Cub Scout codes

Several months ago we were waiting for Glowforge developments and talking about cars, pinewood derby, and scouts. I said I have had Cub Scout envy for 30 years.

Times have changed. I am a Webelos den leader with my first pinewood derby later this month. My 3 boys are supposed to memorize the outdoor code and leave no trace principles.

Why print these valuable values on a laser printer when you have a 3D laser printer?

Simple. Easy. Not really brag-worthy, but we have come pretty far in a few months.

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Those are awesome! :smile::+1:

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Once a Scout, always a Scout!

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What a great way for your boys to memorize the codes. Good luck with your first derby too!

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What a nice thing to be able to do!!!

I really enjoyed my time as a Cub Scout and then Boy Scout. I loved my pinewood derby cars. My cars didn’t win. But I remember my Grandfather helping me shape and paint them. And, the experience helped me when we did the same thing in Shop class, and my car came in 1st place for that.

Hey you’d probably know for sure… Is the BSA still anti-gay? I know they started letting gay kids in a few years back, but they wouldn’t allow gay leaders. And I can’t tell if that’s still the case or not.

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they reversed the policy but there’s of course still a lot of institutionalized bigotry. things are changing, though!

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See, I can live with that. I mean, everybody has their prejudices. I’m sure I do, too. I have 1 bi daughter, 1 straight daughter, and 1 straight son. I’d love for my son to have some of the experiences I had as a Scout. But I can’t let him join a group that openly hates his sister. But whatever the BSA hates behind closed doors is their business. As long as that hatred doesn’t find its way out to the open, to my kids, I’m cool with it.

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sort of. i mean it leads to not much representation as a result, so these sorts of discussions remain necessary to have. it’s just still frustrating, of course, because it can be really difficult to find good lgbt role models, let alone good role models in everyday life.

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BSA doesn’t hate your daughter. You may talk to the local troop and get a feel for whether the local leaders are going to be cool or creepy. That’s where the rubber hits the road: in your pack and troop.

Even if your sponsoring body is a church that espouses traditional values, hopefully they are treating people with respect and love. I’m in one of those. Church is way traditional; but that wouldn’t affect anything that I would say or do to my boys or their families. We are all sinners, and it isn’t my place to pick “ok sins” or “bad sins.” We’re in church because we need love, grace, and rehab. Everyone welcome, and everyone included, families, too.

My sponsoring body would be hesitant to approve gay leaders, if I’m perfectly honest - which is not to say they absolutely wouldn’t. But I know the scout leaders, and they would make a point of making your family and your daughter feel welcome at pack meetings and den meetings.

Local is where the program happens.

It is fun, and there is a lot of good in scouts. Try new things, gain confidence, treat the earth with care… and so on. Plenty more good than bad, so we support it.

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I certainly don’t want to get into any of this here. This is a great, oddly-open forum, but I know this type of conversation can and will only lead to disaster for all.

But I’ll end it by saying… A good role model is just that. By that, I mean I don’t think, for example, people need a good gay role model. Just a good one. That should cover all bases… gay, white, Muslim, thin, whatever. Good is good. And people can apply that good where ever and how ever they can.

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yeah, i don’t feel very comfortable talking about it here, either, but representation matters, man.

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Thanks for your reply! And I know the local troop is the best indicator of things. But I can’t monetarily support an organization that is openly anti-gay. I mean, that would just send a horrible message to my daughter and I wouldn’t do that to her.

Again, thanks!!!

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We made CO2 powered cars in shop class. I cut off every piece of wood the rules allowed. It was the fastest for its one heat. It snapped in two at the end of the course.

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LOL!

Yeah, I remember making one of mine actually heavier. My Grandfather and I did tests. He used to make his own soda so he had CO2 catridges. So we tested various weights. I remember, in the end, we cut a hole in the bottom and filled it with BB’s to add weight to it or to balance the weight. I forget which now. But it made the car more stable and allowed it to go farther.

Oh, right… That must have been the Shop class one. Because I recall the Boy Scouts one being on an incline I think. Not CO2. Geez. I forget now.

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I still remember when I was a Cub Scout long time ago :stuck_out_tongue: . I loved to go camping (sometimes I still do) I dont remember any knot only the reef knot and it is still very helpful :smiley: I still remember with affection when I earn my necker I was named White Fang :grinning::wolf:

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We are learning bowline knots today.

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Hands down my favorite! We would have competitions on who could do this the fastest with the rope around your waist!

Nice! My friend is an eagle scout and runs a troop his boys are in. I’m gonna show these to him…

We did this for Pinewood Derby cars. The race scale was accurate to the ounce so we used one that was accurate to the tenth. That way we could push the weight up a bit and still round to legal limits and in a gravity incline weight is the engine. We used .45 cal wadcutter bullets from my hand loading supplies. Nice consistent size and pretty much the densest mass we had.

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Yep! I remember adding/removing BBs until we got the right weight. Definitely of my fondest memories of my Grandfather.

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