News

March 1 2009 - Pack 121 launches it's new website!

Please remember that your money for the Blue and Gold Banquet is due at the den meeting on Monday, February 22, 2010.  It is $2.00 per person including parents, siblings and other relatives.

If you are interested in your Scout earning the God and Me achievement, please contact Reverend Cox at Beymer Memorial United Methodist for classes.

Our Scout district is creating a Relay For Life team.  It is April 16th and 17th at Lake Region High School.  If you are interested in joining this very worthy cause, please contact Scout Paul Jackson in Troop 121.  I believe this is part of Paul's Eagle Project so please support him.

Pack 121 Pinewood DerbyGeneral Rules
1. Each boy should build his car with adult supervision.  Adults should not build cars while boys watch.
2. Each car should be built new this Scouting season, from new materials.  Do not recycle last year's fast car, best wheels, etc.
3. Each car must be the same car that qualified at the pack and district derbies: NO substitutions will be allowed.
4. Only one car per Scout will be allowed to register.  NO Scout will enter the speed event and the design event.
5. Scouts should be in Class A uniform (district level), Class B (pack level) and must be present to compete/win.Design CarsEach district will be eligibile to select 18 cars to send to the council event as design cars.  They can submit 3 for each of the 6 design categories: one Tiger, one Cub and one Webelos car for each category.  These cars will not compete in the speed race at district and council. 
Remember: we should be rewarding the boys' modeling skills, not the parents' skills!
Design Car Categories1. Authentic Car/Truck - can be classic or modern
2. Military - any military tranportation device or simply painted in a branches motif
3. Centential theme - happy 100 years!  Show it on your car somehow
4. Most Unique - thinking outside the box - a bathtub car - a pencil - an ice cream cone
5. Cartoon/Movie Theme - Star Wars car - Simpsons Car
6. Patriotic - show your USA pride!
Design cars must meet all the same criteria as the speed cars and be able to race.  Only the car itself will be allowed on the judging table.  Add-ons and displays are great for showing off your car at home or at a pack meeting, but, will not be permitted at the derby.
Judging CriteriaCars will be judged on:
Originality -  How much creative thought went into the design?
Craftsmanship - How much work actually went into making the car?
Category - How well does it fit the design category?
Scout participation - Does the craftsmanship represent the Scout's work, or the parents?Speed Race Rules - Only the cars placing within the top 4 places at the district races are eligible for the council derby.
1. Maximum width including tires and axles must not exceed 2 3/4".
2. Minimum width of the body at the axles should be 1 3/4".
3. Maximum length must not exceed 7".
4. Some Pinewood Derby Tracks have a 1/4" high guide rail.  Low hanging weights will often drag on the track.  Bottom clearance should be 3/8" but will NOT be cause for disqualification.
5. The wheelbase (distance between the axles) must not exceed the distance between the precut axle slots on the standard Pinewood block, i.e. 4 3/8".  Shortening the wheelbase will be permitted.
6. All four wheels must be used and all four must touch the track.  No wheel shall ride upon the center guide strip.  No extra guide pins, rollers or wheels designed to ride on or against the center guide strip will be allowed.
7. The car may not exceed 5 ounces as determined by the scale at the race.
8. Axles, wheels and body must be made from the official Cub Scout Grand Prix Pinewood Derby Kit, #17006.  No store-bought preformed bodies.
9. The wheels may be lightly sanded or polished to remove bumps and blemishes.  They must not be ground down, grooved, hollowed out, carved, cut, shaved or otherwise redesigned.  Original ridges and raised letters must still be visible.
10. No magnet of any type will be allowed o any speed car.
11. The race car may not be constructed or treated in such a way that the track's starting mechanism imparts mementum to the car.  (For instance, this provision disqualifies cars with sticky substances on the front of the car and protrusions which may catch on the starting pin.)  No part of the car may extend forward of the point where the car touches the starting post.
12. The wheels should be lubricated with graphite or powdered silicone.  Oil and other liquid lubricants are prohibited.
13. Wheel bearings, washers, and bushings are prohibited.
14. The car must not ride on any kind of springs or suspension system other than a suspension system that is actually carved from the pinewood block.
15. Loose materials are not allowed on the cars.
16. No moving or liquid weights are allowed.
The Derby officials reserve the right to determine a car's elibibility or ineligibility to race if an unfair practice is discovered that is not covered in these rules.  The officials' objective is to hold a race that is fair to all boys.  Boys whose cars are in violation of the rules will be given the chance (time permitting) to make their cars legal.  Any cars found to be in violation of the rules will be offered the opportunity to register for the Outlaw Class if they can meet those requirements.
Scouting encourages good sportsmanship.  Cars will be disqualified if the Scout or his parents display unsportsmanlike conduct on the race site.  Remember, the object is for all Scouts to have a GREAT time!

