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Advice for 2017 Jamboree Contingent Leader?


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Hello!

 

I'm currently a Life Scout heading out to Washington D.C. and then West Virginia in the coming weeks, and I was wondering if anyone could tell me about their experience from their past Jamborees. I'm looking for anything really- share a story, tell about a particular experience you had, a special program(s) that you wished you had known about before heading off to your Jamboree, any tips, etc.- there are no limits. I need to get a general feel of what I should be expecting for Jamboree and my Contingent, especially since I want everyone to have a good experience and to get the most out of their time at Jamboree. 

 

I know that National Jamboree has a website too, and while it might have some pertinent information, the advice and the things they tell you about Jamboree are too broad for my taste; I tend to enjoy other's interpretations, tips, and stories rather than reading something that tends to be textbook. 

 

Thank you all in advance!

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Welcome to the forum!  I was at the Centennial Jamboree.... be prepared for long walks and lots of heat.  Make sure your boys have plenty of water and good boots.  If there's a band playing at any of the programs, bring along ear plugs. 

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Play the "what if" game.   What if I get thirsty.  What if I get hungry. What if it rains (you get wet).  You will leave your camp after breakfast and probably not get back before dinner time.  Cook crew needs to plan that way, if they are out at the Barrels, and due back at ACamp for dinner duty,  leave with enough time !  Use the map. (frinstance)  It is a 90 (!) minute hike from Acamp to the Barrels or BMX. 

"But I heard there will be a bus shuttle".  With 35,000 Scouts, how's that going to work? 

 

Use the "Good Jambo" greeting to everyone...  It is appropriate and hey, let's start a new tradition.  

 

Boots /wool socks for walking,  sandals for around camp.  Clean socks.  DO NOT depend on the cell phone service. There will never be enough charging stations.   Bring another towel.  Set up laundry drying lines.  Rinse out early, dry for tomorrow.  Yes, the Scout Shop will have  what you need.... at almost twice what wallymart might charge.  Hats, sunglasses.   Holy book.  Cards for "Hearts". 

 

Control your desire to make the Consol Bridge rock.  Review the Takoma Narrows bridge film.   If you are invited to visit FCamp,  be advised it is the highest point in Jamboree other than the Dead Lot for parking....

 

Visit the "Duty to God and Country " pavilion.   Accept that you will NOT be able to do "everything", but you will do "a lot", and you will never forget  (most of) it !

 

Good Jambo ! 

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Welcome to the forum!  I was at the Centennial Jamboree.... be prepared for long walks and lots of heat.  Make sure your boys have plenty of water and good boots.  If there's a band playing at any of the programs, bring along ear plugs.

 

Centennial Jamboree, how fun! I will definitely be bringing earplugs now that you've mentioned it. As for the walking though, I don't know if I'm too ready for it, but at our Troop meeting this week I'll make sure that everyone has good, broken in boots, as well as checking waters every morning at Jamboree. As the saying goes, "Hydrate or Die!"

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Make a plan for each day. Develop patrol and troop spirit. Use the patrol method and have fun.

Thanks! With so much to do, there's no way I could not plan each day.Thankfully we have Event Truly to help us out.

 

I will definitely try my best to make sure everyone is having fun. I said that I would make sure that everyone was friends with one another and got the most out of Jamboree if I was SPL, and I don't plan on not fulfilling that vision.

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Play the "what if" game.   What if I get thirsty.  What if I get hungry. What if it rains (you get wet).  You will leave your camp after breakfast and probably not get back before dinner time.  Cook crew needs to plan that way, if they are out at the Barrels, and due back at ACamp for dinner duty,  leave with enough time !  Use the map. (frinstance)  It is a 90 (!) minute hike from Acamp to the Barrels or BMX. 

"But I heard there will be a bus shuttle".  With 35,000 Scouts, how's that going to work? 

 

Use the "Good Jambo" greeting to everyone...  It is appropriate and hey, let's start a new tradition.  

 

Boots /wool socks for walking,  sandals for around camp.  Clean socks.  DO NOT depend on the cell phone service. There will never be enough charging stations.   Bring another towel.  Set up laundry drying lines.  Rinse out early, dry for tomorrow.  Yes, the Scout Shop will have  what you need.... at almost twice what wallymart might charge.  Hats, sunglasses.   Holy book.  Cards for "Hearts". 

