 

A spirit of adventure for any possible "midnight missions" :) (depending on your CD and SPL for the class of course)

 

A positive attitude. I am always amazed at the ones who go, then act miserable. The training is valuable, but...shhhh...it's fun too.

 

Lastly, I wish I had been a Good Ol' Beaver. Wait a minute, I am!!

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If you are at all "crafty" a few things would be nice along the lines of leather roping, beads, blank leather medallions, y'know, stuff my Cubmaster sister has coming out of her ears...

 

Vicki

C-12-04 Go Bears!

C-4-08 Bear in a Bobwhite suit(This message has been edited by Vicki)

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  • 1 month later...

A smaller day pack - never used the bladder in the camel back and didn't need the weight.

A smaller flashlight - the huge Maglight was heavy and difficult to hold in my mouth while my hands were busy!

A better light for my tent - the little LED lantern that was five bucks at Wally World didn't put out enough light in all the right places to do me much good.

A lighter back pack - too much gear. Learned that Be Prepared could be done in lighter weight versions.

More Febreeze :)

The new Scout pants - the pockets in the old ones are not gear friendly.

A piece of rope to loop over the beam of the Camp tent to hang my uniform from. (Hint: Do NOT use the straps you tie the flaps back with - your shirt stays against the side all night - both mornings I put on a damp shirt).

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I was one of the few to bring a seat cushion, and I'm glad I did. Seating in the hall was on hard-seated folding chairs, and seating in our patrol area was on picnic table benches. I frequently stood up and moved around.

 

In our case, the course was held at a local camp, and the craft lodge was open for us. We all had decorated our patrol flags (but we had to do so quickly). Bringing crafty-type stuff for decorations is not a bad idea.

 

They give you lots of handouts (and we were provided a 3-ring binder), but having some extra paper isn't a bad idea.

 

Bring a good attitude. Your future patrol members will thank you for it. Our patrol has had fun, even though we were rushed and always tired. I can't really recall spending much time in the "storming" phase -- then again, maybe that's still in store for us :-).

 

Guy

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