Youth Protection - We would like for you to take less than 15 minutes of your time to go to www.myscouting.org for a free online course in youth protection.  All leaders are required to take it, but, it is also valuable to you when you are participating in events with other Scouts besides your own.  It gives you lots of information on protection both the Scout and you from possible difficult situations.

World Conservation Project - Take a picture of your Cub Scout wearing his class A uniform and holding a full recycling bin. Turn it in to your den leader to be included with our Pack conservation project.

Events Calender

February 2010 
Den Meetings: 1st, 8th, 22nd - class B 
NO Den Meeting: 15th 


District Pinewood Derby: 20th @ St. Joseph's Catholic Church Gym, 535 Ave. M. N.W., Winter Haven, 33881 - optional on class A or B, either is fine;  There is a $5.00 per CAR registration.
Registration and Inspection times:
Tiger 8:00 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.
Wolfs & Bears 9:00 - 9:30 a.m.
Webelos 10:45 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Race Times:
Tiger 9:35 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.
Wolfs & Bears 10:00 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.
Webelos 12:05 p.m. - Finish
Finals - 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners from the four divisions - After Webelos Finish

BLUE and GOLD/Crossover/Pack mtg. 27th -  5:30 p.m. - Arrow of Light ceremony in Front of Scout House (bring a lawn chair)  -  6 p.m. to 8 p.m. First Presbyterian Church, McLeod Hall - class A full dress if possible - blue Cub pants if possible, but, jeans are fine if this is what you have (school navy pants are fine) Please R.S.V.P. to your den leader by Feb. 22, 2010.

District Cub Scout Leader Specific Training -
Saturday, February 27, 2010 -
9:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. Registration
9:30 a.m. - Noon Training
American Legion Post 8, Winter Haven
300 Ave. M NW - Adjacent to the Polk County Tag Agency
Contact Mike Karppe (863-662-5189 or email at mkarppe@darden.com
Cost is $5.00 which includes refreshments and trained patch.
Prerequisites: Fast Start, Youth Protection, and "This is Scouting" courses.  These are all available online at http://olc.scouting.org/
Please register in advance if possible,but, walk up registration is available.  Please email the following information to Mike Karppe:
   Name
   Unit (Pack 121)
   Scouting position to be trained (den leader,   
   assistant den leader, committee member0
   Phone number
   E-mail
   Mailing address
This is a great opportunity to be a part of your childs Scouting experience.

March 2010
Den Mtgs: 1st all dens
                    8th Tigers, Wolfs, Webelos I - no 
    Bear den mtg. due to FCAT's next day
                    15th Bears and Webelos I -  no 
    Tiger or Wolf den mtg. due to FCAT next day
                     22nd all dens
                     29 Pack Mtg.
Lake Region District Banquet - This is for leadership - Sesame Grotto @ 3030 Morgan Combee Road, Lakeland, Fl  33801-2942

26th - 28th - Animal Adventures Lake Region District Cub-O-Ree  - Flaming Arrow Scout Reservation, Lake Wales; registration and payment due to pack by February 22, 2010 den mtg.  Cub Scout $15, Siblings $10, Age 5 and under free; Additional Patches are only $2.50 each; T-shirts $8.00 (child) & $10 (adult)  
Adult 2x and 3x $12; pre approved staff $15.
For more information contact your Animal Safari Guides: camping @scoutingrocks.com

May 2010
8th (Sat.)- 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. (BALOO) Basic Adult Leader Outdoor Orientation for Cub Scout Leaders and Parents; American Legion Post 8,
Winter Haven (300 Ave. M NW) adjacent to Polk County Tag Agency; $10 per participant (includes handouts, lunch and snacks)
Contact Mike Karppe - mkarppe@darden.com
cell - 407-701-2095; Advanced registration is required by May 1, 2010. Email your registration to Mike Karppe.(Name, address, phone #, email address, pack #, district, leadership position)  Bring a pen and notepad; wear Class A uniform

Other training opportunities:  All are at W.H. American Legion Post 8
May 20th (Thurs.), 2010 - How to conduct the New Troop Leadership Training Program (TLT)
September 18th (SAT), 2010 - Cub Scout Leader Specific Training (CSLST)
October 9th (Sat), 2010 - Basic Adult Leaders Outdoor Orientation (BALOO)
October 23rd (Sat), 2010 Cub Scout Leader Specific Training (CSLST)
November 20th (Sat), 2010 Boy Scout Leader Specific Training (BSLST)
December 4th and 5th (Sat and Sun), 2010 Introduction to Outdoor Leader Skills (ITOLS)

June 2010
23rd - Summer Day Camp begins - fee is $85.00 - we do need a pack coordinator by  March 1st.  Please contact CM if you are interested.

District Round Table Meetings are held at Beymer United Methodist Church @ 7pm on the first Thursday of every month. 

Cub Scout Pack 121
First Presbyterian Church
637 6th St. NW
Winter Haven, FL 33880