Scoutmaster Musings

• You lean across the finish line winning the race, while the other guy loses.
• You get first chair trumpet in band and the other guy gets second chair.
• You make the varsity wrestling team, but the other guy in your weight doesn't.
• You sell the most popcorn and get the top-seller prize, and the other guy ...
• Looking out my window, I see first graders lining up for the bus. They run to be first in line, sometimes even getting upset and crying if they are last.
• Driving through town, I see people floor it so they can get past one more car and be first at a stoplight.

• Matches - simple, cheap, easy to use. Diamond Strike-Anywhere matches or Wooden matches, instead of cardboard, dipped in wax and stored in a film cannister work great in all weather.


• BIC Lighter - as long as you don't crack the plastic container, these are cheap, easy, and usable in all weather. They are difficult for younger scouts.


• Ferrocerium Striker - very easy way to make sparks. As long as you have fine, dry tinder that catches a spark, you're good to go.


• Flint and Steel - the classic. With some practice, sparks are the reward.


• Fire Piston - a fun way to create an ember through simple air compression.


• Bow Drill - (also hand drill) With some sweat and perseverence, you get a lot of smoke and finally some chardust with a glowing ember. This is my favorite 'primitive' method and I have lots of room for growth.


• Magnifying Glass - also a clear ball of ice or water in a baggie can work. Focusing the sun's rays to a point on some good tinder starts it burning. Only useful on sunny days. You can use the concave bottom of a soda can too.


• Fire Plow - same principle as a bow drill, but takes more work and just the right wood.


• Battery and Steel Wool - in an emergency, or just for show, you can shortcircuit the battery through the steel wool which ignites. Not practical for planned fires, but will work in a pinch.


• Piezo-electric Igniter - these are in your gas grill and make a small blue electric spark. It won't get an ember going, but can ignite liquid fuel. Best for experiments, not fire lighting.

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of SPOT. All opinions are 100% mine.

I've told you a few times about the SPOT Satellite GPS messenger that our troop uses on our backpacking adventures.  It's a great little gadget that gives you access to rescue help in an emergency, but more commonly lets folks back home track your progress through the wilds.  And, when you get home, you can tie your photos to your trek route for an interactive view.

If you missed past deals from the folks at SPOT, here's another one that sounds pretty good.  When you buy the new SPOT Messenger, you get a $50 bonus adventure kit that includes 15% off Basic Service, a flotation case, LED flashlight, safety whistle, bandana, lanyard, and keychain.  Maybe your troop should put one of these in its budget for the coming year and get it for Christmas.

I like that SPOT is one-way communication.  It doesn't beep or chirp or ring with incoming messages, but it keeps everyone at home in touch with our location. 

If you only use it for a single Philmont trek, the annual service with tracking would just be around an extra $10/person.  But, you'll surely use it for many other outings.  It costs our scouts about $2.50/year for the troop to have one.  We've used it for backpacking, canoeing, and biking.  I've even taken it on 10-mile practice hikes so parents could see when we were approaching the pick-up location so they'd be there on time.  It's cheap insurance and a good use of technology in the scouting world.

• need more layers of clothes
• need easier meals in cold weather
• need more fuel
• warming up inside makes your clothes wet
• cleaning dishes is hard in the cold

In response to my previous post about recruiting tips, someone asked about specifically recruiting NON-Webelos. Well, here you go. I'd love to hear from anyone that tries them.

There are a lot of 5th and 6th grade boys in your community that were not active in the Cub Scout program. This is a prime time to recruit these boys into your troop, along with Webelos crossing over from Packs.

