The first Japeechen District Paper Bridge Building Competition will take place Saturday March 24, 2001 at Deer Lakes High School.  Directions  This is the same location and the afternoon of the Japeechen District First Aid Meet.

The goal of this activity is to see how well a team of Scouts can assemble a paper bridge model using specially marked 8 1/2” by 11” paper. The bridge model that they will be asked to build is a Three Span Beam Bridge (Activity # 1 in the book “Paper Bridges” by Mario Salvadori).

Weblos and younger Boy Scouts (14 and under) are the targeted age group for this activity. Older Scouts who are members of the OA are asked to volunteer as staff workers for this event.

The Scouts will be required to organize into teams of three to five members. Each scout must be designated to play a role as described in the Instruction Manual. A team name must also be chosen. All of this should be done prior to the day of the Competition.

So that we will have adequate table space available for each team, PRIOR REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED FOR THIS EVENT. Please call  Bob Paul   at 412-351-3913 (work) or 412-487-1656 (home) prior to March 15, 2001.

The cost of this event is $3.00/ participant. There will be no charge for adults or OA volunteer staff workers.

The District will supply paper, prizes and a patch, including a patch for each OA volunteer worker. Each team must supply its own tape, scissors and colored pencils. Under adult supervision and with adequate protective measures provided, a team may also use glue, exacto knives and marking pens.

Check-in will begin at 1:00 PM and competition will begin at approximately 1:30 PM. We expect to conclude the competition, judging and awards ceremony by approximately 4:00 PM.

Judging will be based on load capacity, exactness, appearance and speed as described in the Instruction Manual. Consideration will also be given for Scout Spirit. Prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place teams.

Preparation for this event should include procurement of the necessary supplies and an advanced reading of the Instruction Manual. We have purposely not distributed copies of the marked papers (i.e. the templates) in advance of the competition. Practice building the model bridges is not required or even desirable for this event to be fun.

Questions? Bob Paul

2001 Bridge Building Photo Album

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