The Ranger Award
High adventure and the outdoors have always bneen of interest to young Americans as well as
an important part of the BSA program. The Venturing Ranger Award was designed primarily for Outdoor Venturers,
but is available to all Venturing youth members of the Boy Scouts of America
Background
There are many differances in Boy Scouting and Venturing, such as Venturing being coed and led by Venturers.
Many Venturers don't just learn outdoor skills, they go on to become highly proficient in those skills. Since it's beginning over
60 years ago, Venturing has always been the "next step" beyond Boy Scouting. Today's Venturers are no exception. They are advanced scuba divers, technical rock climbers, deep cavers, and
cross-country cyclists. Venturers learn from outside consultants with a particular outdoor skill until they too become highly proficient.
Venturers can be found at the peak of the most advanced technical rock climbs, scuba diving on shipwrecks, mapping new cave passages, and supporting wilderness rescues and accident managment.
If you earn this award, it will say to you and others that you have worked hard and are now an elite outdoorsman. It will say that you are proficient in a variety of outdoor skills or sports,
that you are prepared in outdoor safty, and that you are ready to lead outdoor activities.
The ranger program is designed to challenge you in the wide varity of interests available in the oudoor setting. Challange is a key word.
The kinds of things that rangers do are challenging. Rangers are tough and can bear up under the most difficult circumstances. Rangers don't give up.
The Purpose
The purpose of the award is to encourage Venturers to acheive a high level of outdoor skills proficiency; recognize acheivement of this high level of outdoor/high adventure skills training;
and establish rangers as a highly trained leadership resource for crews, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and the community.
The ranger award exemplifies a challenging high-level outdoor/high adventure skills advancment program. Once earned, it will identify a ranger as ana elite
outdoorsman who is skilled at a variety of outdoor sports and interests, trained in outdoor safety, and ready to lead or assist others in activites. Rangers can be a great program asset to Cub Scouts packs, Boy Scout troops, and others.
Requirements
This is not an easy, quick award to earn. It will take planning, time, intiative, and plenty of hard work. It will take planning, time, initiative, and
plenty of hard work. It will probably take you over a year to complete all the requirements, but that too will speak of your determination and staying power, two
attributes of a Ranger.
Ranger candidates must complete eight challenge core requirements:
| First Aid |
Wilderness Survival |
| Emergency Preparedness |
Communications |
| Leave No Trace |
Cooking |
| Land Navagation |
Conservation |
And four of 18 challenging electives:
| Backpacking |
Mountaineering |
| Cave Exploring |
Outdoor Living History |
| Cycling/Mountain Biking |
Physical Fitness |
| Ecology |
Plants and Wildlife |
| Equestrian |
Project COPE |
| First Aid |
SCUBA |
| Fishing |
Shooting Sports |
| Hunting |
Watercraft |
| Lifesaver |
Winter Sports |
There are a variety of ways to approach these requirments. Many requirments you must do completely on
your own or with others, such as scuba certification. Others your crew might decide to do as a crew, such as
Project COPE. The key is to have a plan and an initiative. Not everyone will be a ranger: only those who are willing
to learn, work hard, and meet the reqirements will be known as Rangers.
You may work with outside consultants who have expertise in the area you are working in, such as
a scuba dive instructor for the scuba diving requirement or a certified first aid instructor for the
first aid requirement. However, you must have these consultants preapproved by your advisor. Consultants
may initial and date your Ranger Handbook. Then, when you complete all eight core requirements and at least
four electives, have your advisor review your completed requirements, certify your completion of the Ranger Award
requirements, and order your Ranger Award.
- Note: Venturers who have recieved the Outdoor Bronze Award need complete only four
more of the core requirements and wo more electives to qualify for the Ranger Award.
Ranger Award Device
After months of experiencing and acquiring skills on a wide variety of outdoor/high-adventure
interests and sharing those skills with others, the Ranger will receive a sterling silver medal featuring
a powder horn superimposed over a compass dial. The medal is worn suspended from a green and white ribbon attached
to a silver Ranger bar. A silver Ranger bar is also available for wear on the field uniform. A certificate is also available.
- Resources:
- Ranger Handbook no. 3128
- Venturer Handbook no.33493
Questions, Comments, Complaints: Please contact the webmaster