Merit Badge College - Fall 2008

Dear Scouters,

Attached are the forms you need to sign up your Scouts for V-Da-Li
District Merit Badge College 2008.
Please disregard any dates you see on the Council or V-Da-Li activities
calendar THEY ARE WRONG! MBC 2008 will be held at The Gereau Center on
October 25th and November 15th.

Please make copies of the course offerings and MBC information as
appropriate to give to and sign up your Scouts. We do not anticipate
Council support in providing these documents in a timely manner. Please
note, THERE ARE REVISIONS TO THIS SCHEDULE OF CLASSES FROM THE PREVIOUS
EDITION which may impact your Scouts' selections. Please have your
Scouts pay attention to prerequisites. Doing so will increase the
probability of merit badge completion during the two MBC sessions.

If you are downloading the forms and typing Scout names directly onto
the registration form on your computer, please e-mail a copy to:
vdalimbc2008@yahoo.com  This e-mail address is a CHANGE TO THE ADDRESS
LISTED ON THE PREVIOUS DRAFT FORM I SENT TO YOU. We have several people
working part time to input Scout names and preferences (this is not done
by Council)from the information you provide to us.  If you are unable to
e-mail registration sheets to vdalimbc2008@yahoo.com , please be aware
that we will have to obtain copies of your registration forms from
Council after they process them along with your payment. This will
increase the time needed to process your Scouts and decrease the
likelihood we will be able to fit Scouts with their first choices.

To recap, please fill out the forms (1st, 2nd, 3rd, choices for Scout
merit badges), e-mail a copy of the registration forms (if possible)to
vdalimbc2008@yahoo.com , and mail or take registration forms and payment
to the Council office.

We apologize for the short notice and turn-around times. Please address
questions regarding MBC 2008 to vdalimbc2008@yahoo.com

Yours in Scouting,
Randy Conklin

TRAINING:

Please contact Eddie Parham if you are interested in any Trainings offered in the next couple of weeks. New Leader Essentials is now offered on-line at www.myscouting.org Leader Specific Training for Cub Leaders will be offered next week at the Potters house, 1107 Westover Drive in Danville at 6:30. Another session will be offered during the October RT, and more during October. There will be a training for all Boy Scout Leaders on the 3rd weekend in October. Look for Eddie to announce some more details regarding that training later. To be on Eddies contact list or to register for a training, send an e-mail to: eddyparham@comcast.net or eparham@etoys.com

BLACK-HAWK HELICOPTERS AT THE CAMPOREE!!!

ITS NOT TOO LATE!! The US armed forces had promised to have an actual Black-hawk Helicopter on the grounds of the Camporee at Hargrave Military academy. There will also be other aircraft in the area and with the proper documentation; you or any of your scouts can take a ride in the sky aboard one of the aircraft. A release form produced by the National BSA regarding flying is required before the event. So please mark it on your calendars for September 19th-21st and point the truck towards Hargrave Military Academy because the largest Troop in the District, Troop 68, will be hosting with the help of Police Academy Post 911.


ADDITIONAL CAMPOREE INFORMATION

Bring your own water, Bring long pants if your scouts plan on doing the obstacle course, and please do not enter Hargrave from the main entrance - you must go down Hodnett's Mill Road, Only one vehicle may come down to the camping area and should be a 4-wheel drive vehicle (preferable if trailers could be left up at the parking area, but scout masters definitely would want to assess possibility of bringing their trailers down the road to the campsite before they actually do it...particularly if it rains much between now and then.)

NEW ADULT APPLICATIONS

A new added measure has been included on the adult application regarding back-ground checks. New applications are being sent soon that have the changes written on the form. All of the old applications are still good; however, they need an extra piece included when submitting the application. I will send the extra piece as an attachment and a link. This will directly effect the Join Scouting nights in collecting applications. 

From Shirley at Council about Popcorn:

This information about OrderPopcorn.com was sent to each unit that has
turned in a Commitment form.  If you have units that change their unit
coach or if you receive information for new unit coaches, you must sent
me that information so that I can set them up in the system.  All
commitment forms that I have received are entered.  Everyone should have
received an email from Trails End by now with their password in it.  If
not, let me know and we will get it to them.  Please advise each unit to
try to use their password to get into the system now so that they are
not in a panic at the last second when they are trying to place their
order. 

