Scouting, Volume 50, Number 7, September 1962 Page: 23
32 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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AMBER LIGHT OF
By DONALD M. HIGGINS
Director, Health and Safety Service
D
o you think Scouting should
participate in go-karting.
Should Scouts bounce into the
sport of rebound tumbling on Tram-
polines? How about judo? Or skin
diving and scuba? Should these activi-
ties be part of the Scouting program?
Go-karting enthusiasts claim their
sport is safe, that accidents are minor,
and that driver-education benefits are
derived from children driving and rac-
ing miniature hot rods. The enthusiasts
are contradicted by facts gathered by
the National Safety Council.
Last year 33 deaths and 192 injuries
by go-karting were reported. The av-
erage age of the drivers in the fatal
accidents was under 16. Injuries
ranged from cuts and abrasions to
fractured skulls and lost arms. Not all
victims were drivers. In Spartanburg,
S. C.. a 12-year-old driver smashed into
some people injuring 16 of them. At
Niagara Falls, N.Y.. an engine flew off,
landing in a spectator's lap.
Scouting's National Health and
Safety Committee endorses the Na-
tional Safety Council policy, which
points out that all states exclude karts
from public thoroughfares but cannot
control their use on private property.
Therefore, parents and organizations
should refrain from conducting races
and prevent operation of karts by any-
one under legal driving age. Go-kart
racing, dragstripping. or any other
motorized speed events are not ap-
proved as Scouting program activities.
Trampoline equipment until re-
cently was used only by circus per-
formers and gymnasts. Current enthu-
siasm for the sport relates to the
spread of "Bounce Lands" across the
country. Unfortunately, rebound tum-
bling appears simple to the amateur.
Seeing skilled performers doing acro-
batics with ease, the beginner under-
estimates the skill required.
A report by Dr. William G. Ellis at
University Hospital in Iowa City. Iowa,
cites five cases of serious neurological
injuries from rebound tumbling. One
victim, attempting an elementary back-
drop, suffered a paralyzing injury and
died two weeks later.
If Scout units use Trampolines in
their program, competent instruction
should be given first and supervision
and safeguards maintained at all times.
Judo is taught by experts at some
Y.M.C.A.'s, colleges, and athletic
clubs. Safe judo depends on develop-
ment of proper attitudes, muscle
strength, and conditioning and co-
ordinating the whole body. If Scouts
practice judo, it should be done with
the proper mats and with a thoroughly
qualified instructor coaching in meth-
ods of body contact and safe falling.
Skin diving is approved as part of
our aquatic program when masks, fins,
and snorkles are used. Standards and
outlines of instruction for this type of
diving are given in the Aquatic Pro-
gram manual. No. 12003.
Scuba diving (with breathing tanks)
is approved only for Explorers 17 years
old. and only under personal supervi-
sion of a certified Y.M.C.A. scuba in-
structor who uses Y.M.C.A. standards
and courses of instruction.
Rebound tumbling, judo, and scuba
diving, when done safely, require ex-
pert instruction and supervision not
readily available in most communities.
The instructors' standard of compe-
tence must be high and certified both
as to skill and reliability by a recog-
nized authority. Since these sports are
not among basic Scouting skills, few
Scouters can be expected to develop
the required competence, either for
coaching or supervision.
Scouting's disapproval or re-
striction of dangerous sports is a
positive policy to keep fun in the pro-
gram and to develop sound judgment
through experience. It is consistent
with our principle of safety through
skill on the part of leaders and boys.
Only when an activity proves to be
dangerous for untrained, immature
participants does your National Health
and Safety Committee flash the amber
light of caution to those responsible
for the safe guidance of boys.
23
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Boy Scouts of America. Scouting, Volume 50, Number 7, September 1962, periodical, September 1962; New Brunswick, New Jersey. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth331734/m1/25/: accessed May 4, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Boy Scouts of America National Scouting Museum.