The "Venture Patrol"

[J-dawg168]

I am currently a Troop Guide in my troop, hoping soon to be an ASPL. My closest friend in the troop is also a TG with me currently. He was an ASPL before this current installation. He will be running for SPL, with an ASPL or TG fall back if not elected. I hope I will get ASPL. We aren't the oldest in the troop (we both are 14, almost 15), but are both some of the most experienced scouts in the troop. (2005 National Jambo, Northern Tier, Philmont, etc...)

 

If elected, after about 2 months I will have all of my leadership time for Eagle. I plan on obtaining Eagle before next year. Our troop is 20 miles away (there are closer troops, but we like it enough to make the drive.) After Eagle and my ASPL term, I plan on staying active in the troop, but don't have the intent on SPL, or going into a regular patrol. Some of the guys with my mindset were made Junior Assistant Scoutmasters (JASM), after turning 16. They help out where needed and are considered "leadership" along with the SPL and ASPL's.

 

There once was a time in our troop WAY before I was a scout, when our current Scout Master took office, when we had a Venture patrol of the older seasoned scouts. It about tore the troop apart because they didn't lift a finger to do anything (Which WOULD NOT happen with our current SM). It was done away with, with a lot of the older scouts quitting because of the way our new SM ran the troop. Since then there has been no Venture Patrol.

 

So my Question is, what are your views of having one of these, and if you agree with me, how should I (along with a few of the older scouts) try to convince the SM to make one?

 

Justin

T-168

[Bob White]

Hi Justin

Venture Patrols like any other element of scouting works great when done correctly.

 

One thing you could do to put his mind at ease is to organize the Venture patrol as the source for Troop Guides and Instructors. Explain that a Venture Patrol can help to keep older scouts in the troop longer by having a separate more adventurous program to keep them interested. You could explian that while the new scouts are doing basic skills and the experienced patrols are applying those skills and learning more advanced skill, the older scouts need more challenging and adventurous activities than the others are ready for.

 

Ask the scoutmaster to assign an assistant scoutmaster to the Venture patrol to help them get started planning there first adventure.

 

Good Luck

 

 

[Eagledad]

Hi J-dawg

 

Why do you want a Venture patrol? What do you think your troop is missing now that a VP would help?

 

I love this scouting stuff.

 

Barry

[J-dawg168]

BobWhite - We do have a Venture Crew also. But if we are involved in both, the troop comes first

 

And Eagledad - I would like a VP because us older guys are often involved in OA, help out with programs, help teach, and later on can't always be there all the time because of high school and other commitments, which would take us away from our existing patrol activities/structure. My other TG and I often help out the adults run programs like belaying when the troop goes rock climbing and such. But pulling us older guys out detracts from the patrol being "one" so to say.

 

Plus as Bob said, it can keep the older guys more interested then having to stay in a regular patrol with some of the younger guys.

[Bob White]

The Venture Patrol and a Venturing Crew are two separate units Justin.

 

If you want a Venture Patrol it is a patrol of Scouts 13 and older who are a patrol within the troop, you wear the same uniform and follow the same advancement program as the troop. The difference is that you have a more advanced activity program. Check out pages 39 and 40 of the Patrol Leaders Handbook.

 

Have fun

BW

[Eagledad]

That's cool.

 

So. you guys have mixed age patrols, who are generally the patrols leaders? I assume by your description that it is the younger guys, younger then you I mean.

 

Barry

[J-dawg168]

Yes i Understand that. What i meant to the crew is that we do have a crew separate from the troop. It has the same adult leaders as the troop, and all the boys in the crew are from our troop. But the rules are, are that if you join the crew while in the troop, troop things come first.

 

I understand the difference

[CrewMomma]

It sounds like to me that you are running your Venture Crew like a Venture Patrol. I have a few boys that are registered with both the crew and a troop but see the Crew as their primary unit: They don't attend troop meetings but are still working on merit badges and working towards their Eagle.

 

I guess I am having a little bit of an issue of "The Troop comes first over the Crew". To me, they are two different units.

