Obstacle Journey, 30th Jan

Hi Guides!

For the 集合 this Friday, the Year 2s and 3s went through an Obstacle Journey (OJ). The Obstacle Journey consisted of 6 stations. 

Prior to the start of the OJ, the Year 2s and 3s were reshuffled into 6 new patrols, which came as a surprise to many. Afterwards, they had to take their logistics and layout everything according to the inspection proposal given to them by the ICs, and these were to be completed within 12min.

Several stations, like the electric minesweeper and the cave were pretty unorthodox, and guides were required to make use of their creativity. We hope you had fun completing these stations!

Station 1 

At this station, the patrol had to navigate an electric minesweeper, answer questions and do circuit PT.

In the minesweeper, each box a pair takes a chance on may contain either a bomb or a question. The questions are either found in the guides notes or general knowledge, and the patrol has to answer to questions correctly in order to cross the electric minesweeper.

After the safe path has been found, the patrol can then go through the electric minesweeper in pairs and do PT.

Station 2

In this station, the Guides will have to train their sense of urgency and communication within the patrol by having 2 missions to complete.

The first task was to build a Roman Chariot and transport the member over a short distance. Only 5 minutes were given to tie the structure. In addition, the patrol had to pair up and wheelbarrow during the course of the activity.

The second task was to set up a fire as strong as possible using kindling in 5 minutes. Only 15 matchsticks were given and if the patrol needed more, they would incur certain penalties.

Station 3

At this station, the patrol was split into two groups to complete separate tasks. The objective of this is to give more y3s and y2s more chances to speak up and lead.

The first group had to orienteer their way to a bamboo clump to tie a ribbon there for the other group to find. Thereafter, they had to build a catapult and fire paper balls at a post-it on the wall.

The other group had to elevate a water bottle and their 配备  to the height of the railing at the landing between the first and second floors. The group was provided some spars to help complete the task. Everyone managed to complete this by attaching the logistics to one end of a spar and 起-ing the spar, thereby raising the logistics to the required height. Thereafter, the group had to orienteer their way to the bamboo clump where the rest of their patrol had previously tied the ribbon.

The final task was for the patrol to combine the phrases written in Guides Code on the two ribbons to get ‘Our Lovely Guiding Journey’.

Station 4

At this station, the patrol was required to evacuate a patrol member from the cave and to build a structure to get out of the classroom.

Firstly, the patrol was required to create a light source in order to find their way in the dark. A matchbox, 2 candles and 4 matchsticks were scattered around the room for the patrol. Thereafter, the patrol was required to treat the injured patrol member, who was unconscious and had an open head wound.

The solutions are as follows.

Checking Response

Gently shake casualty’s shoulders.

“Can you hear me?” “Open your eyes.” “What is your name?” “Squeeze my hand.”

Opening the Airway

1.     Kneel by the casualty’s head; place one hand on his forehead.

2.     Gently tilt his head back.

3.     Pick out any obvious obstructions from his mouth.

4.     Place the fingertips of your other hand under the point of the casualty’s chin and lift it.

5.     Check to see if casualty is breathing.      

Checking Breathing

Keep the airway open. Look along the chest for movement indicating breathing. Listen for sounds of breathing and feel for breath on your cheek.

Open Head Wound

Head Wound

Treatment:

1.     Replace any displaced flaps of skin over the wound. Reassure the casualty.

2.     Cover wound with a sterile dressing or a clean, non-fluffy pad. This will help control bleeding and reduce blood lost, reducing risk of shock.

3.     Secure dressing with roller bandage or with triangular bandage using the head bandage method.

4.     Help casualty lie down with head and shoulders slightly raised. Send casualty to hospital. Regularly measure vital signs.

For the final part where the patrol had to build a structure to get out of the room across the ‘hole’ that was in their way. The proposed solution: Tie the legs of two tables together with 白绳 such that it forms a bridge shape. Make use of put 麻绳 through the pulley knot. Tie one end of the 麻绳 to the table and another end should be held tightly. The patrol members then lower the table such that it acts as a bridge across the ‘gaping hole’.

