| Ockanickon offers a wide variety of activities in the evening, including MB’s, different tournaments, open program areas, campfires and much more. Merit Badges:
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| Activities:
Magic: The Gathering Tournament
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Assistant Program Director
James McCabe James is Ockanickon’s Assistant Program Director and is here to help ensure that program areas are running properly, activities at night are going smoothly, and to help campers with any problems they may run into.
This is James’ fifth year on staff, and second year as Assistant Program Director. Before that he worked in the Aquatics department as an Instructor at the pool and then as the Lake Director.
James goes to Temple University, and is in his junior year, majoring in Chemistry.
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Retreat:
Opening Retreat
Sunday night, troops begin to line the main road beginning at the Totem Pole by the Trading Post around 7:45pm. At 8pm the entire camp marches down to the old Parade Field and then the large American Flag is lowered by the staff. Afterwards the camps moves up the hill to the campfire circle for the Opening Campfire.
Weekday Retreats
These retreats occur Monday thru Friday in between meals, approximately 6:15pm, at the flags in front of the office. Troops line up next to each other in the field. If your troop would like to lower the flags, please contact your unit commissioner at camp. One of the staff will meet your troop, and spend time reviewing how to lower and fold the flags, and what to do when they are down. Even if you do not have enough people to fill an entire Color Guard, scouts are welcome to join the staff, and help them lower and fold the flags.
Final Retreat
Saturday morning, we gather the camp for one last ceremony and our final retreat. We line up at the Totem Pole just like we did when we arrived on Sunday that you arrived. We ask that troops begin to line up at 9:15am so we are ready to march out at 9:30am. Before lowering the flags one last time, we recognize our Honored Campers by calling them up in front of the rest of the camp and presenting them with their patch. After any other final awards are handed out, we lower the flag and do our last Pass and Review.
Campfires:
Opening Campfire
The opening campfire is a show of skits, songs and cheers performed by the staff. It usually ends with a story, and closing scout songs. It’s purpose is to keep you entertained as well as get you involved. We want to see how loud and enthusiastic you and your troop can be. This is one of the best places to show Scout Spirit.
When: Directly after Sunday Night’s Opening Retreat.
Where: Follow the rest of camp to the campfire circle behind the Trading Post.
Closing Campfire
This is when troops are given the opportunity to show their stuff to the rest of camp. Troops come up with their favorite song, skit, cheer or story OR better yet, come up with their own original song, skit or cheer, and work with one of our Camp Commissioners who organize the closing campfire and make sure everything runs smoothly. This is also the time that the camp and Program Areas hand out any awards to campers, patrols, and troops. This campfire ends with a slideshow of your week at camp and the closing scout songs by the staff.
Where: Line up at the Campfire Circle Entrance
When: Friday Night at 8pm
Magic: The Gathering Tournament:
Camp isn’t just about merit badges. Scouts enjoy all sorts of fun activities here at Ockanickon, and we have something fun for everyone. One of the most popular activities in camp is Magic: The Gathering, so we have dedicated a night where everyone in camp that enjoys the card game, can get together and play against all of the other Magic fans. Players may play pick-up games or participate in one of the two tournaments where players with winning records receive prizes. The tournament is run an experience DCI Judge.
When: Tuesday Night 7:15pm
Where: Handicraft Building
Cost: $5.00 for Constructed (Player Provided Their Own Deck), $20.00 for Sealed (Players Receive Five Packs to Build a Deck)
** Campers can sign up for the tournaments ahead of time at the Trading Post to skip the registration line**
Totin’ Chip:
This training for knife, ax, and saw safety is offered by our staff to anyone who needs it, whether it’s their first time or they need a refresher class. Campers learn the safety precautions scouts need to take when using or carrying one of these potentially dangerous tools. It’s a hands on course, with the campers practicing the skills they are learning so that they remember it longer.
