Cub Scout BB Gun Safety

June 22, 2008

When it comes to BB guns safety is important issue. If you have been around BB guns you have been told they are not toys. And yet, many people still treat them as such. The ill-fated scene in the movie “A Christmas Story” where Ralphie fails to listen to the warning ”You’ll shoot your eye out?” with an obvious outcome reiterates the importance of BB gun safety.

Everyone who saw the movie remembers that he did practically shoot his eye out with his Official Red Ryder BB gun. If he had followed cub scout basic BB gun safety rules, been wearing protective eyewear, instead of just his glasses, he and his parents would have been much happier.

Safety truly is the most important aspect of using BB guns. Injuring someone (or even potentially kill someone) with a BB gun can easily become a reality for ignorant people. Whether it is a BB gun or any other type of gun the same gun safety rules must be followed.

When scouts and their families participate in BB gun shooting it is important to know and follow these rules. Make sure all learn BB gun safety, and basic gun safety, from the beginning.

Some of the most important BB gun safety rules:

Treat all guns as though they are loaded. Never assume that a gun is not loaded.
Never point any BB gun at anyone. Even if it is not loaded!
Check out local, state, and federal laws and regulations. States have different BB gun safety laws and regulations. Certain guns are not allowed in some places.
Do not fire at a target unless you know everything surrounding the target. Do not shoot if there is a potential that someone is behind or on the sides of the target… you might miss!
Keep your finger off of the trigger until you are ready to fire in a safe direction.
Always where protective eyewear. Also wear a protective mask.
Understand that BBs can ricochet. Be aware of the type of surface you are shooting at. BBs ricochet more easily off of flat surfaces, hard surfaces, and water surfaces. Angled targets ricochet BBs very easily.
It is a safe and good place to start to learn how to shoot is a shooting/gun range.
Any person under 18 years of age (minor) needs active adult supervision to shoot any type of gun even a BB gun.
Because some BB guns are made to realistic, they can be mistake them for real guns. This makes them potentially dangerous for BB gun users If someone including and especially a law enforcement thinks you have a real gun, you could be putting yourself and others in danger. Do not carry your BB gun in public places. In some states it is illegal to do so.
Do not paint or color of your BB gun. Fluorescent orange tips on BB guns are there for a reason! Policeman in the past have shot and fire upon children and adults who have removed the safety orange color from their guns. The policemen could no longer tell if the gun was real or not.
Operating a high velocity BB guns are not recommended for children under the age of 16. Examine the noted velocity type of your BB gun before using. High velocity warnings may say, “May be dangerous up to 350 yards,” along with other warnings. For safety sakes follow all warnings.
Checking to make sure all gun are not loaded should be the first thing checked when you first pick up a gun. Point the gun away from people, animals, or anything you do not want to destroy and squeeze the trigger. Be careful not to point at anything that may cause a ricochet.
Never carry a loaded BB gun when climbing over fences, up trees or even when jumping. Doing so may cause the gun to go off accidentally.
Take care of your gun by following the manufacturers recommended cleaning and maintenance procedures. Damaged and dirty guns are more likely to cause injury.
Always use new ammo in your BB gun. It does not matter if it is expensive. Reusing ammo is very dangerous and can damage your gun quickly.

Be sure to follow these Scouting rules of BB gun safety. Teach BB gun safety to anyone that you see not properly following these important rules!

BB Gun Targets for Cub Scouts

In Adobe Acrobat PDF Format

BB Gun Target - One per page

BB Gun Target - Two per page

bb_gun_target_squirrel

Filed Under FYI

Camp Karankawa Orienteering Course

April 2, 2008

This is a great orienteering course for scouts to tryout their skills. Before you get started don’t forget to carry plenty of water and tell your scout leder what your are doing.

Where to get started?

Go to the covered Pavilion (#13 on camp map) near the Leaders Lodge and Dining Hall. Calibrate our pace using the pavilion foundation. The foundations 80′ x 80′. For instance, if it takes you 32 paces to walk the 80′ across the pavilion, then your pace is 2.5′ per step (80/32=2.5). Record your pace. You will need if for the orienteering course.

Pace =

Height Estimating

Got to the totem pole (#15 on camp map) near the pavilion and measure the height of the totem pole using both the Tree Felling method and the Pencil method. Record both measurements.

Height measured by the Tree Felling method =

Height measured by the Pencil method =

Orienteering Course

Start at the base of the totem pole (#15 on camp map). Travel on a 70-degree bearing for 85′ until you reach the for in the road.
Start in the middle of the fork, travel approximately 700′ down the left fork. Your initial bearing will be approximately 120-degrees. Stop when you come to a second fork located about 700′ from your last starting point.
Starting in the middle of the fork, travel approximately 225′ down the left fork. Your initial bearing will be approximately 40-degrees. Stop when you pass a long row of pine trees located about 225′ from your last starting point. The row of pine trees runs at a 300-degree bearing from east to west.
Starting in the middle of the road, travel at a 310-degree bearing for 250′ across the grass field.
Shot a new bearing of 20-degrees and ravel 380′ until you are standing in the “gap” between two trees.
Starting in the “gap” shoot a new bearing of 30-degrees and travel 100′.
Shoot a new bearing of 56-degrees and travel 205′ to the gap between the flagpoles.
Starting between the flagpoles, shoot a new bearing of 80-degrees and travel 195′ past the “house” and to the middle of the road.
Standing in the middle of the road and using an initial bearing of 90-degrees travel approximately 140′ until you reach the fork in the road.
Starting in the middle of the fork, travel approximately 600′ down the right fork. Your initial bearing will be approximately 60-degrees. Follow the curve of the road and stop after you have traveled 600′.
Shoot a new bearing of 160-degrees and travel 230′ to the “flagpole”.
Shot a new bearing of 260-degrees and travel 260′ to the fare end of the “bridge”.
Standing at the end of the bridge, shoot a new bearing of 228-degrees and travel 580′ to the eastern most corner of the “tower fence”.
Standing at the corner fence post, shot a new bearing of 180-degrees and travel 360′ to the “house”.
Standing at the “house” shoot a new bearing of 240-degrees and travel 140′ to the near corner of the “fence”.
Starting at the fence, follow the fence line west to the end of the fence. This is approximately 400′.
Starting at the corner of the fence, find the trail which heads of on an initial bearing of about 200 to 220-degrees. Follow the trail for about 460′ past the “brown house” and to the edge of the creek.
Step over the creek using the “concrete path”.
Starting at the other edge of “the creek”, continue down, the trail on an initial bearing of 210 degrees for 280′. You will stop near a fork in the trail.
Shoot a new bearing of 230-degrees and travel 315′ past the “house” to the “flagpole”.
Starting at the “flagpole” shoot a bearing of 340-degrees and travel 150′.
Shoot a new bear of 270-degrees and travel 70′.

