Putting in the Prep. time

Today (7/30) our troop did our swimming test(s) to prepare for our canoeing next week at ward camp. Us leaders, are only 24 years old, but even our energy can't keep up with our scouts...I didn't even swim & I was exhausted after the whole thing.

We had a great turn out with the exception of some very late comers and those who didn't make it all. This is because we were last minute in planning this swim test-next time, we'll be better at getting news out further in advance.

The boys were split into ability groups depending on what level test they could complete. There were the non-swimmers, those who cannot swim at 6 ft or float on their own. Then were the beginner swimmers-most of our boys fall into this category. They had to jump in feet first at 9 ft., level-off, swim 25 ft., turn sharply
& swim back-these boys can swim at 6 ft.

There were 5 scouts who attempted the Swimmers test, the highest level. This one is a difficult challenge & we only had 3 who could pass-Malakai Solovi, Logan Johnson & Landon Johnson. We have to give major props to Webber Ava & Lorenzo Va'afuti for getting half-way...maybe next time, we'll have more takers.

Swimmers test, you have to : Jump feet first, level-off, swim on the surface as fast as possible for 75 yards (the length of the competition pool is 25 yards, so they swam the row 3 times), turning sharply without support, backstroking 25 yards
& then floating for a total of 100 yards! This had to be done non-stop! no rest.

Why do scouts do this? Well, it's a BSA requirement but it also let's us leaders know where each scout is at with their abilities-this helps us properly supervise them. When swimming in natural waters, we can easily determine which boys need to stay close to shore and who can venture out a bit further. Now we can also assign buddies-each scout has a partner within their ability group to stick with at ALL times, in or out of the water. By the end of the year, we hope to have every scout from the non-swimmer group to a beginner swimmer.

All in all, it was a fun day with lunch to end it all. Thanks scouts!