READERS COMMENTS

I think you should take the Eagle Scouts up on their offer! Put their skills where their mouth is. Looking forward to that issue!
Posted: Oct 27, 2009 CM Scott

I am a 16 year old Eagle Scout and a subscriber to the magizine. As others have said, the scouts did win. One of the adults was an Eagle Scout. Nevertheless, any A-list scout, like me, who has lead a crew at Philmont, Sea Base, and a Canoe Trek in the Adirondacks, I believe could take on even the most skilled backcountry men backpacker magizine has to offer. My troop is an Eagle Scout factory, six in 2009, that has a 6 year leagacy of winning Klondike Derbys, one that was two county's wide. Four of my best friends are Eagle Scouts and we have over 200 merit badges between us. Yes, the competition was about average scouts, but I'd like to see a hardcore version of this. Maybe an, "Are you smarter than an Eagle Scout?" ... and disregard notions from this superintendent's idiotic claim http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,567700,00.html

email me if ya need an eagle scout! americanscout32@yahoo.com
Posted: Oct 18, 2009 Eric D

Think back to when you were 15? Ever think of competing in anything with an adult? Eagle Scout Troop 330, and know the Boys did great. At 33, I can still fold the flag, and cringe every time I see a 'patriot' flying a faded, ratty symbol of our country that should have been honorably retired years ago! Take 'em down, take'em to the Boy Scouts, and see they're retired with honor like they should be, instead of thrown on the dumpster in disgrace!
Posted: Oct 13, 2009 Pat Gensler

well im an eagle scout and one eagle scout can definatly lead a team to victory un fair scouts rule you guys used modern gear that the scouts almost discourage
Posted: Oct 04, 2009 Anonymous

I believe that the boys just need more experience. As for weather the Boy Scouts won of not, well they did win. It was a Former Eagle Scout on the other team that helped the adults to win, both teams and the spirt of Scouting won.. once a Scout always a Scout. I was a Cub Scout, and a Boy Scout also served in the US Army for 10 years, and am now returning to the BSA as an Assit. Scout Master, and my son Niko is starting..
Posted: Oct 02, 2009 Mike B.

I enjoyed the story and took it with a grain of salt. As a Unit Commissioner for the Boy Scouts I was pleased to see a story in a major magazine.
Posted: Sep 30, 2009 Jon Heffron

I too become frustrated when all that I see in the magazine is expensive gear and places to go that would be out of range for our boy scouts to even think about. We do operate on limited funds, but we still have fun and learn along the way, no matter what our equipment costs or where we take them backpacking.
Posted: Sep 27, 2009 Mike

As a 20 year old eagle scout, I feel the boys selected in this challenge weren't fully at their peak of their scouting career and was an unfair match for the readers group. Now if the scouting group were life and eagle scouts 17 and 18, maybe even 16 the readers group would have been done for.
Posted: Sep 23, 2009 Justin

I am an Eagle Scout myself. I also am a regular subscriber to Backpacker. I was laughing the whole time while taking the Boy Scout quiz! Some of the stuff like the hypothermia challange I have acctually never heard about until I took the quiz. One good story idea if you want to go further into the scouts is to try going to Philmont, one of three BSA high adventure bases. I went there this past summer for my first real multi-day backpacking trek and I learned a ton of additional skills like bear procedures, firemaking safety in the New Mexican wilderness, and hands on experience with treating a guy for hypothermia. I think it would make a great stoy!
Posted: Sep 20, 2009 Rob Forney

Have a daughter with Venturing Silver and now a son with Eagle

Life Scouters at 14-16 yo still have a disadvantage of maturity/team work. They are on the cusp of the "cross-over" to adulthood.

good job for the scouts!
Posted: Sep 18, 2009 Mama Scouter

Pitting MEN with 20 years camping experience (one an Eagle Scout) against teen scouts with only 3 or 4 years of Boy Scouting seemed unfair. I agree with other readers that the competition would have been fair if you had selected Eagle Scouts, or even readers of Backpacker with the same # of years experience as the boys. The article was fun, and this Female Scout Master will definitely share it with my troop. Yes, that's right, a female Scout Master, Silver Beaver recipient, mother of 4 boy scouts (2 Eagles), and proud to be associated with Boy Scouts of America. Thanks for the article Backpacker!
Posted: Sep 18, 2009 Toni

We teach our boys never to use PAPER--can't always relie on it or have it at hand. So the boys did it right.
Posted: Sep 18, 2009 Papa Bear, Scoutmaster, LI,NY

I was on of the adults that competed in the comp. I was very impressed by the boy scouts we competed against. They had an amazing amount of confidence and a great set of skills. It is nice to see young men on a great path in life.
I would say our biggest advantage was experience with the outdoors and experience with team work. I have been backpacking and doing every thing outdoors for most of my life, so of course it was not quite a fair competition. But I think the scouts had a lot of fun and were able to see that the joy of the outdoors does not have to diminish with age.
Posted: Sep 17, 2009 Jeff Thompson

We have a competition coming up in October between are boye in our troop.I think that we will try some of your event ideas,then the winning patrol will compete against a patrol made up of adult scouter.I'll keep you informed of the out come.
Posted: Sep 17, 2009 David dubnicka

I agree, a trip or two in Philmont and you won't forget any of those skills for life. I never made it past Life (Found it too much fun to be outdoors at summer camp to bother with merit badge classes), but in the 17 years since 95% of my trips have been solo. 14k' in CO or 4k' in NC, Bilzzard or drought, scouts definitly taught me the basis of all I needed. BTW, how many of these "average" hikers only have 3-4 years max backpacking experience as these scouts do?
Posted: Sep 17, 2009 David Grubbs

I was lucky to belong to a good troop (Troop 24, Kennett Square, Pa) that did a fair amount of hiking and camping. I have never lost the love of the outdoors ... and leave tomorrow for 5 days on the AT, solo (at age 63). Boy Scouting is a great program.
Posted: Sep 17, 2009 Ed Stoddard

You picked very intelligent people, two adults in the computer technology field and one independent entrepreneur, did you also selectively choose Scouts from a high intelligence background Those adults are a lot more focused than teenagers, not a fair test, and the Scouts still did pretty well.
Posted: Sep 17, 2009 E. Avery

Nice to see that the Reader Team's leg up on the kids was his own Scout experience! I'm Scoutmaster of my old troop now and we just did the High Sierra Trail (nice BP Mag article on it BTW!). I'd match the elite TL Troop 76 Scouts, who went 73 miles in 9 days, crossed the entire Sierra, crossed the Great Western Divide, & climbed the tallest peak in the continental USA against anyone when it comes to Scout Skills!! Great article!!
Posted: Sep 17, 2009 Mr. B

Thanks for the interesting and skill packed article which was fun to read; but c'mon, having an Eagle Scout with at least 20 years backpacking experience and probably leading Team Backpacker certainly skewed the results. Final note - the BSA and Backpacker are symbiotic, I've read your mag since the beginning. I especially value your equipment reviews.
Posted: Sep 17, 2009 Chip Nicol, Eagle 1973

Only 4% of all Scouts become Eagle Scouts, so why not pick an Eagle Scout who is a hiking/camping enthusiast. Adults who have never been in Scouts and become backpackers usually learn from someone experienced and retain more than most teenage boys, and don't reach the "average" camping skill level unless they are intelligent, in shape and active campers. Pitting them against teenagers in Scouts is an unfair to the boys, and those boys still did well. I'd rather go into the woods on a hike with almost any Eagle Scout than the average adult camper any day!
Posted: Sep 17, 2009 E Avery

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