Greetings!

This is the Official "Wake-Up" call for Crew 704-H, the Summer of `98 Philmont trek being organized by Troop 111. This letter contains a huge amount of information; please read it very carefully, and then read it again. Things you need to know:

(1) Dates - The trip will start very early on either Wednesday, July 1st, or Thursday, July 2nd, 1998, and end very late Thursday, July 16th. The starting date will vary based on airfares and accommodations in Colorado Springs - if we are able to acquire airfares below $175 roundtrip to Colorado, and stay an extra day at the Air Force Academy (i.e., 3 nights instead of 2), then we'll go on the 1st and spend the extra day in Colorado. If on the other hand we can't get this cut-off price or the lodging, then we'll start on the 2nd - unless the parents are willing to spend more than the projected cost to meet the higher airfares and lodging expenses.

(2) Overall Costs and Payment Scheduling - The current total cost of the trip is $900, which includes everything for the actual trip itself. Additional monies will be required for the three shakedown events and the Service Project; this would typically amount to another $50. or so. By far, the greatest additional expense is bringing your son's camping gear up to snuff - anywhere from $100 - $600 more per Scout, depending on how much backpacking he's done to date (that is, how good his current gear is.) Those Scouts who have previously attended Philmont will probably be in pretty good shape; everyone else will probably face some serious expenditures over the next 8 months.

The payment schedule is as follows: DEPOSIT: $100, DUE A MONTH AGO; First Payment, $300, Due December 7th, 1997; Second Payment, $250, Due March 1st, 1998; Third Payment, $250, Due May 1st, 1997. I have extended the second payment to March 1st in order to give everyone a break on their Christmas expenses. All payments should be made out to "Troop 111," and mailed to Dr. Bob, listing "Philmont `98" in the memo section.

(3) Current Crew Status - After a lengthy time frame with only a few Scouts making deposits, things went crazy over the last two months, and we are now well over our nominal allotment of 10 Scouts and 2 Leaders - probably because everyone finally understood that we weren't going in 1999. However, while this is a matter of some concern, I am not sounding the alarm bells - or cutting anyone - just yet. The reasons for this are threefold: (A) First, we may have some voluntary withdrawals, especially in view of the higher pricetag this year ($50 more than `95, `96 or `97), and also the fact that I am mandating full commitment to all activities this year (see below), which some Scouts may be unwilling to face; (B) Next, we may also have some involuntary withdrawals due to physical injuries, unexpected financial hardship, or sudden requirements to attend summer school; and finally, (C) I may be able to push us past the Philmont-imposed limits for crew size, perhaps up to 12 Scouts and 2 Leaders. I have taken two crews to the Ranch with 13 Scouts without comment or problem; however, I know that they will split the crew in half if we go over 14 total participants, and force us to hire 2 "Rent-a-Rangers" for the second crew - at $150/day (an expense we simply cannot afford.)

Anyway, our current crew makeup is as follows (italicized names are Scout(er)s who have previously attended Philmont):

John A., J.T. B., Matt C.***, Daniel H, Dan Hu., Brad J., Nathan K., Neal K., Brendan M., Jay P., Rusty P., Matt S., Mike S.***, Chris W., along with Dr. Bob and Rick W.

 *** = Deposit Not Yet Paid

(4) Your Leadership - Not only are we blessed with 5 Philmont-experienced Scouts, but both of your Adult Advisors have also previously attended. I have personally been to the Ranch 7 times (72, 73, 89, 92, 95, 96 and 97), while Rick attended with our 1997 crew this past July. Believe me, experience counts for a lot, and this will definitely make things easier on everyone involved.

(5) Physical Requirements - Scout participants are required (by Philmont) to be First Class and either 14 years old or a graduate of the eighth grade by our arrival date. Every member of the crew already meets those requirements. HOWEVER, we also expect (and monitor) that the Scout is physically, mentally and emotionally capable of handling the trek. These are not trivial concerns; unready Scouts not only have a terrible experience themselves, they also adversely impact the rest of the crew. You do a Scout (or Leader) no favor to force him to take on a trek he can't handle, and we will certainly not do so. This is a particular concern this year, where we have a large variance in both experience and physical stature. Note that replacement for physical, mental and/or emotional concerns is at the discretion of the Adult Advisors.

(6) Pre-Activities and Scout Commitments - [READ THIS SECTION VERY CAREFULLY!!!] The single most important factor in having an excellent Philmont experience is proper crew development herein Arlington long before we step on the plane. This is accomplished through the above mentioned shakedown events and service project, plus 3 Crew meetings. With the sole exception of J.T. (who lives in New Jersey), all participants are required to make all shakedown events, the service project and all crew meetings. [I am cutting J.T. a break only because his new Troop does a lot of backpacking (far more than we do anymore), and he's therefore already pretty experienced.] The only exemptions to this policy will be for PLAYOFF sporting events (not practices or regular season games) and priority academic events (SAT's or high school entrance exams.) Failure to attend the activities will be grounds for immediate termination, with replacement from the "extras" list. We will not take your Philmont experience any more seriously than you do. If you are unable or unwilling to make these commitments, do not sign up to go to Philmont!!! - none of us needs the aggravation. Attached is a commitment form that you and your son MUST sign and return along with your first payment; failure to do so will be considered an automatic withdrawal from this year's trek. At this point, because we have so many extra Scouts who want to go, if you wish to withdraw, your entire deposit will be returned.