The best way to recruit these boys is by having scouts talk with them. Consider using these tips to motivate your new scouts to recruit a few more scouts:

1. Recruiter Strip - If a scout gets someone to join, the scout gets a patch. And, there's a special spot for it on his uniform.
2. First Class Requirement - Push the "tell a friend to join" requirement to be one of the first requirements for all new scouts. There's a better chance of getting someone to join at the same time rather than a year later.
3. Free Camping - Every scout that brings a friend on a camping trip, gets to go for free.
4. Non-scouting Activity - Plan a non-scouting, two-hour activity just for the new scouts and their friends. Bowling, swimming, basketball, anything physical and indoors that non-scouts will enjoy as much as scouts. Scouts can only sign up with a non-scout buddy.
5. Sports Teams - Remind scouts that the end of a sports season in which they play is a great time to ask the other guys on the team, "So, now what are you gonna do?" and invite them to try Scouts.
6. Trinkets - our troop has wooden nickels which scouts can give to friends to promote the troop.
7. Troop Open House - A specific time planned for introducing boys and parents to scouting. See this document.
8. School Talk - If you can get access to your local school, giving a short promotional talk to the 5th grade and/or 6th grade boys can be successful. See Page 20.
9. Scout Skill Day - Have scouts invite non-Webelos to your Scout-o-rama to learn some fun scout skills and impress their parents.
10. Hidden Recruiting - If you do a fundraiser, include postcards to give with each order. The card asks the buyer to give it to the parent of a 5th or 6th grade neighbor boy and invites him and his parent to call for more information about the troop.

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of NAVTEQ. All opinions are 100% mine.

A few years ago, we had an adult driver arrive at our campsite almost an hour after everyone else. He had an onboard navigation system which his family had nicknamed 'Loulou'.

He would just enter their destination and then trustingly follow the directions and instructions it gave him...
"Turn right at the next intersection."
"Turn left."

He loved this system because it saved him lots of effort remembering directions. Unfortunately, on this outing to a remote area, the system knew of a road that used to connect to another road, but now actually led to a deadend. After the system insisted he use that same road twice, he finally gave up and got help at a local gas station - the old-fashion way.

If he had only upgraded his system's map information, he'd probably have been the first at the campsite and in a calm, worry-free mood.

Most in-car navigation systems are driven by technology from NAVTEQ and the updates are easy to get. By visiting NAVTEQ's map update page, you can find the exact update for your vehicle with the latest road and travel information.

How many people would think of this for a Christmas gift?
You can give it to your wife as a gift that keeps the family safe, makes her driving easier, and doesn't need to be returned for the right size.
You know Dad would be happy to have an up-to-date database of gas stations and new roadways so he never needs to ask directions along the way.
I'd love it if all our Scouters had such a system to make our outings a bit more safe and easy.

This is another good use of electronic technology that doesn't reduce the pleasure of the outdoors. I found out the latest revision of the NAVTEQ data includes:

• 5.5 million miles of road - driving 100mph for 6 years wouldn't cover them all
• 1.8 million points of interest - lots of roadside exploring for scout outings
• 430,000 restaurants - in case the poptarts run out
• 65,000 hotels - for those rained-out campouts
• 96,000 gas stations - for coffee stops, bathroom breaks, junk food, and oh yeah, gas!

Hey, there's no reason you can't get an update for yourself - just say "Merry Christmas to Me"!

• Backpacking - builds on their camping skills and expands from simple weekend campouts. Great to include in Philmont preparation.
• Camping - promotes more planning and preparation, and requires more camping and cooking experience.
• Cooking - promotes varied and healthy cooking. A good merit badge for scouts planning their own high adventure trip.
• First Aid - almost all 'explain' and 'describe' requirements. Completion of the Red Cross Wilderness and Remote First Aid course pretty much covers all the requirements.
• Hiking - gets scouts out on the trail. I'd say this is the best badge for getting in shape and it's an obvious choice to include in Philmont preparation.
• Orienteering - great exposure to more map and compass skills, crucial for high adventure treks.
• Pioneering - additional knots and lashing work, culminating in a full-scale project planned and executed by the scout.
• Swimming - expands on the First class requirements. A good pre-trek requirement for Sea Base.
• Weather - helps scouts understand how weather happens so they can be more prepared on adventures. This is one area not really covered in rank advancement.
• Nature/Bird Study/Mammal Study/Insect Study/Reptile & Amphibian Study - more exposure to the natural world after the 10 animals and plants requirements.

