The Capitol Area and Sam Houston

Area Council Varsity Scout

Turkey Vulture Triathlon
I.GENERAL INFORMATION

A.TIMING

The Turkey Vulture Triathlon beings Friday, April 27, 2007 and continues through
Saturday, April 28, 2007. Plan on arriving at around 6 PM, to allow adequate time to set up. We
will have a team arrive early and ask the Park Rangers that all reserved campsites be congregated
close together to allow for us to more easily meet for activities.

If your team cannot arrive relatively early, we suggest that you send up an exploratory
party to set your tents up while it’s still light. Remember that firm dusk hits us at around 8 PM.

B.REGISTRATION

We have heard from many that they are attending, but we have yet to receive one
registration form. This makes it fairly hard to help plan, so please give us a head’s up! We are
attaching the registration form to this announcement.

C.FEES

The cost is $5/scout and participating adult. The money covers the personalized bibs,
awards, marking trails, and refreshments. Please call Paul Masters at 512.769.1454 with any
questions. We accept checks and will have receipts for purposes of documenting the expenditure.

D.SCHEDULE

Friday, April 27 6-8 PM Registration (look for note at the entrance

for the registration camp site); Setup
camp; Dinner at each site (BYO Food)
8:30 PM Flag ceremony (field uniform)
9PM Campfire
Saturday, April 28 7 AM Flag ceremony (field uniform)
7:15 AM – 8 AM Breakfast at each site (BYO Food)
8:30 AM Begin race – swim segment
9:30 AM Begin race – bike segment
10:30 AM (approx) Race – run segment
11:30 AM Return to camp
12 PM Lunch at each site;
Clear camp areas
2 PM (approx) Award ceremony

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E. TRIATHLON SEGMENT DETAILS

The triathlon will begin at Birch Creek. We start with swimming, followed by biking
from Birch Creek to Nails Creek, finishing with a run. Teams should head over to Nails Creek
(about a 30 minute drive) with any runners who are not biking over from Birch Creek no later
than 9:45 AM. Teams will need to have vehicles in place at Nails Creek (where the runners start)
to return the bicycles and the runners.

1. Swimming

The swimming segment begins at point A and continues along the

A shore to point B. It is approximately ¾ of a mile in length. There will be no
penalty for a person who stops to stand along the way, so long as the person
does not leave the water to walk the segment. All swimmers should remain
close to the shore, to permit ease of rescue if necessary. It is NOT necessary
B to swim out to deep water. Only far enough out to permit you to swim
without hitting the bottom, e.g., 3 or 4 feet.

2. Cycling

Cycling begins at point B. Scouts competing SOLELY in cycling (and not as part of any
squad

completing the entire triathlon) may begin prior to the first swimmer arriving at point B. All
bicycles MUST slow when approaching other trail users (remember all have to do this so there is
no penalty). All cyclists MUST have helmets. Cycling is approximately a 12-mile course from
point B to point C. The course follows the main trail, i.e., the dotted line. The trail will be
marked via flour or chalk to prevent confusion. Remember, this is NOT a paved trail. It’s used by
hikers, bicyclists and horses. Since the trail ends up at Nails Creek, drives will need to drive the
30-minute drive to Nails Creek for the purpose of returning the bicycles to Birch Creek.

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 3. Run
C
The run is a circuitous route begins at point C,
continuing to point D, and then returning to point C. The route is
approximately 2.5 miles. We will have water and possibly
Gatorade at the start/finish point for this segment. If a runner is
not continuing through the rest of the triathlon, he can return
with the vehicles to Birch Creek.
D
F.SCORING

This is a TEAM event. It will be scored similar to a track/x-country meet. One difference
is that teams will also receive points for uniforms and for getting every active scout out. And
points are awarded based on team placement for 2-3 member squads, for individual time in each
segment, and for placement for individuals completing the entire triathlon. Youth who reached
the age of 16 before February 2007 do not count towards a Varsity team’s score. We will
track and recognize such youth (as well as competing adults) separately.

We will recognize the top three Varsity squads1 (two to three competitors) overall, and the
top three individuals in each leg (for a total of 12 awards). The top Varsity team2 will be awarded
the BUCKET. The Team takes the bucket (full of nutritious candy, or some such sweet) and is
allowed to attach a piece of leather to the handle signed by each Varsity Scout and leader on the
winning Varsity team. The bucket is passed along to each Varsity tournament, leaving a legacy
for the local teams.

The scoring is detailed on the two following pages.

1
Varsity teams consist of various squads. In this case, the squad size is limited to three individuals as no more than
three can compete in the triathlon when doing it as a “relay” type event.
2
This refers to the top TEAM as opposed to stop SQUAD. The Team earns points in various ways, as detailed in the
following score sheets, including the wearing of a consistent uniform, the percentage of Varsity scouts participating,
etc.

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Place Squad Points Swim Points Bike Points Run Points
Triathlon (squad (squad (squad
Time scouts) scouts) scouts)
(2+
scouts)
1 100 30 30 30
2 90 27 27 27
3 80 24 24 24
4 70 21 21 21
5 60 18 18 18
6 50 16 16 16
7 40 14 14 14
8 30 12 12 12
9 20 11 11 11
10 10 10 10 10

Place Individual Points Swim Points Bike Points Run Points

Triathlon (non- (non- (non-
Time squad squad squad
(1 scout) scouts) scouts) scouts)
1 100 30 30 30
2 90 27 27 27
3 80 24 24 24
4 70 21 21 21
5 60 18 18 18
6 50 16 16 16
7 40 14 14 14
8 30 12 12 12
9 20 11 11 11
10 10 10 10 10

Place Best Points

Skit*
1 50
2 40
3 30
4 25
5 20
6 15
7 10
8 5

*Graded on originality, humor, audience reaction and participation of all team members.

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Additional Scores per Team

Team:

Number of youth on team actually participating in at least one event: A

Number of active youth on team without scheduling conflict:3 B

Percent Active Boys DOING Triathlon Event A/B = %

% in Points % in Points % in Points Percent Points

Field Field Activity Active
Uniform4 Uniform Uniform5 Boys
at at on DOING
Night Morning Saturday Triathlon
Flag Flag Event*
100 20 100 20 100 20 100 50
90 18 90 18 90 18 90 45
80 16 80 16 80 16 80 40
70 14 70 14 70 14 70 35
60 12 60 12 60 12 60 30
50 10 50 10 50 10 50 25
40 8 40 8 40 8 40 20
30 6 30 6 30 6 30 15
20 4 20 4 20 4 20 10
10 2 10 2 10 2 10 5

3
A valid scheduling conflict is one in which the youth was unable to attend due to prior commitments, e.g., high
school concert event, and NOT because the youth did not want to come out and support the team. The purpose of
this requirement is to reward teams that get all youth out to the Triathlon, including those who are less enthusiastic
about physical fitness than others.
4
The Field Uniform is the official BSA uniform and requires at minimum the BSA Varsity Scout Shirt with the
orange shoulder loops. The percentage is determined of all leaders on the team attending (minimum two adult
leaders) and all registered boys attending.
5
The Activity Uniform is any uniform chosen by the Varsity Team which is of a consistent design. It can include
custom-made T-shirts worn by the boys and the adult leaders. While matching shorts are encouraged, they are not
required. We will assess the wearing of the Activity Uniform at the campfire, and on Saturday before, during, and
after the race. We are looking for a “team” look, as opposed to a rag-tag group of individuals.