OK, why am I being so difficult? Easy - past experience. I am no longer willing to handle Scouts whose idea of commitment can be summed up as: "OK, as long as I feel like it and don't have anything else to do." Rick and I will be spending hundreds of hours prepping this trip - a huge investment in time for which we expect a full return. Our job is to get all the members of the crew fully prepared - and that cannot be done piecemeal. Philmont is not like any other Scouting experience - it requires a full measure of devotion in order to excel. Again, past experience has shown that those Scouts (and Leaders) who miss meetings and events are invariably the same ones who show up ill-trained, ill-equipped and ill prepared, and have a miserable time. More importantly to me, they also cause everyone else to also have a miserable time - and that cannot and will not be tolerated. Each crew member will be investing well over a thousand dollars (some over fifteen hundred) in order to go on this trip; it is my job to ensure that everyone gets their money's worth, and doesn't have their trip ruined by one or two Scouts who failed to take their commitments seriously. Slackers need not apply.

Now, having said all that, I am not (too) ridiculously hard-core. As noted above, exemptions can be granted for truly important activities. I have allowed Scouts to come late or leave early from some activities (as long as it wasn't "every" activity.) I try to cram as much as possible into our weekend events - there's very little "sitting around" time built in. I have worked from dawn `til dusk on service projects in order to give every Scout a time frame he could make. I have even held a meeting (the same meeting) twice on a weekend when half the crew couldn't make the original schedule. None of these are ideal, but I'm willing to make the effort as long as the Scout is otherwise dependable and serious.

Commitment, in my mind, is a matter of attitude. I refuse to accept a Scout missing an entire weekend because he had a "mandatory" 2 hour sports practice or game Saturday afternoon - one of the 40 to 60 (or more) such practices and games he'll have during the upcoming season - or missing a meeting because he felt like going on an impromptu bike hike with a friend "since it was such a nice day" - or missing a service project because "I forgot." [Yes, I've heard all of these excuses, and some more that were even more lame.] Hell hath no fury like an Advisor whose time is being wasted for trivialities like these! These were clearly not Scouts who were serious about going to Philmont, and no-one should be spending their hard-earned cash (or wasting my time) sending them there. Bottom line - I am widely regarded as one of the best Philmont Advisors in the entire Council, and you'll get the best Rick and I have got in giving your son a superb Philmont experience - but he's got to want it, bad. If he does, we'll work through anything. There's a quote from Howie Long, the perennial all-star from the Oakland Raiders: "I played desperate." Well, I Scout desperate, especially for Philmont - and so should your son.

(7) Pre-Philmont Training Schedule - This year's trek starts with our first crew meeting, tentatively to be held on Sunday, December 7th, from 7:00 - 9:30 pm, at the St. Agnes Parish Center. The meeting is listed as tentative because of this late notification; normally, we hold our first meeting in January, but we're trying to move it up in order to give parents a chance to review gear prior to Christmas. Please call Rick W. immediately if you CANNOT make this date. If we have more than one or two no-shows, we will delay the first meeting to January 11th. Hopefully, this will still give everyone time to hit the post- Christmas sales. Regardless of the final date, all Scouts must attend, along with (at least) one Parent. This meeting is critical, and will cover a wide variety of topics, including a general overview of Philmont, our tentative itinerary, a discussion of our upcoming Spring Schedule, an overview of physical conditioning, equipment, medical forms, merit badges, 50-Miler Awards, and crew leadership and organization. Note that the Sunday night timeframe was selected in order to provide maximum accessibility to all families. P.S.: Although I'll be wearing one, you do NOT have to wear your Scout Uniforms to this meeting.

The remaining (actually, the entire) schedule is attached as a separate sheet (for easier posting); please fill in your family calendars with the pertinent dates immediately - this will help you to avoid scheduling conflicts later.

(8) Forms, Forms, Forms

 (A) On the web page is a fresh copy of the Troop 111 Scout Medical Form. Please complete this and bring it to the first meeting. Note that this form is held in strict confidence - please be completely honest in filling it out. Also note that this is NOT the Philmont Medical Form - those will be provided at a later meeting (I haven't gotten them yet.) By the way, if you belong to an HMO where scheduling physical exams in the Springtime is problematic, please schedule your son's Philmont physical NOW - avoid problems later. [This, by the way, is my biggest headache with respect to Philmont paperwork - please, please, please get this scheduled ASAP!]

(B) In addition to the Troop 111 Scout Medical Form, I also need a photocopy of your Health Insurance Cards, both front and back. [If you are about to change your Health Insurance (during open season), please wait on this - but let us know that you are changing, so we're not left hanging on your form!!!] These cards are required by Philmont, and this is done for your benefit; most of these cards have specific information on protocols that must be observed when bringing your son in for emergency care (phone numbers, pre-approvals, etc.) - otherwise, you can get stuck for whopping medical bills (and none of us need that unpleasantness.) By the way, I have never had to take a Scout in for medical care on any trip - including when I was the Council Planemaster in 1992 and was responsible for 53 participants; nonetheless, an ounce of prevention and all that....

(C) Also on the web page is a general permission slip, covering all of our shakedown events, meetings, service project, and Philmont itself. Please sign and date, and bring to the meeting. I will still generate formal permission slips (with detail informational tails) for each event as it occurs, but this general permission slip will be the safety net if your son forgets to bring his to an event (a constant problem.)

I need that first payment and signed commitment form immediately, folks. See you at the first crew meeting. Questions, please call me.

Parents, please share and discuss this letter with your sons. Scouts, please share and discuss this letter with your parents. Seven months to go....

- Dr. Bob, SM-111

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18 February 1998