The headline news for the Scout section in Ashdown is that:
32 Scout teams entered the competition, of which 8 (i.e. 25%) were from Ashdown
19 Scout teams finished the competition, of which 6 (i.e. 32%) were from Ashdown
Of the top ten Scout teams, four (i.e. 40%) were from Ashdown
Of the top five Scout teams, two (i.e. 40%) were from Ashdown
Of the top two Scout teams, one (i.e. 50%) was from Ashdown
Unfortunately we missed the very top slot this year, and have therefore agreed to loan the trophy to Brighton District for 12 months, .... but 4th Uckfield Alpha did exceptionally well to finish in second place as did the young lads from 1st Groombridge B who came in 5th place.
Every single one of our Scouts deserves a huge pat on the back, however, because they all proved themselves to be excellent hikers: We mustn't forget that most of them were quite young compared with some of the others taking part and that, at the start of the season, their mission was simply to 'have a go'.
Sadly, the two other Ashdown teams were forced to miss the second day, but they both still impressed on Day 1 and would definitely have been up there with the others had it not been for injury (in the case of 1st Mayfield) and illness (4th Uckfield 'Alphix').
The great thing is that almost all of those taking part from Ashdown will be eligible to come back for at least one more go in the future before moving on
to Explorers.
Next year, I should think that Ashdown Scout Troop teams will be in an incredibly strong position and with a bit of luck the examples set by 'Ping' and the many other first timers will be an inspiration to the other troops who did not get involved this year because they only had young Scouts.
At the other end of the scale, for those who will be 15 years old by this time next year, and therefore too old to take part as Scouts, a great future awaits them in the Explorer Section! ... Mallory Explorers completed a very impressive hat-trick of Overland wins this year but very hard on their heels in second place was the Ashdown 'Jamboree' Explorer team (a Crowborough-based combination of Tullis and Mallory). The main Tullis team finished in 10th place whilst the brand new 'Castle One' Explorer unit from the Ticehurst area were joint 13th. It is worth mentioning here that Avery had the assistance of Connor, the 'spare' Scout from Groombridge who set a fantastic example to everyone by proving his willingness to walk with three Explorers that he had never met before! - well done Connor!!!) ...
The incidents tested knowledge in baby skills, estimation, tracking, gadgets, first aid, pot suspension, musical bottles, codes, ball skills, maps, team skis
and tents.
Everyone who took part in the hike should now have received a personal invitation to the 'Three Peaks of Yorkshire' Challenge, which will allow all of them to put their Overland training experience to further good use and to build on the friendships they have established during the training period with people from other Troops/Units within the District.
Finally, a tremendous thank you is due to everyone that has helped with the training this year and to the additional people who helped to run Checkpoint 5, from the Leaders to the 1st Groombridge Catering Corps and the 1st Crowborough "casualty unit"
| Scout Results
1st 14th Brighton
2nd 4th Uckfield Alpha
5th 1st Groombridge B
9th 1st Crowborough Southon A
10th 1st Crowborough Southon B
13th 1st Groombridge A
18th 1st Wadhurst
Explorer Results
1st Mallory Ashdown Explorers
2nd Jamboree Team (Mallory and Tullis Explorers)
10th Tullis Ashdown Explorers
13th Avery Ashdown Explorers
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