Roscoe Cub Scout Pack 6202 holds annual awards ceremony

Roscoe Cub Scout Pack 6202 held their annual Blue & Gold Ceremony this Sunday, February 19, 2023 to commemorate the 113th birthday of the Scouts BSA program and to award Cubs for their outstanding work over the past year, including the  Pinewood Derby competition.

Every Cub Scout from every Den was awarded some type of award, receiving recognition from their leaders and parents. The ceremony was held at La Casa Grande Restaurant in Beloit, WI.

Awards for the Pinewood Derby were given out first. The race was held January 28, 2023.

For those who are unfamiliar with the annual Cub Scout competition, the Pinewood Derby is a chance for every competitive Cub Scout to show their skills in creating the fastest pine derby car. [Editors Note: the handmade wooden cars weigh five ounces and are powered only by gravity. They can exceed scale speeds of 200 mph down the ramp.]

Every year, Scouts and their parents get together to show off their hard work by racing each other, all vying to be the best car in the derby.

The goal is simple: whoever has the fastest car, wins.

The kids loved seeing their cars flying down the track - zooming colors of every kind imaginable and every shape imaginable.

Some of the crazy-cool car examples come from Ryder K. in the Webelo Den, who had car #406, a custom Harry Potter broomstick-car.

Being a Pinewood Derby veteran, his car was reaching scale speeds near 200 mph. His strategy: putting the weight at the back of the car to increase his chances of high speeds.

Another Pinewood Derby veteran with a crazy-cool car was Eva S. from the Wolf Den. She was sporting car #302, a black sports car with red flames, a classic derby car decal choice.

She was reaching top scale speeds nearing 201.48 mph, with the weights of the car being specially cut to fit the car.

Both of them said that their favorite part of the Pinewood Derby is racing their cars with their friends.

Awards were also given out to those Cubs and their families who sold the most Christmas wreaths and popcorn out of the Pack. These awards were staggered by dollar amounts, with prizes such as Ugly Mugz, hammocks, pack summer Day Camp fees paid for, and yearly registration fees paid for.

The Blue & Gold Ceremony also acts as a monthly Pack meeting, where announcements and general awards for rank advancement and adventures are given out.

Many Cubs earned awards for completing different adventures, such as: Stories in Shape, Tiger Bites, Call of the Wild, Code of the Wolf, Council Fire, Cubs Who Care, Paws with Skill, Adventures in Coins, Collections and Hobbies, Duty to God Footsteps, Germs Alive, Hometown Heroes, Howling at the Moon, Paws on the Path, Protect Yourself Rules, Running With the Pack, and Build It.

Tiger Den 4, Wolf Den 3, and Webelos Den 9 were recognized during the ceremony for the adventures above.

Two Arrow of Light Cub Scouts also bridged over to Boy Scouts at the ceremony, joining Scouts BSA Troop 6222 of Roscoe. Teig D. and Trevor B., having completed their Cub Scout journeys from Tiger rank until now, received recognition from Cubmaster Roxanne Klingenmeyer, who highlighted their time in Cub Scouts.

The next major event for Pack 6202 is Winter Camping at Camp Lowden in Oregon, IL starting Friday, February 24. More than 70 Scouts (Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts) will be in attendance for a weekend of friends and fun in the snow.

All Pinewood Derby information and quotes was collected by my fellow Eagle Scout Daniel Horvath on the day of the event, January 28, 2023.

PINEWOOD DERBY RESULTS

WREATH AND POPCORN INCENTIVE PROGRAM REWARDS

DEN PRIZES

GENERAL DEN AWARDS