 | Inter-Patrol Contest |
| Easy Way to Teach Compass |
| Field 100'x100' Required. |
| Advance Preparation Required |
| Compass for each Scout in Largest Patrol |
| 16 Stakes and a Measuring Tape |
After you have read this, see if you can think of an easier way to teach compass work, and a more pleasant way for Scouts to practice walking compass courses with three changes of direction. The courses have been calculated by trigonometry, so you know they are accurate.
Advance Preparation
Assemble your Troop in a park, on a baseball diamond, or a field at least 100' x 100'. While the Scouts are walking back and forth over a 200' stretch to determine the average length of their step, drive 16 stakes 5 feet apart on a line running due East-West. Number the stakes, beginning with 1 at the West end of the line, and working East.
Four Courses
Each course bears the same number as the stake from which it starts. Assemble the Troop and provide each PL with a copy of one of the courses below:
From Stake No. 4
| Go 36° for 122 Ft. |
| Then go 174° for 50 Ft. |
| Then go 228° for 74 Ft. |
From Stake No. 6
| Go 3° for 100 Ft. |
| Then 132° for 74 Ft. |
| Then 225° for 69 Ft. |
From Stake No. 8
| Go 346° for 102 Ft. |
| Then 129° for 78 Ft. |
| Then 211° for 58 Ft. |
From Stake No. 12
| Go 348° for 102 Ft. |
| Then 135° for 71 Ft. |
| Then 207" for 56 Ft. |
Here are the exact spots for finishing the above courses:
| For Course No. 4 - Stake No. 8; |
| For Course No. 6 - Stake No. 8; |
| For Course No. 8 - Stake No. 9; |
| For Course No. 12 - Stake No. 13. |
Scouts should not be given these locations either before or after the practice work.
The Practice Work
Instruct PLs to let Scouts who know how, step off a compass course, as described in the Handbook for Boys. Help those who do not. Have the experienced Scouts check both distances and changes of compass directions. In this manner let each Patrol mark a single finish spot at the end of its course, while a Troop Leader remains behind and measures the errors (only after the Scouts leave) to the nearest foot, and reports then to the Troop.
Contest for Following Week
In preparation for the second contest, copy the courses below on 8 separate cards, and give the set to the Patrol which will be first to start the contest. Remind everyone that the number of each course indicates the Stake from which it starts. Each Scout walks one of the courses.
1.
| Go 36° for 122 Ft. |
| Then 149° for 58 Ft. |
| Then 235° for 86 Ft. |
3.
| 38° - 125 Ft. |
| 237° - 90 Ft. |
| 186° - 50 Ft. |
5.
| 22° -107 Ft. |
| 158°- 54 Ft. |
| 186°- 50 Ft. |
7.
| 34° -119 Ft. |
| 186°- 50 Ft. |
| 228°- 74 Ft. |
9.
| 346° -102 Ft. |
| 129°- 78 Ft. |
| 186°- 50 Ft. |
11.
| 335° -109 Ft. |
| 174°- 50 Ft. |
| 145°- 61 Ft. |
13.
| 17° -104 Ft. |
| 237°- 90 Ft. |
| 141°- 67 Ft. |
15.
| 12° -101 Ft. |
| 237°- 90 Ft. |
| 138° - 67 Ft. |
The correct destinations for the above courses follow:
| No. 1 finishes at Stake 7, |
| No. 3 - Stake 2, |
| No. 5 - Stake 16, |
| No. 7 - Stake 8, |
| No. 9 - Stake 15, |
| No. 11 - Stake 10, |
| No. 13 - Stake 12, |
| No. 15 - Stake 13. |
Seal the list of these destinations in an envelope and give it to each Patrol Leader just before he takes his Patrol to the field. Tell him not to open the envelope until all members of his Patrol have finished their courses. He then measures and reports the error of each Scout. As soon as he measures the errors he returns with his Patrol on the run. The leader of the contest then seals the list in another envelope, gives it to the second Patrol Leader who carries on in the same manner The Patrol with the smallest error wins.