Station 5

The scenario for this station is as follows:

The sun is setting fast and you still have not found a place to stay for the night. Dormitories in Dayton are too expensive and you cannot afford such luxury with the amount of time you have left. Desperate without any other solution, your patrol has decided to spend the night in a forest nearby. Unfortunately, one of your patrol members has suddenly lost conscious and collapsed onto the ground. It also started to drizzle and a storm will come soon so you have to work faster than ever.

Patrols were first given 9 minutes to build a structure that could shelter at least 4 patrol members and elevate their 配备. A suggested solution would be using ponchos to cover the sides of the bench for shelter and tying 4-6 长  木   across the legs of the bench for elevation. Thereafter, the station masters would pour a pail of water over their structure to ensure the feasibility of it.

Then, the patrol would have to treat the unconscious patrol member. The whole patrol except the PL and PS would be blindfolded after the first 2.5 minutes, the purpose of which was to test the communication of the patrol.  

Station 6

This station was the gas room. At this station, patrols were given 10 minutes to find the two switches which controlled the gas in the room and find and treat the two patrol members who were casualties.

As this is a gas room, guides have to cover their noses and mouths with their scarves, as well as crouch low at all times. The patrol also has to shake the door before opening it, open all windows and switch on all lights and fans.

The first casualty was unconscious while the second has a shoulder dislocation. Additionally, the second casualty is also suffering from something unknown to us, whereby her symptoms are Confusion, Headache,  Repeated questioning about what happened, Temporary memory loss, Brief loss of consciousness, Nausea and vomiting, Speech problems (inability to answer questions or obey simple commands), and Light sensitivity/blurred vision. Guides should be able to do this as this is basic first-aid and it is in the guides notes.

Pioneering activity 

After the OJ, patrols 集合-ed at the GSL for a mass 团 activity. The task was for the guides to build a bridge in 22 minutes that could hold all the Year 2s at once. Only 3 patrols could work on building the bridge at any one time, and the other three patrols would be completing sets of PT. At regular intervals, the groups of patrols would switch. Although they tried their best, the guides did not manage to complete building the bridge in 22 minutes.

The suggested solution was two tripods and rafting 黑木 across as it would save time.

P2

Thoughts from a Year 3...

We 集合-ed at the GSL in OJ kit. When the ICs informed us that we were be allocated to new patrols, I was rather taken aback. I never imagined that this was what the seniors meant by “prepare for the unexpected”. My new patrol was P2 and luckily my class mate, Qiliu was there so I had someone close to rely on. We were given 12 minutes to take our required logistics and lay them out on the grass patch in front of the GSL. After break off, we ran to 团部 to pack the 配备 after telling the y2s to take 青木. Carrying everything down, we started laying them out on the ground sheet. As there was a new layout to follow, everything was in a frenzy and it was quite chaotic.

The people holding the layout didn’t really speak up much so I went to one of them and started shouting out the layout to P1-P3. I kept asking everyone to compact as much as possible and also to align the groundsheet to the curb so that it will be neater. Luckily, we managed to complete everything in the given time and we were then given 2 minutes to pack up everything and 集合.

We were then given 5 ice cream sticks and were told that each ice cream stick could be used in exchange for an extension of one minute in any of the stations. A maximum of 6 ice creams sticks can be given as a reward at each station depending on our performance.

1: I was the PL for this station. We were required to transport a person across a distance and so we decided to build a roman chariot. In the meantime, we were required to take turns to do lunges too. Even though we managed to do everything within the time limit with one extra minute of extension, our roman chariot was not tied very tightly and it could be dangerous if someone were to fall. Also, the person 顶-ing on the chariot should ding on the upper parts of the 青木 instead. We should take note of such minor details in the future. Next, we were given 7 minutes to start out as many fires as possible but using only a maximum of 15 match sticks. We managed to start 3 fires that lasted 1 minute consecutively. But our 木麻黄 was a little wet as there was smoke so we should take note of the condition of our kindling next time round. Overall in this station, I felt that our 动作 was quite fast but more minor details could have been taken care of. We were rewarded with 6 ice cream sticks.

