Tag You're It - Running a Camporee Your Way?

[RememberSchiff]

So you are approached or maybe ambushed by some District people, "Heh, our scouts need you to plan the fall/spring camporee."

 

You first thought is to politely say no with maybe an excuse of your preference - family, work, knee operation scheduled... But you reflect and consider if I'm in charge, we can finally get a camporee done right but first I need to make my conditions CLEAR to these micro-managing District-types.

 

What would your conditions be to accept?

 

Maybe

    - No one is selling anything at this camporee. I don't want to see OA selling candy/drinks (frequent) or girl scouts selling cookies (annoying).

    - Focus more on fun/challenges for older scouts rather than simplified games at Weebs level.

    - Yes to patrol competitions, no to merit badges.

    - Our SPL suggested a "dress down camporee" similar to school. I'm not sure how that would work.

    - Each unit is responsible for carrying health forms. We are not collecting them at event.

    - oh, uniform police need to pre-register. Registration fee is $150 which includes official camporee uniform police cap with jurisdiction limited to your own unit.

 

Or other conditions? What would you require?

 

Around here, camporees are dumbing down into merit badge college and/or Webelo recruitment weekends. Older scouts attendance is down even with fast-track merit badges, though admittedly it is a draw for younger scouts. Troops attendance is down too.  Let's get back to fun patrol competitions and set aside fundraising, merit badge mills, and recruitment.

 

Wonder why District hasn't called me back?

 

My $0.02

Edited February 2, 2016 by RememberSchiff

[Renax127]

All that sounds pretty good too me, but seriously sell Girl Scout cookies at a camporee?? I mean I like a tagalong as much as the next guy but come on.

 

Speaking of Merit Badge fair, my son is just completely over them only took two for him to figure it out.

Edited February 2, 2016 by Renax127

[RememberSchiff]

All that sounds pretty good too me, but seriously sell Girl Scout cookies at a camporee?? I mean I like a tagalong as much as the next guy but come on.

 

Yeah, they know when and how to sell. Some "scout moms" lead them around troop camp sites during Sat evening meal which is running late... business is brisk.

[Eagle94-A1]

With the exception of the OA trading post, I could live with it. Reason for the OA exemption is that the trading post money goes  to OA projects at the camp, and a campership to summer camp.  And the OA needs some money at the moment.  We just finished fully refurbishing a shelter, and are in the middle of rebuilding a bridge from one campsite to the rest of the camp. In fact, I think we don't have the campership money for this year, hoping to sell enough at a Webeloree next month to cover the campership.

[Krampus]

So you are approached or maybe ambushed by some District people, "Heh, our scouts need you to plan the fall/spring camporee."

 

[snip]

 

What would your conditions be to accept?

If it is my district they'd do this with not enough time to plan a decent event. 

 

IMHO such events SHOULD BE planned a year out. In fact, the district should have a 2-3 year plan where they are planning such large events WELL in advance. Anything less is a recipe for disaster.

 

I plan my vacations 6-12 months in advance and that's for 4 people. Why would I plan something for 800 people with any less time?

[CalicoPenn]

I'd insist on a SWAT team ready to mobilize, street-level maps covering all of Florida, a pot of coffee, twelve jammie dodgers, and a fez.

 

 

I'm with you - no to Merit Badges, no to OA or Girl Scout sales (Scout-Mom shows up at dinner with Girl Scout selling cookies is promptly escorted out of camp), yes to patrol competitions, no to uniform police.

 

Troops are responsible for their own Scouts, in all respects, not just health forms.

 

Create an overarching theme for the weekend and adapt the competition stories to it. 

 

6 months minimum to plan, and must have at least two volunteers from each unit to help run the competitions (those adults need something to do during the day).

 

Awards given by patrol, not troop.

 

All patrols must have a patrol flag with them when they do the competition events or they don't get scored.

 

No FOS pitches at the SPL's cracker-barrel (yeah, yeah - but what about Patrol method - you still run Patrol method, you just have one Scout who gets the information then spreads the word via the Patrol Leaders).  Note I said SPL's cracker-barrel - no separate CB for adults, but the SM or his designee is invited as well.  If adults in a troop want a cracker-barrel, they can have their own in camp after lights out for the boys (but why would they want to do that anyway - as if most of us really need more cheese, sausage and crackers in our diet).

 

Scout's own service on Sunday - optional, but still nice to do.

 

Here's the kicker - must have a minimum percentage of Troops in the district commit in advance to the camporee (60%??) or there will be no camporee.  

[RememberSchiff]

With the exception of the OA trading post, I could live with it. Reason for the OA exemption is that the trading post money goes  to OA projects at the camp, and a campership to summer camp.  And the OA needs some money at the moment.  We just finished fully refurbishing a shelter, and are in the middle of rebuilding a bridge from one campsite to the rest of the camp. In fact, I think we don't have the campership money for this year, hoping to sell enough at a Webeloree next month to cover the campership.

Here the OA sells candy bars and sugar drinks for their fundraising. We don't need that.

 

I thought OA just provided the worker bees and maybe tools for camp service projects which were funded completely by the camp/council. Same goes for camperships. 

Edited February 2, 2016 by RememberSchiff

[qwazse]

The best camporees are never at a boy scout camp.

