Simsbury Troop 175

How to sharpen a knife

Simsbury Troop 175 At Summer Camp 2010

Poisonous Plants

Poisonous plants have always been part of daily life. In the nineteenth century, poisonings due to plants reached near-epidemic levels as people often foraged for sources of food from natural plantings. Today, potentially dangerous plants can still be found all around us. Poisonous plants are frequently part of interiorscapes in homes as well as in landscape plantings outdoors. This fact sheet discusses why plants are poisonous, the importance of plant identification in cases of plant poisoning, and provides suggestions for prevention of plant poisonings.

All types of native and introduced plants can be poisonous including ferns, herbaceous plants, woody shrubs, and trees. Identifying plants that are poisonous is difficult since poisonous plants do not appear distinctly different from their nontoxic relatives or counterparts. Many poisonous plants have such unpleasant tastes that most adults don’t chew them for very long before spitting them out. However, some poisonous plants are not distasteful and can even be sweet and, if eaten in large quantity, can cause serious problems.

The most important thing: DO NOT PANIC, just act quickly.

• Remove any plant parts from the person’s mouth.

• Give the person a small amount of water to drink.

• Immediately CALL CONNECTICUT POISON CONTROL CENTER (1-800-222-1222), your local hospital, or your local police department (911).

• Try to IDENTIFY the plant that was eaten.

• OBTAIN A SAMPLE of the plant; this should be as complete a sample as possible. This includes all of the parts of the plant that are available at the time: flowers, fruits or berries, leaves, and twigs.

• FOLLOW ALL INSTRUCTIONS FROM POISON CONTROL.

• BRING THE PLANT SAMPLE with you when taking the victim for medical treatment.

Source: Poisonous Plants, By Dr. Sharon M. Douglas, Department of Plant Pathology and Ecology The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station

The Principles of "Leave No Trace"

"Leave No Trace" is a nationally recognized outdoor skills and ethics education program. The Boy Scouts of Troop 175 are committed to this program. The principles of Leave No Trace are not rules; they are guidelines to follow at all times.

The Leave No Trace principles might not seem important at first glance, but their value is apparent when considering the combined effects of millions of outdoor visitors. One poorly located campsite or campfire is of little significance, but thousands of such instances seriously degrade the outdoor experience for all. Leaving no trace is everyone's responsibility.

Here are the Leave No Trace Guidelines.

Reposted from September, 2008

History of The Boy Scouts of America on YouTube

Here is an excellent video history of the Boy Scouts in America that has been broken down into four parts on YouTube.This would be very helpful for those scouts interested in earning the new Scouting Heritage merit badge.

Originally posted to troop website 12/11/2009.

Merit Badge Presentations

Charlie Siegal recently earned his carpentry merit badge and his photography merit badge. Here are two presentations that you might enjoy from those badges.

Download Carpentry from the Past

Download Canoeing and Camping on the Waters of Maine

New Inventing Merit Badge Announced

One of those merit badges from the BSA's 100-year history was named Invention merit badge. The badge was discontinued in 1915 after only 10 boys had earned it. The reason for its low popularity? The main requirement told boys to "Invent and patent some useful article." Receiving a product patent is not an easy feat in any generation.

As of June 17, 2010, Scouts can now earn the Inventing Merit Badge. Here are the requirements:

Requirements:

1. In your own words, define inventing. Then do the following:
   1. Explain to your merit badge councilor the role of inventors and their inventions in the economic development of the United States.
   2. List three inventions and how they have helped humankind.
2. Do ONE of the following:
   1. Identify and interview with a buddy (and with your parent’s permission and merit badge counselor’s approval) an individual in your community who has invented a useful item. Report what you learned to your counselor.
   2. Read about three inventors. Select the one you find most interesting and tell your counselor what you learned.
3. Do EACH of the following:
   1. Define the term intellectual property. Explain which government agency oversees the protection of intellectual property, the types of intellectual property that can be protected, how such property is protected, and why protection is necessary.
   2. Explain the components of a patent and the different types of patents available.
   3. Examine your Scouting gear and find a patent number on a camp item you have used. With your parent’s permission, use the Internet to find out more about that patent. Compare the finished item with the claims and drawings in the patent. Report what you learned to your counselor.
   4. Explain the term patent infringement.
4. Discuss with your counselor the types of inventions that are appropriate to share with others without protecting and explain why. Tell your counselor about one nonpatented or noncopyrighted invention and its impact on society.
5. Choose a commercially available product that you have used on an overnight camping trip with your troop. Make recommendations for improving the product, make a sketch that shows your recommendations, and discuss your recommendations with your counselor.
6. Think of an item you would like to invent that would solve a problem for your family, troop, chartered organization, community, or a special-interest group. Then do EACH of the following, while keeping a notebook to record your progress:
   1. Talk to potential users of your invention and determine their needs. Then, based on what you have learned, write a proposal about the invention and how it would help solve a problem. This proposal should include a detailed sketch of the invention.
   2. Create a model of the item using clay, cardboard, or any other readily available material. List the materials necessary to build a prototype of the item.
   3. Share the idea and model with your counselor and potential users of your invention. Record their feedback in your notebook.
7. Build a working prototype of the item you invented for requirement 6*, then test and evaluate the invention. Among the aspects to consider in your evaluation are cost, usefulness, marketability, appearance, and function. Describe how your initial vision and expectations for your idea and the final product are similar or dissimilar. Have your counselor evaluate and critique your prototype.
8. Do ONE of the following:
   1. Participate in an invention, science, engineering, or robotics club or team that builds a useful item. Share your experience with your counselor.
   2. Visit a museum or exhibit dedicated to an inventor or invention, and create a presentation of your visit to share with a group such as your troop or patrol.
9. Discuss with your counselor the diverse skills, education, training, and experience it takes to be an inventor. Discuss how you can prepare yourself to be creative and inventive to solve problems at home, in school, and in your community. Discuss three career fields that might utilize the skills of an inventor.