Where are you now?

How far did you walk? Feet = Miles =

Filed Under Camp Activities

Biting and Stinging Insects

April 1, 2008

Bug	Description	Habitat	Problem
Chigger	Oval with red velvety covering. Sometimes almost colorless. Larva has six legs. Harmless adult has eight and resembles a small spider. Very tiny-about 1/20 inch long.	Found in low damp places covered with vegetation: shaded woods, high grass or weeds, fruit orchards. Also lawns and golf courses. From Canada to Argentina.	Attaches itself to the skin by inserting mouth-parts into a hair follicle Injects a digestive fluid that causes cells to disintegrate. Then feeds on cell parts. It does not suck blood.
Bed Bug	Flat oval body with short broad head and six legs. Adult is reddish brown. Young are yellowish white. Unpleasant pungent odor. From 1/8 to 1/4 inch in length.	Hides in crevices, mattresses, under loose-wallpaper during clay. At night travels considerable distance to find victims. Widely distributed throughout the world.	Punctures the skin with piercing organs and sucks blood. Local inflammation and welts result from anticoagulant enzyme that the bug secretes from salivary glands while feeding.
Brown Recluse Spider	Oval-body with eight legs. Light yellow to medium dark brown. Has distinctive mark shaped like a fiddle on its back. Body from 3/8 to 1/2 inch long, 1/4 inch wide, 3/4 inch from toe to-toe	Prefers dark places where it’s seldom disturbed. Outdoors, old trash piles, debris and rough ground. In-doors attics, storerooms closets. Found in Southern Midwestern US	Bites producing an almost painless sting that may not be notices at first. Shy, it bites only when annoyed or surprised. Left along, it won’t bite. Victim rarely sees the spider.
Black Widow Spider	Color varies from dark brown to glossy black. Densely covered with short microscope hairs. Red or yellow hourglass marking on-the underside of the females abdomen. Male does not have this and is not poisonous. Overall length with legs extended is 1 1/2 inch. Body is 1/4 inch wide.	Found with eggs and web. Outside: in vacant rodent holes, under stones, logs, in long grass, hollow stumps & bush piles. Inside in dark corners of barns, garages, piles of stone wood. Most bites occur in outhouses. Found in Southern Canada through US, except Alaska.	Bites causing local redness. Two tiny spots may appear. Pain follows almost immediately. Larger muscles become rigid. Body temperature rises slightly. Profuse perspiration and tendency toward nausea follow. It’s usually difficult to breathe or talk. May cause constipation, urine retention.
Scorpion	Crablike appearance with claw like pincers. Fleshy post abdomen or “tail” has 5 segments, ending in a bulbous sac and stinger. Two poisonous types; solid straw yellow with irregular black stripes on back. From 2 1/2 to 4 inches.	Spends days under loose stones, bark, boards, floors of outhouses.. Burrows in the sand. Roams freely at night. Crawls under doors into homes. Lethal types are found in the warm desert like. climate of Arizona adjacent areas.	Stings by thrusting its tail forward over its head. Swelling or discoloration of the area indicates a non-dangerous, though painful, sting. A dangerously toxic sting doesn’t change the appearance of the area, which does become hypersensitive.
Bee	Winged body with yellow black stripes. Covered with branched or feathery hairs. Stakes a buzzing sound. Different ’species very from 1/2 to I inch in length.	Lives .in aerial or under ground or hives. Widely distributed throughout the world wherever there are Flowering plants- from the polar regions to the equator	Stings with a tail when annoyed.- Burning and itching with localized swelling occurring. Usually leaves venom sac in victim. It takes between 2 and 3 minutes to inject all the venom.
Mosquito	Small dark fragile body with transparent wings and elongated mouth parts. .From 1/8- to 1/4 inch ‘long.	Found in temperate climates throughout the world where there is water necessary for breeding is available.	Bites and sucks blood. Itching and localized swelling result. Bite may turn red. Only the female is equipped to bite.
Tarantula	Large dark, “spider” with a furry covering.’ From 6 to 7 inches in toe-to-toe diameter.	Found in South western US and the tropics. Only the varieties found in the tropics are poisonous.	Bites produce a pin-prick sensation with negligible effect. It will not bite unless teased.
Tick	Oval with small head., the body is not divided into definite-segments. Gray or brown. Measures from 1/4:inch-to 3/4 !inch when mature.	Found, in all US areas and in parts of Southern Canada, on low shrubs, grass and trees. Carried around by both wild and ‘domestic animals.	Attaches itself to the skin and sucks blood. After removal there is danger of infection, especially if the mouth- parts are left-in the wound.