 

No soliciting. Period. I would however encourage leaders to put up a "flyer wall" announcing troop fundraisers and such. Some of us are looking to visit some breakfasts/dinners on the weekends.

All soda machines, lunch carts, ice cream trucks, etc ... 2 miles away.

• That said, it wouldn't hurt to have some venturing advisor (especcially one in a wide-brimmed leather hat ) and your council/district VOA officers wheeling around a keg of root beer and ice cream to undisclosed locations ... doling out rootbeer floats.
• Or, from "nuggets" patrols win at competitions, they can "purchase" ingredients to make their own trail snacks and beverages throughout the day.

Merit badges??? Are you guys insane??? Pioneering weekend, yes! Pioneering blue card management, no!!!!!!!

 

If the O/A sells anything, how about a small craft kit and time instructing on making some native beadwork or leatherwork?

 

With all due respect to your SPL, I would not enforce a uniforms, but I wouldn't outright ban them either. Heck I would offer an inspection station where if a scout scores 80%, he wins the coordinates of the next expected location of the rootbeer float cart!

 

Maybe a build-your-own activity shirt station would be kinda cool. What would that look like? No clue. But each patrol would come out looking proudly unique.

[Krampus]

I'd insist on a SWAT team ready to mobilize, street-level maps covering all of Florida, a pot of coffee, twelve jammie dodgers, and a fez.

 

 

BadWolf would have liked that reference.

 

Edited February 2, 2016 by Krampus

[CalicoPenn]

BadWolf would have liked that reference.

 

 

And Bad Wolf would know that episode has some of the best lines ever including my favorite:

 

The Doctor: Mr. President. That child just told you every you need to know, but you weren’t listening. Never mind, though, ’cause the answer’s yes. I’ll take the case. Fellas, the guns? Really? I just walked into the highest security office in the United States, parked a big blue box on the rug. You think you can just shoot me?

River stepping out of the TARDIS: They’re Americans!

The Doctor: Don’t shoot! Definitely no shooting.

Edited February 2, 2016 by CalicoPenn

[Stosh]

BadWolf would have liked that reference.

 

Tell him I still miss him. 

 

So you are approached or maybe ambushed by some District people, "Heh, our scouts need you to plan the fall/spring camporee."

 

I would flat out tell them that I would pass the request on to my boys and they'll get back to you with an answer. 

Edited February 2, 2016 by Stosh

[NJCubScouter]

At first I didn't have any idea what "jammie dodgers" were, but from reading further in the thread I see they are a "Dr. Who" reference. I still don't know what they are. My kids would know, and maybe my wife, but the sci-fi references that I know are mainly from Star Trek. (Somewhere in South Carolina, Packsaddle's ears perk up.)

 

I have never heard of merit badge work at a camporee, and hopefully I never will. In the past (that is, when my son was in the troop, and I was attending) the main program at the fall camporee was patrol competitions, and the main program at the spring camporee (presumably after the Webelos joined the troops) was more instructional and practice on T-2-1 skills. Since I stopped going, they seem to have gotten more "creative", which I think is mostly due to the fact that the adults running the camporees were getting bored of the same-old-same-old. (In other words I think the kids probably benefited more from the way it was done in the past.)

 

As for selling things, sometimes they would sell hot dogs and hamburgers for Saturday lunch, so they didn't necessarily have to interrupt the activities for everyone to go back to their campsites and cook. These were sold by the district, more-or-less at cost. Neither the OA nor Girl Scouts nor anybody else were doing any fundraising at the camporees.

[Stosh]

In the 25 years I have been with this council no one has ever sold anything at a camporee.  Council-wide activities sometimes have an OA fundraiser, but that's about it.

[Eagledad]

I guess I don't understand the question. You are approached to head a camporee? You want something fun, but no uniforms? And I'm going to have to disagree with giving this to your scouts. Our Troop has planned and run a small camporee  and it is a huge undertaking. It was a great experience for our troop and our troop mature A LOT. But they won't get to participate because they are running it and the planning will take away from your troop program for six months. Leave your scouts out of it and have OA run it. That is what they do.

 

Also, NO UNIFORMS? If there was ever an event where scouts are supposed to demonstrate being uniform in every meaning of the word, it is camporee. 

 

You have an opportunity here to make camporee something respectable again and still be a lot of fun. Different themes are: Night camporee where all events are done at night. Survivor camporee where the events starts when the scouts show up and have to set up their camp. The events the next day rely heavily on survival skills. Back packing comporee with the event starting when the scouts show up and have to pack into their camp site. Next day break camp and hike to the next camp stopping at skills events along the way. 

 

The skills need to be serious so that patrols need to practice and know their skills. Campfire should be fantastic with NO adult awarding like WB Beading. Campfire is total fun (maybe even and band) with announcement of winners.

 

An added event to get points for top troop is adults of each troop prepare a meal for the pot luck Saturday evening for all the troops. Keeps the adults busy while the scouts are competeting.

 

 

Barry

Edited February 2, 2016 by Eagledad

[blw2]

Stosh Posted Today, 11:15 AM

Krampus, on 02 Feb 2016 - 10:27 AM, said:

BadWolf would have liked that reference. 

 

Tell him I still miss him.  

 

 

Yeah, no kidding Stosh!