Re: [Philmont]: Knives

On Fri, Apr 09, 2004 at 06:13:51AM -0500, Steve Mac wrote:
> I also agree this a very controlled situation up to a point. If you were
> on the AT you would be totally dependant on your self & crew. I feel a
> knife is something that should be part of every ones personal equipment.

In one of his stories Robert Heinlein advises that one should never go anywhere
without being appropriately armed, at least with a knife. In another the
protagonist wisely chooses a couple of knives over guns and high powered
weaponry with some very good reasons behind it. The first story is one from
"Time Enough for Love", I wouldn't reccomend it for scouts (or anyone scout
aged for that matter). The second came from "Tunnel in the Sky" which I would
reccomend highly to all my scouts (and do if they ask about the books I read).

While being "appropriately armed" is not probably a discussion for this list,
and carriage of a knife really isn't either, the comment about being totally
dependant on ones self and crew brought those two stories to mind.

No philmont isn't a "true backcountry experience" not many of us ever will
have experienced that. But it's as close as some of these scouts will ever
come, I for one am not going to ruin the illusion for them by telling them
they don't need to be self reliant because they're never more than a couple
of miles from help. I will however ask them how often they think that 4"
sheath knife will come in handy and why wouldn't the leatherman micra do the
same job at 1/10th the weight.

Completely off topic, all of Heinlein's "Juvinile series" are great reading
for scouts or anyone in their early teens. They make decent, if not quick
reading for adults too. I used to take them with me on business trips until
I finished them. If as many of my boys embraced reading as they do their
gameboy, I'd hand out a few of my old Heinlein books, just to see what the
response might be. Anyone Venturing crew age and up might also enjoy
"Starship Troopers" (run away from the movie), though it deals with more
mature topics than the Juvinile series, it's still about a boy growing up
to be a man (albeit during his military service).

enough about one of my favorite authors....

personal opinion, one knife for every 2-4 people is probably a good number.
I wouldn't carry less than three, I wouldn't carry all the same kind, and
I'd avoid the heavy multi-tools.

-- 
Rob
(if anyone cares to swap opinions about Heinlein books, let's keep it off-list)
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