Please note that our council will be using any order to OrderPopcorn.com
that is placed between 9/26/08 and 10/31/08 towards the Scout's prizes.

Thanks,
Shirley Neiderhiser
Camp and Popcorn Registrar
Blue Ridge Mountains Council
Phone: 540-777-7963
Fax: 540-265-0659

Welcome!

The BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS council has once again provided the opportunity
for you to earn additional profit at OrderPopcorn.com. Your Consumers
now can purchase popcorn at OrderPopcorn.com with your Unit and Scout
Order Keys. More information about how your Unit and Scouts can earn
additional profit through this OrderPopcorn.com program is available
below.

Please remember that Orderpopcorn.com should NOT be used to place your
regular Unit Popcorn Orders. Your Unit Popcorn Order should be submitted
to your BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS Council through the Popcorn System with
your unique username and password at Trails-End.com.

A very important message from Brenda hardy at Council:

FYI –

Beginning with back to school youth applications this fall any adult that registers a youth and is not the legal guardian/parent must complete a separate adult application. Per membership services, the adult application must be signed by the CR/CC for the unit.  

There is no fee. We do not register the person.  I have to keep these applications for 3 years in the unit file.  To help me keep track of who is who, PLEASE mark these applications somewhere across the top "NON-CUSTODIAL PARTNER".

I realize we need to get youth applications processed asap; therefore, I would suggest pulling those Non-Custodial Partner applications out separate and getting signatures asap, then getting them to me.

Any questions, please let me know.

 

Brenda  Hardy, Registrar

BSA Rifle

 

 

Sent to you by David via Google Reader:

 

 

BSA Rifle

via ScoutMaster Musings on 9/16/08

Got $900 to blow and love rifles? Henry Repeating Arms has designed a BSA 100th Anniversary Commemorative rifle that will fulfill your needs.

It's a .22 so maybe we'll see some at summer camp next year. :-)

I guess this is really what you'd call a niche market - a $900 .22 rifle.

Scout On

 

 

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Great for a Solo Backpacker (NOT RECOMMENDED FOR YOUNGER SCOUTS)

Trail Designs “Caldera Keg” - Initial test

from Lighthiker's World by lighthiker

I’m one of the “heat water only to re-hydrate food on the trail” kind of guys and I’m happy with Ramen noodles and the like for a long time. Having said that I was always searching for a lightweight and compact combo for solo usage which just does that. You already find kits like the Sputnik and Grammwenies kitchen but I could find nothing which included all parts in one set plus having the efficiency of the cone system. Until now…

Trail Designs released their new Caldera Keg system a short while ago and I couldn’t resist to order one right away adding one more item to my cooking equipment range…But what a worthwhile purchase it was! The Caldera Cone system has already been proven being the most efficient alcohol stove system currently out there tested by various hikers and magazines.
What impressed me about the Keg was that the guys from Trail Designs put really everything what you need into one box. Obviously the stove, the special windshield and the alcohol bottle but also a pot cosy, the pot itself (a modified beer keg from Foster), a lip guard which fits on top of the pot allowing you to grab the pot without burning your fingers and a storage container for everything which doubles as a mug and a bowl.
The Foster beer keg/pot has been modified with a flatter bottom and a “ridge” which holds the keg/pot in place within the cone and it’s height also represents the water amount of two cups or 425ml (0.45qt). Total capacity of the pot is 750ml (0.79qt). I put all items separately on my digital kitchen scale and those are the results:

Total weight, with everything: 194g (6.9 oz)

• Stove: 16g (0.56oz)
• Windscreen/Cone : 29g (1.02oz)
• Fuel bottle + measuring cup: 22g (0.77oz)
• Pot with lip guard: 30g (1.06oz)
• Pot lid: 6g (0.21oz)
• Pot cozy: 5g (0.25oz)
• Carry case bottom-bowl: 45g (1.59oz)
• Carry case top-mug:41g (1.45oz)

This all packs into an impressively small and compact unit as shown below and you also have a secure dent-free solution to transport your cone in the future.