2: In this station, Qiliu was the PL. We were split into two groups and I went along with the PS, Sheena, to the other section of that station. For this part, we were required to tie a structure to elevate our 配备 and first aid pouch to a certain height. After a lot of discussion and hesitation, we finally tied a clove hitch and attached the 配备 and first aid pouch to the mu. At first, our lash wasn’t tight enough and the 配备 sort of dropped down. So we retied it afterwards. This could have been very dangerous if the 配备 were to come crashing down on one of us. We had one minute of time extension after exchanging it for an ice cream stick. We later had to do orienteering to locate a ribbon. We then solved the guides quote written on it. After we 集合 again as a patrol, I realised that none of us had the five ice cream sticks. I went back to search for it but I couldn’t find it. Somehow we must have lost it somewhere during all the hassle.

3: In the next station, Yuting was the PL. We were told to locate sources of light. We took a rather long time to locate the candles and match sticks. We then treated the respective casualties and also we used the two tables to make a simple structure to cross over the “box” and out of the door. In this station, I felt that we had absolutely no sense of urgency and the PL didn’t speak up at all. The whole patrol was extremely lost because there were no instructions given.

4: Qiliu was the PL for this station. We were given 2.5 minutes to discuss what we had to do before the rest of the patrol members blindfolded themselves. We had to build a shelter and a structure to elevate the 配备 and also a stretcher. We decided to make use of the bench available and place mu across the legs of the bench to elevate the 配备. Then, we decided to put the poncho across the bench to serve as a form of shelter. As we were not careful enough, almost all of our logistics got cupped by the seniors. As by the time we finished discussing, all the other patrol members were blindfolded and as we were not careful enough, one of the patrol members got cupped. As we did not have enough time and did not realise we needed to build a stretcher, we 集合-ed and asked for time extension to complete. We had some conflicts on how to build the stretcher but quickly sorted that out. However we built it wrongly with 白绳 when it was supposed to be with 3 belts. We learnt that the PL and the PS really had to work very closely together in this station as they are the only two people left without blindfold and they need to give clear instructions so the rest would mother what to do and do it fast as there is limited time. We could have done better and not asked for so any time extensions without completing the structure. As our shelter was not good enough, when they poured water over our shelter, our 配备 got wet.

5: I was the PL for this station. There were two casualties in the gas room and our aim was to treat them. I led the rest of the patrol in and told them to put their scarf around their nose and mouth and open all the windows and turn on all the fans. We had to look for clues to find the switches. But we totally forgot that the main priority was to get the casualties out of the gas room before treating them. In the end, we were quite unsure of how to treat the casualties and didn't manage to fully treat them. Based on the 2 clues, we had to solve the word. We were unsure of what the numbers meant but by the time we did, we had run out of time. I felt that as a PL, I totally did not carry out my duties well and I didn't give clear enough instructions to my patrol mates.

6: Sheena was the PL for this station. We had to start from one side of the square and get to the other end. In each square, we had to answer a question based on general knowledge and from the guides notes. At the same time, each pair had to come out while the rest did a PT set in the form of 3 mins girl's style, 1 min leg raise and 1 min planking. Altogether we had 12 mins, we did not complete the the entire path and as our stuffs got kupped, we were punished. Also, as we did owe the seniors ice cream sticks, we were punished again. We could have a better sense of urgency and taken better care of logistics and learn from the previous stations.

I think this OJ is my worst one yet. I'm quite sure my patrol got last because the number of ice creams sticks we had left was zero and yet we still owed the seniors some, making that a negative number. The seniors did acknowledge that our patrol was indeed smaller than the others and the manpower we had was definitely not the best but I felt that I could have still contributed more. A lot of times, the PL didn't give clear instructions and I did overpower the PL quite a couple of times. I felt that a lot of times, my patrol mates weren't very cooperative and they didn't adhere to instructions exactly and hence we wasted a lot of precious time. This OJ is really disappointing and many of our logistics were cupped too. We should have taken care of our logistics more and 报时 too. I should learn to step out of my comfort zone more and adapt well to situations that are thrown at us. Instead of looking at what others couldn't do, I should reflect on myself and ask myself what I could have done better.