When: Tuesday Night 7:15pm
Where: Dan Beard Field
Who: Campers that are NOT in the Dan Beard that need Totin’ Chip
Paintball:
Ockanickon is the first camp in the Northeast Region to introduce paintball. Our paintball range offers a large number of fun targets to shoot at.
When: The Paintball range is open for free shoot during the following days and times:
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday
7pm to 8 pm each day
Where: Paintball range is to the left of the Science Building.
Cost: $6 for 100 paintballs $18 for 500 paintballs
Note: Please purchase tickets from the Trading Post before you head to the paintball range.
This is a shooting gallery with targets downrange.
We will NOT BE SHOOTING AT OTHER PEOPLE.
Airband:
Continuing Ockanickon’s tradition of non-traditional program, a unit airband competition will be offered each week. This activity is open to both youth and adults and prizes of various degrees will be available to those who are particularly gifted at playing non-existent instruments.
What’s an airband? An airband is the outgrowth of playing the air guitar or singing into a hairbrush. Air guitar, or air anything, is playing an imaginary instrument to the music of a song. The air guitar became popular with the first wave of British rock in the 1970s. An airband is where a whole bunch of people play different imaginary instruments, once again to a song being played in the background.
How can you score someone on playing an imaginary instrument? The judges for the airband competition will be looking for four things:
1) Enthusiasm – is your airband playing its heart out? Even if the song isn’t terribly loud or upbeat, Scout enthusiasm can still shine through. (5 points)
2) Technique – do the drummer’s hands hit the imaginary drum head at the right time or does he look like someone that’s being electrocuted? Part of airbanding is presenting that you have a passing familiarity with instrumentation or can at least fake looking like you do. (5 points)
3) Imitation – does your airband group look and act like the group that’s actually doing the song? If someone does Jethro Tull, does the flutist do the entire piece on one leg? Is your cover of the Beach Boys done by kids wearing Hawaiian shirts? (5 points)
4) Enthusiasm – it’s Scouting. Doing something loudly with energy only a teenage Boy Scout can muster can overcome even the greatest of obstacles. (5 points)
What’s required for an airband team? Each team must have between three and six members.
Each unit may submit up to one all adult team, up to one all youth team or a single mixed team of youth and adult team. If a mixed team is submitted a unit may submit no other teams.
How can a group sign-up? Groups may sign-up ahead of time or in camp. No two groups can do the same song during the same week so it is wise to sign-up early. Before camp, email us with your unit number and week attending camp as well as what song(s) your group(s) would like to do to. Requests will be honored in the order they are received.
When is the competition? The airband competition will be held along side the volleyball tournament on Thursday.
Rules
- Each team must have between three and six members.
- Each unit may submit up to one all adult team, up to one all youth team or a single mixed team of youth and adult team. If a mixed team is submitted a unit may submit no other teams.
- The camp will provide a hairbrush as a fake microphone for the lead singer and a stool for the drummer, no other props may be used to represent instruments or sound equipment.
- Teams may have costumes and props assuming that the items are Scout appropriate. Using inappropriate props or costuming will result in disqualification.
- Units must sign-up before Wednesday 5:00 PM.
Bonuses
- Any youth team in a troop where an adult team also performs will receive a two point bonus.
- Any team that performs a song deemed “rarely performed” will receive a two point bonus. No definitive “rarely performed” list exists so there’s some guessing involved.
- Teams whose lead singer is the opposite gender as the lead singer of the song will receive a two point bonus. The best of Heart looks a lot better now, doesn’t it?
- Your team may inadvertently score bonus points by selecting a favorite song of the judges.
Prizes
Official Ockanickon Associates degrees in Airbandry will be awarded to the top placers in each category as well as to the best over all score.
Volleyball Tournament:
One of Ockanickon’s most popular activities, this competition has teams compete in a bracket style tournament that ends with the winning team taking on the staff team.
When: Entry Forms need to be handed into the office by Wednesday at 5pm
Play starts at 7pm Thursday Night
Where: Volleyball Court