 

Control your desire to make the Consol Bridge rock.  Review the Takoma Narrows bridge film.   If you are invited to visit FCamp,  be advised it is the highest point in Jamboree other than the Dead Lot for parking....

 

Visit the "Duty to God and Country " pavilion.   Accept that you will NOT be able to do "everything", but you will do "a lot", and you will never forget  (most of) it !

 

Good Jambo !

 

Thanks!!! I appreciate all of the advice. When I first laid eyes on the Summit map, I was definitely not expecting such a large piece of property (but I don't know what else I was really expecting). Definitely going to emphasize time management at our Troop Meeting.

 

Hahaha not surprised at the markup on stuff at the Scout Store. When I went to Philmont I forgot my pad, and paid $80 for their cheapest one.... one that was regularly $50 at REI. Though I'll still be checking it out for that AWESOME scout eggar.

 

What is a Consol Bridge rock? See it's stuff like this I want to know more about. Maybe I'm missing a guide or something. Also, would you happen to know about Troop/Council rocks they put at the Garden place (blanking on name)? I saw them while going through the 2013 pictures.

 

I saw your other post on Good Jambo, and I would love to help start the tradition! I'll make sure to say it wherever I go, especially over the bridge.

 

Good Jambo!

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"Consol Bridge Rock" isn't a rock.  The Consol Energy Bridge spans the valley between the Summit Center and the Alpha and Bravo camps.  It's a hybrid suspension bridge where you can cross the bridge on the traditional bridge deck or along platforms on the suspension cable (don't worry, it's safe).  SSScout is saying to resist the temptation to make bridge sway like the Tacoma Narrows Bridge (look it up on YouTube for films of what happened to that bridge).

 

Everything else here is great advice.  But remember, Event Truly is no longer the Jambo app. A new one is now the new official app with AT&T's sponsorship on it.

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"Consol Bridge Rock" isn't a rock.  The Consol Energy Bridge spans the valley between the Summit Center and the Alpha and Bravo camps.  It's a hybrid suspension bridge where you can cross the bridge on the traditional bridge deck or along platforms on the suspension cable (don't worry, it's safe).  SSScout is saying to resist the temptation to make bridge sway like the Tacoma Narrows Bridge (look it up on YouTube for films of what happened to that bridge).

 

Everything else here is great advice.  But remember, Event Truly is no longer the Jambo app. A new one is now the new official app with AT&T's sponsorship on it.

Oh, thank you for clarifying that for me! Reading it now, I see what he means. I will definitely look that up on YouTube later today.

 

I will make sure to download the new app, I just saw them advertise it on the 2017 National Jamboree Snapchat. Thanks!!

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Back in 2013, the Consol bridge was a really neat design.  It copies the design of Millenium Bridge in London.  It was discovered that it had a possibly(!) fatal flaw, in that if too many people cross at the same time (it's a tourist attraction!) a harmonic swaying is set up. They don't even have to "march" in step to set it up.  Many good documentaries about this on line...   The supports of the bridge swayed many meters over the center line, actually throwing people off their feet. 

The Consol Bridge has the same basic design.  On opening day, all of A & B  camps tried to cross at the same time (it is the shortest route to the center of Jambo). Scouts ,10 across, all eager to get there,  packed the bridge,  walking across.  As the bridge started to sway, left and right, the walkers would sidestep to catch themselves from falling, and  correct the sway , but this actually reinforces it.  Another Scouter and I (he turned out to be a civil engineer !)  watched in amazement as the top of the vertical supports deflected almost 3  feet left and right !  We spoke with another Scouter and we closed the bridge until the bridge was empty and the  sway settled down. He took some pictures. We both wrote a report about it. After the bridge stilled, we allowed one third of the "gate" of the bridge to allow Scouts across.  That seemed to be okay. The bridge rattled and bounced, but did not start the back and forth .  Hence my comment about "rocking" the bridge.....

The Millenium Bridge was retrofitted with "dampers" and stiffeners.  I have not heard if the Consol Bridge was ever "fixed".   I was told it was built strong enough and wide enough to permit a small ambulance/Jeep to cross it, but that was then.    

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We have a very sturdy footbridge across a ravine at our local council camp.  On our first outing (new troop) I told the boys they should cross it one at a time because of the weight limit.  Now, over the years, my boys cross one at a time even though everyone else goes right on over.  Somehow they have never figured it out or too scared to question it.  Either way, it still brings a smile to my face that they would listen to me about bridges and nothing else.  :)

Edited by Stosh
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