Walking Merit Badge
The long-awaited Walking merit badge requirements have been released today. Though not an Eagle-required badge, I expect this one will be one of the most popular badges to collect in 2015.
Requirements for the Walking merit badge:
- Do the following:
- Explain to your counselor the most likely hazards you may encounter while walking, and what you should do to anticipate, help prevent, mitigate, and respond to these hazards.
- Show that you know first aid for injuries or illnesses that could occur while walking, including hypothermia, heatstroke, heat exhaustion, frostbite, dehydration, sunburn, sprained ankle, insect stings, tick bites, snakebite, blisters, hyperventilation, altitude sickness, sudden cardiac arrest, malaria, typhoid, chicken pox, hangnail, ambulophobia, and spontaneous combustion.
- Explain and, where possible, show the points of good walking practices including putting one foot in front of the other, staying upright, courtesy to others, choice of footwear, and proper care of feet and footwear.
- Write a 300-word report about how walking was invented. Share this report with your counselor.
- Make a written plan for a 6-mile walk. Include a map route, equipment list, list of emergency phone numbers, list of food stops along the route, list of homes with dogs or large cats along the route, and list of bus, train, or taxi stops along the route.
- Do FIVE of the following accompanied by a parent, or designated adult:
- Walk and chew gum for at least five minutes without choking.
- Walk on your hands for at least two minutes without falling.
- Walk backwards for at least five minutes without running into any person, animal, or inanimate object.
- Read "A Walk in the Woods" or watch the movie. Report to your counselor about how the book or movie presents the mindset of people that walk. As an alternate, you may watch and report on at least three full seasons of "Walking Dead".
- Memorize, and present at a campfire, at least three "Walks Into a Bar..." jokes. Poll your fellow scouts to find which one was the most popular and report back to your counselor.
- Have a talk with your father or grandfather about how he walked to school. If possible, walk from his childhood home to his old schoolhouse and determine if it actually is uphill both ways or not. Report your findings to your counselor.
- Take a virtual walk on Google Earth or gmap-pedometer.com - the walk must be of at least 100 miles. The walk must start at your home and include at least two state or national parks or monuments, state capitols, national historic locations, or homes of famous people. Save the map of your walk and show it to your counselor.
- On a campout, cook dinner in a wok for your patrol. (This meal may NOT be used for the Cooking merit badge)
- Find out about three career opportunities in walking. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and explain why this profession might interest you.
Posted: 8:01 04-01-2015 1155
Comments:
Apr 01, 2015 - Chan
Sadly, I read all the way through the first 4 requirements shaking my head muttering WTH. :)
Great post!
Apr 01, 2015 - Camille
April Fools! This is a great one--I'll make sure my dad, husband, and two boys see this one.
Apr 01, 2015 - Nancy
Nice! I actually thought it was a spoof MB at first like Citizenship in the Universe!
Apr 01, 2015 - Bradford Greene
that was a good one. i love 5a and 5e.
Apr 01, 2015 - Michelle
Too funny. I posted to our page . :)
Apr 01, 2015 - Amy
me too! I started to read thinking "cool!" & opened it further & jumped into one of the last requirements & started laughing!
Apr 01, 2015 - Craig
I got as far as walk and chew gum before I realized. Very funny!
Apr 01, 2015 - Robert
5h. Visit or write to the Ministry of Silly Walks for information about Silly Walks. Explain to your counselor four types of Silly Walks. Create your own Silly Walk.
(for the Python of Monty fans)
Apr 01, 2015 - Carla
man, oh man..,you suckered me on big time!! Good one
Apr 01, 2015 - Kristi
This is fantastic! Good times. Thanks!
Apr 01, 2015 - Tom
5h, walk to your school or religious establishment and report to your councilor about what you experienced and what you learned on your walk.
5j, walk the talk and talk the walk
5k, walk in a circle for eight hours, explain how it was different than other walks you took
5l, enter a mile run and walk it, report to your councilor about how much people laughed at you.
5m, don't walk for 90 days and report to your councilor about the physical and mental effects and affects
Apr 02, 2015 - Craig M
Too Funny. Have to share this with the troop :)
Apr 24, 2015 - Sandra C
Just like Pet Rock merit badge or Citizenship in the Universe this would be a good one to do at summer camp, or at a PLC/JLT. Speaking of Pet Rock and Citizenship in the Universe... I'd love to see what requirements others came up for for those. Can't find my copy I had years ago nor a copy online anywhere.
May 01, 2015 - John M
You got me!
I didn't realize the date or scroll down to the comments before I sent this to our Scout Master for verification. LOL
It was silly but almost plausable until the cooking with the wok requirement.
May 01, 2015 - Outdoor Adventurer
I'm so gullible. Read as far as walk through 2 national parks or state parks, began to wonder about mapping 100 miles of walking... then scrolled down to the Comments and CHAN clued me in!
Jan 03, 2017 - mary berry
Lol!! WTH
Mar 03, 2017 - apparently gullible
my name says it all
Jan 10, 2018 - Shawn Brunson
I'm so gullible... I told my scoutmaster i wasnted to do this one, he looked at me like i was crazy, i tried explaining it, he still didn't believe me. I showed him the badge (from this website) and he ACTUALLY got me in contact with a counsler. The merit badge counsler looked at it, believed it. But told me he couldn't find a place where they sold it.
I earned the walking merit badge.
I earned the walking merit badge.
Dec 10, 2020 - Paul Bettany
2 1/2 years later and this post got me too until I was a good ways into
it. We also just started Boy Scouts and this was the second badge I ever
read about...
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