20 April 2009
BSA: How to Win at Camporee
Posted by admin under: Outings .
For me the Camporee is to Boy Scouts as the Pinewood Derby is to Cub Scouts. It’s supposed to be a day for the kids to have fun and enjoy the program, but it’s also a day for their parents and leaders to try to get them to win! Yes, there’s plenty of fellowship around the campfire at night and the Scout’s Own service at the end of the weekend really teaches us about our similarities, but before that is the cut-throat competition.
My troop tries to limit our outings to one per month. It seems that no matter how hard we try other things sneak into the program, though. Invited events from local politicians or our sponsor, requests from Cub Scout units for our boys, and the simple joy of getting outdoors that compels generally level-headed adults to add too much to the calendar with the willing approval of the boys.
Our district hold its Camporee every April and that means we’re defnitely having two events that month. Camporee and Camporee Prep. It’s easy to get lax with making sure the entire troop is current with their knots. The boys get signed off on a requirement and you generally don’t think about it again until they need to know it and then you re-drill it into their mushy little melons. To give our guys the best possible hone on their competitive edge we always take them on a camp-out a couple of weeks prior to Camporee and double-check their skills.
We’ve just added a bunch of shorties to the troop. Some are bridge crossers fresh from their Arrow of Light ceremonies. Most are friends of friends because we’ve been putting a big emphasis on recruiting since our numbers have dropped off in the last year. So, this year’s Camporee Prep was not just to recheck the old guys, but to give our newest recruits the fast start training in their first class path. Our troop holds the record for fastest string burn time and we’ve carefully cultivated our pyromaniacs to keep that title. Good old Mr. Admin gets to spend many sessions with the kids teaching the knots then telling them to retie it three more times just to make sure they’ve got it. Map and Compass. Five man snowshoe. First Aid. And the oft rehearsed patrol yell for the coveted Spirit Stick that has been in our possession four of the past five years.
Getting a winning patrol ready for Camporee isn’t chance. It’s teaching the boys throughout the year and not signing off a requirement until you’re sure they know it (oh, yeah, and that’s kind of the way to get them through rank advancement, too). It’s push-ups, or mandatory fun as it has come to be called since some council personnel started giving a wide definition to the term “hazing”, for uniform infractions that will be marked down during the competition. Above all, though, it’s putting them through their paces right before the district event. It’s kind of like cramming for a college exam, but with more poison oak involved.
This weekend was our Camporee Prep. We had a great time. We took time out for a geocache expedition and the leaders got to know the kids a little more. This one is really into fire-building. That one has a knack for knots. This guy knows how to keep cadence for snowshoe. This guy needs a lot more help on his bowline. Coach this guy to half-step a little faster than the others so he gets in time. By the end of the weekend you’ve put the time into getting some guys past their rough spots and you know everyone has had recent exposure to what they’re going to get at Camporee.
Winning isn’t everything, but if a patrol doesn’t get to take a ribbon home for at least one of their events they’ll generally feel like losing is. So, we try to get them to the points where they’ll be able to succeed. Next weekend is Camporee. I’ll actually be absent because of a Girl Scout commitment so I’m keeping my fingers crossed and when I show up at campfire after the competition is all closed I hope to hear some positive reports.Sunday’s award ceremony after Scout’s Own will be the puddin’ proof.
- BSA: Camporee Finale
- International Camporee
- FastTracks
- BSA Field Testing Mandatory Training
- Your Training Reminder
3 Comments so far...
JC Shepard Says:
20 April 2009 at 11:36 am.
“My troop tries to limit our outings to one per month.” Limit? Oh, boy, what I wouldn’t give for at LEAST one outing a month. I’ve tried to encourage PLC to schedule something each month, but sports usually limit us to the short windows between seasons.
admin Says:
20 April 2009 at 12:43 pm.
What a bummer. We’re convinced that the reason we’re one of the strongest troops in our district (the best, natch) is because we have a very strong program. Trying to get the boys more involved in executing that calendar is the real challenge.
JC Shepard Says:
22 April 2009 at 2:29 pm.
New Scouting magazine has an article on the Annual Planning Conference. One example Troop does Program Plan 2x year, after elections: confirm 6 months, then plan 6 months out. I’m thinking it’s something to consider.