[Stosh]

If one is promoting a hybrid Troop/Crew and the boys are dual registered, one is cheating both programs. One cannot be a servant to two masters. The day will come when they have to choose. If they choose the Troop, what's the sense of having a Crew and if they choose the Crew they cut off their best leaders from the Troop. There is nothing in the BSA policy that states that a boy must give preference over their crew to a troop. What about the girls that join? Not allowed? Against BSA policy. Can he keep crew registration and drop troop? NO? Again, against BSA policy. Scouting is open to all. Limiting membership is contrary to the Scout Law and counter productive to the Scouting Movement.

 

Hybrids are discouraged for a reason. One cannot mix two entirely different types of units into an amalgamation of both.

 

Stosh

[CrewMomma]

Not sure if I understand your post Jblake47.

 

Dual registration is common among Venturing Crews and Troops, we haven't seen a problem with it. Our Crew has been around for about 6-7 years now. As for cutting off the best leaders of the Troop, isn't everyone that is in the troop a potential good leader? Developing leaders should be a constant within the troop from the time that they join. My husbands troop just went to a Winter Survival Camp where the SPL was a 13yo life scout, leading kids that were all 13yo and under. They won 4th place out of 10. There are leaders at all stages and ages.

 

My crew is Co-Ed. We do have girls that join,they work on their Venturing advancements. From what I understand, you can be in a Venturing Crew and not be associated with a troop too. I have to look up that policy and double check it though.

 

Which part of the scout law is it counter-productive to? I highly doubt that it is also counter-productive to the scout movement to have boys that want to work on their Eagle award as well as their Venturing advancements at the same time.

[Gold Winger]

As someone else said, a Venture Patrol can be a wonderful thing if done properly.

 

You're 16 or 17 and car camping has gotten old, day hikes are pretty dull too. So the Venture Patrol can head off and do some more adventuresome stuff like hike the AT or spend spring break canoeing the Ohio river.

 

The thing is that the boys have to want to do SOMETHING. My son's troop had a Venture Patrol and they did nothing. I sat in on a couple of their planning meetings with the Venture ASM and it was frustrating.

 

"Do you guys have any ideas of stuff that you'd like to do?"

 

Blank stares.

 

"Any wild ideas? We'll see how we can make them work."

 

More blank stares.

 

"A canoe trip? Hiking the AT? Sailing the Carribean?"

 

"Nah . . . "

 

"Here are magazines with reports of different excursions and ads for things to do. Look them over and see if anything grabs you. I'll be back in half an hour."

 

The boys spent that half hour talking about video games. The advisor came back and said, "Guys, we're willing to help you do just about anything that you want to do BUT you have to start with a nucleus of an idea."

 

More blank stares.

 

The sad truth is that they didn't want to do anything unless it was organized for them from start to finish.

 

 

[Gold Winger]

I took a class at the University of Scouting about Venture Patrols. The most interesting idea that came out of the class was for the Venture Patrol to be an ad hoc patrol or 'virtual patrol'.

 

For every Venture Patrol activity, the boys interested in that activity would band together and elect a Patrol Leader. So if you had three activities being planned, let's say hiking, rafting and skiing, you'd have three virtual patrols. There may or may not be overlap between the patrols and each patrol would have a PL.

 

This system allows the PL of the virtual patrol to focus on his activity. When the ski trip is over, the skiing patrol ceases to exist. When the hike is over the hiking patrol ceases to exist. The virtual PLs go back to other duties.

 

However, to make this work, you have to have boys that are willing to do things. :-(

[CrewMomma]

Isn't that why there is the interest assessment form that the kids fill out? So that you don't end up with blank stares? What are your kids interested in? What is the adviser doing to spark that interest? Each leadership position in a crew has an adviser that works with them. When projects come up, my first comment to the crew is "Who is taking the lead on this one?" Someone steps up, or is assigned, and you work with that youth.

[Eagledad]

>>I took a class at the University of Scouting about Venture Patrols. The most interesting idea that came out of the class was for the Venture Patrol to be an ad hoc patrol or 'virtual patrol'.

[Gold Winger]

Scoutmomma, we're talking Venture Patrol in a troop, not a Venturing Crew. Different beasts.

 

The local Venturing Crew isn't much different. It's made up of boys who left the troop but unless the adults come up with the ideas, the boys would be happy to just sit around and complain about being bored.