P3

Thoughts from a Year 2...

During OJ, our first station was Station 3, where our patrol was split into half and we were required to lift our配备 and one water bottle to the gap in the wall between the first and second floor and also orienteer. Although our patrol managed to finish the task, we had to ask for time extension. I could learn to orienteer better next time as I was unsure of how to use the compass at the station. 

Our 2nd station was Station 4, the station where we had to find a light source, treat a casualty and also build a structure to cross an imaginary hole. We took quite a long time to find the light source, which was a candle. In the end, we used 2 tables and slot spars underneath the table so that there is a platform above the hole for us to cross. 

At our third station, our patrol had to build a stretcher and a shelter to cover 4 patrol mates and our 配备, with the配备 elevated from the ground. All of us except the PL and the PS had to blindfold ourselves after 2 and a half minutes. We used a nearby bench and table and spread poncho over it and use gadget poles to hold the poncho down. However, I think I can help to look after my patrol mates better as the station masters cupped our patrol mate during the activity. 

Our forth station was the poisonous gas room station, where we had to find two switches and treat 2 casualties, one of them whose only the symptoms were told. I learnt that we should put the casualties as the priority and bring them out of the poisonous gas room and treat them first and find the switches if we have extra manpower. 

Our fifth station was the coal mine station, where 2 patrol mates step into the coal mine and answer girl guides related questions. The other patrol mates would do a circuit of 3 min girl’s style position, 3 min leg raise and 1 min planking. Our goal was to reach the other side of the coal mine. However, in the end, we did not manage to reach the other end of the coal mine. I could have familiarized myself with the guides notes more to help my patrol. 

At our last station, we had to build a structure to transport a patrol mate from a point to another point and back again. While building the structure, 3 patrol mates have to do lunges across a length and run back. We also have to light as many fires as possible and sustain it. I could improve on my fire lighting skills as it was difficult for me to light a fire using matchsticks.

P4 

Thoughts from a Year 3...

For Friday's 集合, we had OJ. To our surprise, we did not worked in our usual patrols. Instead, the 团 was reorganised into 6 different patrols. 

For the first part, we had to pack our 配备 and get 2 青木 for the OJ. Communication was quite fast as the QMs were able to sort their items out quickly and pack for the new patrol. First, we had inspection. We had to lay out all our items according to a layout given by the seniors. It was quite chaotic at first. However, we all managed to sort out everything at last. After some inspecting, the seniors confirmed that every patrol had the required equipment for OJ. After which, the seniors break us off to head towards our respective OJ station. The sequence for patrol 4 was 4, 5, 6, 1, 2, 3. With that, we headed for our first station which was at 2J classroom.

For the first station, we were supposed to rescue a casualty from a collapsed gold mine. However, we had to find a source of light before we can do so. Finally, we managed to locate a candle and intended to light it with matches from our survival kit. However, the station masters informed us that we had to find other sources of fire from the room. We wasted much time but finally found a matchbox and some matches. However, due to our slow progress in lighting the fire, we were allowed to treat the casualty concurrently. Also, we had to build a structure such that we can cross over to the exit of the gold mine without coming into contact with an area marked with masking tape. For the first aid part, i think we can brush up on our skills. After some time, the structure was completed. Everyone managed to exit the tunnel using the built structure. However, we were unable to transport the casualty across it. Our structure made used of 2 青木 which was tied to a table and on the other end, it was propped up by another table.

For the second station, it was at level 3 of block G. We were given the task of elevating our 配备, constructing a shelter, treating a casualty and building a stretcher to transport her. Also, after 2.5 minutes, everyone in the patrol will be blindfolded except for the PL and PS. For our patrol, we used two 长木 and tied them under a nearby bench such that it can hold the 配备. We also placed ponchos over the bench such that it acted as a shelter. Meanwhile, 2 people from our patrol went to treat the casualty and also build a stretcher with 青木, poncho and belt. However, we should have used just one poncho only and three belts instead of two. Luckily, our 配备 was elevated high enough and hence, when the seniors poured water in, our 配备 did not get wet.