How does it perform? I used my usual setup and tested the stove with no wind inside the kitchen letting him heat up two cups (425ml) of 7 °C (44.6 °F) cold water until it reached 95 °C (203 °F). The video below shows the whole test:

The time needed was 360 seconds and fuel consumption in this scenario was almost 15ml (0.01qt). You might need something extra if it is cold/windy outside but you can calculate on your own how long you will have a weight benefit with a alcohol vs. canister vs. white gas cooking system setup using this calculator.
Anything I would change after a few boils? I would add some fiberglass wick underneath the lip guard (or simply exchange the current lip guard with a wider version or add a second one) allowing me to grab the keg more comfortable/secure. I would also knot a little fiberglass wick loop in order to hold the keg lid better or exchange the metal one with one these wood knobs shown below:

And finally I will add two heat resistant/isolating pieces (either made from this material if it works or two silicon ring pieces like the one used for the lip guard) and glue them onto opposite sides of the cone so I can hold the cone while getting the keg out when both are still hot.

Pack Packing from Scoutmaster Musings on BoyScoutTrail.com

The training for high adventures or weekend hike-in campouts should include proper pack weight distribution skills.

It makes sense to most people to pack the heaviest things in the bottom of the pack, but that isn't correct. A quick demonstration is all it takes to convince them that high and close to the hiker's back is best. It's all about center of gravity.

When standing normally, your body has a center of gravity running from your feet up through your head. There is the same amount of weight in front and behind and side to side of this imaginary vertical line. If you bend your head backwards, your hips move forward to counter the weight. If you lean to the left, your hips move to the right. Pretty simple.

When you plop a pack on your back that weighs 1/4 to 1/3 your body weight, you naturally need to lean forward to counter it. But, packed correctly, the amount of lean can be reduced resulting in more comfortable, upright posture while backpacking.

Place a heavy tent or dense food at the top, close to your back. When you lean forward a little, this weight crosses the center of gravity, helping to offset the rest of the pack weight. 
Place that same tent low on the pack and you need to lean forward further to offset the weight. 
The further out from your body a heavy item is placed, the more lean is required to offset it.
A heavy item to one side will require lean to the other side to offset.

So, high and close centered side to side is key for the heaviest, most dense items. Sleeping bag and pad should be low. Lightweight items like an empty water jug can be furthest out.

Here is a scout at Philmont. See how far back the sleeping bag and pot are? If he moved that sleeping bag and pad to the top of his pack, he wouldn't feel like someone was trying to pull him over backwards.

Any item, such as the cooking pot, that is free to swing will cause problems. Things like sleeping bags thumping against the backs of legs drive hikers insane and the weight motion causes them to use extra energy. They will also eventually swing their way loose and fall in the dust. Be sure to strap everything down well.

Even though I don't personally like camelbacks, their design is cool for this weight distribution concern - heavy water close to your back and centered. If you have two 1-litre bottles like me, one on each side of your pack, that is 2.5lbs on each side. If you drink all of one, you're lopsided. Drinking some from each side keeps the load even.

Roundtable News

Scout Leaders,

Just a note to say thanks for attending the Boy Scout Roundtable this past Thursday night. If you did not write down the website address given out here it is: www.danriverroundtable.blogspot.com. I have also attached the survey handed out at the RT to this email, if you did not fill one out, please do so and send it back to me. Don't forget your $1 at the next meeting to continue the 'Cracker Barrel' that I think everyone enjoyed. If you have any ideas or suggestions please email them to me. If you enjoyed the new format, please let your fellow Scoutmasters know and invite them to the next Roundtable. Look forward to seeing you all next month.

Are you prepared for Winter Emergencies?
Are you ready for Thunderstorms?
Build a catapult.
Engineering merit badge worksheet.
Build a suspension bridge
Winter Camp Checklist
Pig Story
Google Sketch Up (Free 3D software)
The Outdoor Code


David Hyler
Boy Scout Roundtable Commissioner

If you really want to do something, You will make a way. If you don't, You will make an excuse.

New Roundtable Starts Tonight

This site is for Scoutmasters to leave comments, recipes, suggestions, game ideas, experiences, or advice. Please feel free to posts to this blog, keeping in mind this is a Scouting Site. All posts will be moderated by Commissioner. Thanks.