On the changes for Crews 1 and 2, the changes made by the Ranch made them a perfect fit for the Scouts' expressed interests - in both cases, the treks do Baldy and the Tooth of Time, and (now) do all six of the programs that were specified as the Scouts' "top" picks (see Newsletter #5.) It was as if Philmont tailored the adjusted treks to perfectly fit our wishes. Both treks are on the edge of the Strenuous/Super-Strenuous classification, with 32 being a bit tougher than 24. Conversely, the changes made to the Crews original selections made them worse fits for what the Scouts wanted to do - so it was pretty much a no-brainer.

These three trek choices were traditionally three of the four most popular treks on the Ranch, so I am quite pleased that we got them, and so too will the Scouts. They are really excellent.

For the record, note that none of the five completely new treks offered by the Ranch this year were all that exciting - four were "Rugged" treks down in the South Country, and the last one was a low-level Strenuous trek spending most of its time wandering around the Valle Vidal.

Adult Crew Assignments:

Crew 1 - Rick W. (primary) and Clay H.
Crew 2 - Tim A. (primary) and David B.
Crew 3 - Dr. Bob (primary) and Hank M.

2) CPR/1st Aid Course Offered - At least one Adult in each Crew MUST be currently certified in CPR and 1st Aid, and have the cards to so prove when we arrive at the Ranch. CPR requires re-cert each year, while 1st Aid is good for 3 years. Wally F. (a fellow Philmont Phanatic) is offering an inexpensive class in both on Saturday, 4/22, starting at 8am, at the Centreville United Methodist Church in Centrevelle, VA. The 22^nd is the day before Easter. It is my understanding that all Adults other than Tim A. are planning to attend (Tim will not be in town). I do not know the cost at this time, but it will be reimbursable from Crew fees anyway, so it's basically free to the Adults.

Note that older AMC maps of Northern VA have the wrong Church listed as the Centreville UMC. To get to the Church, go out I-66, take Rt. 28 South, cross over Rt 29, go 2 lights, and you can see the Church on the right. Wally is teaching a number of other NCAC and Baltimore AC Adults, so there'll probably be about 10 of us present.

3) Adult Advisor's Meeting - None of the proposed dates worked for more than four of the six Advisors; therefore, I am proposing that we meet on Monday, May 1^st, at St. Agnes, starting at 9pm (just after my Troop Meeting concludes.) Please confirm that you can attend this meeting! (Adults Only, not Scouts!)

4) Airfares - Still high. Current is 305. to Colorado Springs and 257. to Denver. A little better than a month ago, but still not great. The additional van fees associated with Denver make the lower price there nearly equivalent to Colorado Springs, and Denver costs us an extra two hours of commuting on Days 1 and 16. Note that we budgeted approximately 200. for airfares (i.e., the historically average fare), so be prepared for a 100. - 150. increase in our fees, across the board, in order to compensate, if we cannot get better rates. By May 1^st, we will begin to get shut out on certain flights, and I will have to buy regardless of price.

5) Service Project - Our 50-Miler Award service project will be held Sunday, April 30^th, either at Camp Wilson (the Projectoree site), or at a site in Arlington, TBA. I am still negotiating the latter option, which would save about 30 minutes of commuting time at the start and finish of the project. The requirement is for 6 hours of actual work, but I am more concerned that the job is finished and done well - if that takes less than 6 hours, that's OK, you'll still get credit for a full 6 hours. We will be assembling at St. Agnes at 6am on Sunday the 30^th; come wearing work clothes, boots and with decent grade work gloves. BE ON TIME! We will return to St. Agnes by no later than 1:30pm. Note that in contrast to past years, I cannot stay at the Service Project all day, because I will be holding the final Projectoree meeting that evening, and I need to prep for that event after the project.

Several Philmont Scouts were recently elected to the O/A, and the Spring Ordeal is the same weekend of the Service Project; that is, April 28^th - 30^th. To my current knowledge, that includes Charles B., Matt M. and Clark T. If there are others, I would appreciate knowing asap. Brad J. has indicated that the Philmont Scouts can leave the Ordeal Saturday night, after the closing campfire, enabling them to get a decent night's sleep and still attend the Service Project Sunday morning. Note that O/A Service does NOT count towards your Philmont 50-Miler Award; that is "double-dipping."

As O/A Officers, Brad and Dennis K. have been granted waivers on the Service Project; both, however, will need to make up the time at a future date.

6) Medical Forms, etc. - I will be either delivering in person or mailing medical forms to the Adults, and the new Philmont Guidebooks to everyone, within the next 2 weeks.

7) I hope you are practicing backpacking. I also hope (as a result of lessons being learned during your backpacking practice) that you are also working hard to minimize the weight of your kit!

Parents, please share and discuss this newsletter with your sons. Scouts, please share and discuss this newsletter with your parents. 2 ½ months to go!

- Dr. Bob

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23 April 2000