For the third station, it was the gas room station. When we entered the gas room, we shook the door and prevented a stray object from falling on us. However, we did not react fast enough to realise that we had to cover our faces with our scarf and crouch down low as we move around. After which, we started crawling on the floor until we reached the entrance to two different tunnels. We avoided the one with a danger sign label and entered the one which said get through here. After that, 2 patrol members went to treat the first casualty we encountered. However, we should have switched on the fans and opened the windows first to ensure ventilation. After that, we carried the casualty out and treated her for concussion. Meanwhile, the rest of the patrol found the second casualty and brought her out. With the help of the clues, we solved and found both switches. Unfortunately, at this station, many of our patrol logistics were kupped and hence, we had to pay with 1 ice -cream stick instead. Time extensions also took away some of the ice-cream sticks we earned.

For our fourth station, it was the mindsweepers. Every patrol member had to do PT while a pair of guides entered the mindsweeper. We had to avoid the bombs while heading towards the destination. For every bomb we avoided, we had to answer one question. We were tested on our guides notes and also general knowledge such as the PLs of the 45th jie and also guide law and symptoms of hyperventilation. We did not perform very well for this station as we were stuck at the PLs' question for very long. Hence, we were unable to complete the mindsweeper course.

For the fifth station, we had to build a roman chariot within 5 minutes while a few patrol members did lunges down the red tile area. We made a mistake by asking for an unnecessary time extension. Next, we had to transport a patrol member to and fro within 2 minutes. 8Afterwhich, we had to start as many fire as possible on a zinc plate and also sustain it for a minute. We managed to sustain around 3 to 4 fires and hence accomplished the mission. After that, we had to extinguish the fire and also dismantle the roman chariot.

For the final station, it was along GSL. Our patrol was split into two groups. For one side, we had to make use of orienteering to locate a landmark and tie a ribbon on it. I think we can brush up on our orienteering skills as we had trouble locating the landmark. After that, we had to build a catapult and aim at a target. However, our catapult did not work out well as it was unstable. On the other hand, the other patrol members managed to tie a structure to elevate a 配备 and one water bottle. At the end, we had to solve a guides code. The final solution to the guides code was adapted from the guides notes. (Our lovely guiding journey?)

After all the stations, we reported back at the GSL. After calculations, we realised that we had 15 ice-cream sticks. It was heart warming as those ice-cream sticks were achievement from our hard work. From this OJ, we learnt many important learning points and we also exercised on our flexibility to adapt to new patrol members. To end off the OJ, we had to build a structure with the rest of the patrols. This structure had to elevate all the y2 guides on it. While 3 patrols construct the structure, the other 3 will be doing physical training. Unfortunately, due to the previous time wastage, we were unable to finish the structure. However, this was indeed a very benefitting OJ.

P5

Thoughts from a Year 3...

Station 5:

Station 5 was at block g level 3 and the task was to build a structure that could elevate 配备 and hide four patrol members within 12 minutes and after 2.5 min, everybody except the PL and PS will be blindfolded. Concurrently, one patrol member will also be a casualty and some of us would have to build a stretcher and treat the casualty. Our patrol split into half with two of us building the stretcher and FA while the rest build the structure. Both the PL and PS were building the structure thus for this part I think we could have better allocation. However the PS went over to help the FA people once they were blindfolded. As there was a bench there, we made use of it and took our ponchos to cover the holes and entrance. We placed our 配备 on the seats and tried to cover it with poncho. We asked for a one min thirty seconds time extension but the result was still kind of disappointing as there were still some parts not fully covered and the seniors poured water over our structure which kind of wet our 白绳 and spill on those under the structure but it was partially our fault. From this station, I think we had to have better sense of urgency and better know how to build the stretcher. PL could also speak more and louder and have better morale like cheering and 报时. Somebody also got kup by the seniors which reminds us to better 照顾好 our patrol members.