• Gore-tex - for helping us enjoy camping in the rain
• Victorinox - for making a high quality knife
• Ferrocerium - for making it possible to have sparks any time
• Dutch Ovens - for showing scouts you can cook real food outdoors
• Digital Cameras - for making instant, free memories possible
• Guyot Designs - for imaginitive, innovative products like squishy bowls, firefly light, and splashguards
• Raccoons - for teaching more scouts the value of securing food than all other animals combined
• Tentpole Clips - for saving thousands of minutes that would have been wasted sliding tentpoles through sleeves.
• Polar Fleece - for warmth in all it forms; hats, jackets, balaclavas, pants - everything but snuggies.
• Scout Challenge - for providing an incentive for older scouts to stay active in regular troop stuff.

• WRFA - Wilderness and Remote First Aid provides leaders exposure to handling emergencies while out scouting. Whether it's a weekend campout or 10-day Philmont trek, this training is vital knowledge. At least two adults on every outing should have this training.
• CPR - Heart problems can occur in adults at any time, whether hiking or at a troop meeting. All adults and youth over 14 should know how to do CPR and be exposed to AED usage.
• Youth Protection (online) - It's mandatory for all BSA volunteers and is designed to help you keep our youth safe from abuse. You will learn the Boy Scouts of America's Youth Protection Guidelines, signs of abuse, and how to report suspected abuse. Every adult that interacts with youth should take it every two years. Required for 'Trained' patch and Scout Leader's Training award.
• Intro to Outdoor Leader Skills - Introduction to the tenderfoot, 2nd class, and 1st class scouting skills so adults can help scouts complete their requirements. It doesn't make sense for someone to sign off on a first aid or knot tying requirement if he doesn't know the skill well himself. All adults that teach or sign off should take it. Required for 'Trained' patch and Scout Leader's Training award.
• Scoutmaster Specific - Three sections to introduce scoutmasters and assistants to the workings of a Boy Scout troop. Good exposure for all parents, and required for 'Trained' patch and Scout Leader's Training award.
• Safe Swim Defense (online) - Learn the safety guidelines for all water activities in the BSA. All swimming activities in Scouting are required to follow the eight principles known collectively as the Safe Swim Defense plan. A unit that follows the plan can expect a safe, enjoyable aquatic experience. Safe Swim Defense is required for BSA tour permits.
• Safety Afloat (online) - Learn the safety guidelines for boating activities in the BSA. All boating activities in Scouting are required to follow the nine principles of Safety Afloat. With an emphasis on accident prevention through proper preparation and skills, a unit that follows Safety Afloat can expect a safe, enjoyable activity. Safety Afloat is required for BSA tour permits for any trip afloat. /li>
• Trek Safely (online) - Learn how to safely plan and lead a high adventure trek using the BSA guidelines. Covers seven key safety points about trekking and is recommended for adult leaders organizing any type of trek. You will watch a brief video broken into two sections and answer questions after each section.
• Climb On Safely (online) - Learn the BSA climbing guidelines. Covers eight key safety points about climbing and rappelling and is recommended for adult leaders organizing any type of climbing outing. You will watch a brief video broken into three sections and answer questions after each section.
• Weather Hazards (online) - Learn to plan for bad weather and make good decisions when you are out in it. Must be completed prior to requesting a tour permit from the BSA. The module presents safety precautions for eight different types of weather, as well as planning, preparation, and traditional weather signs.

• Hold the match like writing with a tiny pencil
• Place your index finger and thumb up by the butt of the match, rather than the head
• Place your middle finger close to the head of the match
• Use your middle finger to put pressure on the matchhead to box
• Strike the match towards you rather than away from you
• Let the matchwood start burning before placing the match in your fire.