“I am preparing for a Boy Scout hike this summer at Philmont Scout Ranch near Cimarron, New Mexico. It will be 13 days and 12 nights of backpacking. We will hike about 65 miles. I need to lose some weight to be ready. Base camp is 6600 feet altitude. We go between there and 12,300 feet. It is a different exertion. I have 40 pounds in my backpack for training. I grew up in a small country town not big enough for a Scout troop. I got involved with Scouts in 1980 because of my son and I have been involved ever since. Kids don’t grow up on farms or spend time outside the way the used to. Scouting gives confidence that they can survive and handle anything. One of my favorite books is The Journey of Crazy Horse about the Lakota Sioux. Until Crazy Horse was eight years old, he was raised by the women of the tribe. They taught him cooking and skinning pelts. Then the men of the tribe taught them how to ride horses, make bows, and hunting. In scouting, adults pass on knowledge and lore and teach the boys how to protect the environment and themselves. I want to keep doing that. I just retired from being a lobbyist and have more time for sailing and yard work. I should have retired a long time ago.”