Station 6:

Station 6 was located at 4C classroom and it was a gas room where we had to go in and switch off the gas taps and also find and treat 2 casualties. We did not take care about small details such as the trekking signs which we were supposed to follow and we did not crouch and cover our nose and mouths with our scarf. As a PL, I did not allocate manpower properly and also take note of the small details. Treating the casualties should have been our priority but instead more people were solving the guides code to switch off the gas tap instead. We should look at the bigger picture and realise that treating the casualties should be our priority, especially in a gas room.

Station 1:

Station 1 was the minesweeper station where we had to guess which path to take and each correct box which we go to will have a question for us to answer. We generally did well in this station as we managed to decipher the path and also answer the questions correctly. We also 照顾好 our logistics but we should have been faster in our movements like when we were changing pt positions or tucking in our scarf. We should also treat the raffia strings as real minesweepers and prevent our body from coming into contact with it.

Station 2:

In this station we were given 5 mins to build a roman chariot and 2 mins to transport one person on it. Meanwhile 2 people have to do lunges. We took too much time to layout the spars and also to tie our lashes. Although our lashes should be tight, we took a long time to achieve tight lashes and we had to ask for time extension to finish tying the roman chariot. We should have tied our lashes faster and tight at the same time and t=not think that we would be granted time extension as long as we ask for it. For the second part of this station, we needed to start and sustain as many fires as possible with 15 matchsticks and kindling in 4 mins. We wanted to start 3 fires at first but we changed it to 2. However in the end the second fire wasn’t sustained long enough. We should have better fire lighting skills and also sustain our fires properly. 

Station 3:

For station 3, our side had to do orienteering and build a catapult to hit a target. We took a lot of time to get the orienteering correct and tie a ribbon to the landmark. We had to ask for time extension. However we kept going towards the same direction just that the pacings were weird and we could have took smaller pacings. Despite this we managed to build a catapult with two a jia. We tried to hit the target though it was so close but we ran out of time. For the other side, the rest of the patrol had to elevate a 配备 and bottle to the height of the first railing. We did generally well as our solution was simple and we completed our task in time. For the next part, we had to orienteer and find the post its. We could have better involved the year twos and also be more familiar with our orienteering skills. After that we had to solve a guides code within one minute before the all patrol members came together and put the words together. It spelled "our lovely guiding journey".

Station 4:

Station 4 was located at 2J classroom and our task was to find a source of light, treat a casualty and build a structure to cross a hole to get out. We were given 12 mins in total to do so. As soon as we went in we started searching for the source of light. The seniors keep prompting us to look more carefully as we kept passing by the places where the stuffs were located without noticing it thus we took quite long. Eventually we still found the three items a candle, matchbox and matchsticks. Next, the PL and somebody else treated the casualty which had a protruding bone and head wound while the rest of the patrol build a structure. It was kind of frustrating when the seniors keep saying that using the doughnut to hold the protruding bone still was wrong and too flimsy or elastic but it was actually correct. We wasted time on it as they kept telling us it was wrong. While doing so, the rest of the patrol had to think of a way to cross a hole which was to overturn two tables and put four 青木 on top to allow us to cross it. It worked and some of us managed to cross it while the rest helped the FA side. In the end we did not have enough time to treat the casualty. I think this is partly not having a sense of urgency, not being observant enough. As what the seniors say our morale was low and they had to keep prompting us to 报时 and cheer. The PL could also give clearer instructions to the patrol. We could also learn our FA better but it was actually correct in the first place when we treated the casualty.

P6

Thoughts from a Year 3...

I was very surprised by yesterday's OJ as I would never have expected that we would be switched around so that we did not remain in our original patrols. However, I feel that our performance during the OJ could certainly have been improved on. Our sense of urgency was quite low for the whole entire OJ and we 过时 for quite a lot of the stations. Also, our patrol morale was not very high in some of the stations and we had to be prompted many times before we 报时 and cheered. Our lashes could also have been improved especially for the Roman Chariot as our lashes were very loose and this is very dangerous for the person on top. I feel that I should also have stepped up more when I was the PL and gave clearer instructions. Overall, I feel that we can learn from the mistakes that we made during this OJ and thus do better for the next one.

The Guides certainly learnt how to "Be Prepared" through this OJ and we hope that the Year 2s and 3s have improved in their Guides skills! :)