From: Dr. Bob Klein (drbob@troop111.org)
Date: Wed Apr 10 2002 - 17:31:08 CDT
If you already have your treks picked, and they're different in their
programs, geographical features, and difficulty levels, you may (and
probably will) find that your Scouts will naturally divide into
even-sized or close to even-sized groups. Do this by secret selection
ballot to avoid the herd mentality (and don't let them know what you'll
be doing ahead of time, or the herding will have already taken place
before you even meet). I have done this with a 4 Crew, 5 Crew, 2 Crew,
and 3 Crew Contingents, and was agreeably surprised at how well it
worked out without any agonizing processes.
If one group ends up being badly lopsided, allow changes ONLY from the
larger group to the smaller group; otherwise, you will likely end up
where you started from, with everyone wanting to do the same trek (or
rather, go with all their buddies, or not be stuck on - Heaven forbid -
the "loser" trek). You may find that one of a pair of close friends who
ended up on separate Crews will make the change immediately to hook up,
or that a smaller Scout will see he's surrounded by gorillas and have
his self-preservation gene kick in.
Once that's done, make sure everyone knows that initial choices are not
set in stone; that relieves some of the pressure. Then let things sort
themselves out WRT changes AFTER your *initial* shakedown events. This
is where personality difficulties or disparate physical ability levels
will probably result in some shifting. Note that you don't want to wait
too late in the game to set your final Crews, because if you do you will
have lost the team-building aspects of your later shakedowns. Some
personal soliciting (one on one) of Scouts who appear to be physically
overmatched, or who have obvious personality conflicts with other
members of their Crews, may be warranted. If worst comes to worst, have
a heart-to-heart with the members of both Crews and solicit for a pair,
or 2 pairs, or whatever, to make the shift for the good of the group.
And if that still don't work, do what you've gotta do and mandate the
appropriate changes (and BTW, that unhappy process is one of the
unpleasant responsibilities of being the Primary Advisor, like it or
not; but if you handle things right, it should never come to that
point).
Make sure your Crew Chiefs are on board with this, and keep them
involved in all aspects of the discussion.
Good luck with this (hopefully, you won't need it).
Brent Steiner wrote:
>
> A little advice from this experienced folks on the list, please. How do
> you, or how does it work out best to decide who goes with whom on which
> trek? We have 2 crews and we are just starting to determine who will go
> on which trek. does it seem to work best by personalities, hiking
> speed, program. Any thoughts to assist in this process?
>
> Brent Steiner
> ASM Troop 141
> Philmont 2002 726-m1 and m2
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