*Before you begin building the prototype, you must share your design and building plans with your counselor and have your counselor’s approval

Adventure Race 2010 Results

Father's Day was a beautiful sunny day - a great day to watch their scouts compete in the annual Simsbury Boy Scout Adventure Race. 54 Scouts from all three Simsbury Troop challenged themselves to use their skills and endurance under a blistering sun.

The race began at Pennwood State Park where  the scouts mountain biked through the woods to arrive at Curtiss Soccer Fields. The next challenges were to  rappel across a river, climb over a 10 foot wall and to complete a compass course. After mandatory 15 minute rest, the scouts then set off on a 5 mile run/walk to the Sycamore Tree where they enjoyed another mandatory 15 minute rest before setting off back to Curtiss Fields in canoes. Along the way, they need to pick up some fire making supplies as the final challenge is to start a fire and burn through a string. A 15 minute deduction was given if the scouts started the fire with flint and steel.

For the second year in a row, the team of Lee Adamowicz, Mike Vallen and Keegan Rice from Troop 175 set a new course record and took first place with a time of 2 hours and 32 minutes.  They beat their last year record setting time by seven minutes and one minute of age adjusted time.

The team of Eric Barch, John Cahill and Isaac Peacock took second place with a time of 2 hours and 57 minutes.  Third place went to Nick Veltrop, Adam McIlveen and "ironman" Jon Epstein who carried his bike for part of the race after it broke during the first section of the race.

Congratulations to all of the scouts who participated and thank you to all of the parents who helped organize the event.

For photos of the event, go to the Troop 175 Photo Library.

Here are the full results:

Team 1	Time	Adj Time	Place
Lee Adamowicz
Mike Vallen
Keegan Rice	2:39	2:32	1
		F&S
Team 2
Eric Barch
John Cahill
Isaac Peacock	3:20	2:57	2
		F&S
Team 6
Jon Epstein
Adam McIlveen
Nick Veltrop	3:24	3:24	3
Team 18
Nick Summa
Jack Vallen
Kirk Scully	3:52	3:29	4
		F&S
Team 19
Connor Barnett
Mark Geschwind
Bryan Harmon	3:42	3:42	5
Team 13
Ryan Carr
Ross Harmon
Nate Lungarini	3:34	3:49	6
		F&S - 30 min penalty (compass)
Team 10
Karl Spooner
Joey Dunn
Justin Farrell	4:04	3:56	7
Team 7
Will Shuck
Kevin Burke
Hunter Boyko	4:30	4:09	8
		F&S
Team 11
TJ Nicholson
Will Sickinger
Caleb Ralphs	4:35	4:17	9
Team 5
Jake Van Loon
Robert Carter
Will Kelsey	4:34	4:19	10
		F&S
Team 12
Nicholas Paluso
Cameron Cantelmo
Mathew Guttierez	5:00	4:42	11
Team 16
Kyle Harvey
Andrew Bauer
Chris MacNeil	5:12	4:50	12
Team 14
Mike Ryan
Dan Brown
Josh Prell	4:46	4:56	13
		30 min penalty (compass)
Team 8
Charlie Siegel
Sam Spak
Jonah Garcia	5:17	5:05	14
Team 4
Tommy Adamowicz
Dan Paluso
Zack Zikovich	5:15	5:09	15
Team 15
Ian Crombez
Chris Reilly
Dillon Hermsen	5:45	5:17	16
Team 9
Andrew Guttierez
David Kalamarides
Gabe Tolls	5:40	5:26	17
Team 3
Erik Koontz
Jack Falkner
Jeff Hermsen	DNF
Team # 17
Andrew Fletcher
Alex Correia
Will Scully	DNR
Team 20
Ryan Holowesko
Will Oliver
	DNR

Congratulations Troop 175 High School Graduates!

On Monday night, several of the scouts from Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 175 graduated from high school to begin the next leg of their life time adventure.

Graduating from Simsbury High School were: Lee Adamovich, Rob Asensio, Max Drake, Carter Hill, Dan Kalamarides and John Mundy.

Graduating from Avon High School was Senior Patrol Leader Mike Vallen.

Adventure Base 100

  Experience Scouting like never before with Adventure Base 100! Created specifically for the 100th Anniversary Celebration, Adventure Base 100 will be traveling the country to give people an exciting, hands-on view of the history and future of the Boy Scouts of America. This 10,000 square foot campus features immersive Scouting experiences including a ropes course and zip line, interactive digital exhibits, a multi-sensory IMAX-like dome, and more! It will also house a traveling museum that will showcase artifacts from the National Scouting Museum in Irving, Texas.


This exciting experience will be in East Hartford CT on June 27th.

Originally posted to Troop 175 Website  11/6/2009 and 5/3/2010