Challenge is still OPEN if you want to participate by the way.
A little more history on the water boil competition can found in Ernest Thompson Seton’s, The Book of Woodcraft. From the chapter on Games for the Camp.
WATER-BOILING CONTEST
Given a hatchet and knife, 1 match, a 2-quart pail, 7 inches of less in diameter, one quart of water and a block of soft wood about 2 feet long and 5 or 6 inches through.
Any one should have the water boiling in 10 minutes. The record is said to be 7:59.
First cut plenty of wood. Spend three minutes on it. Support your pail on four pegs driven in the ground. If water is handy dip the pegs in it before placing.
The water must be jumping and bubbling all over the surface or it is not boiling.
If the match goes out, contestants are usually allowed a second, but are penalized by having 2 minutes added to their time.
Interestingly, Seton’s description remains as the current rules for the Camp-Fire Club of America’s (CFCA) Campcraft Water Boil Event. Seton was a charter member of the CFCA as were these names we as woodsman should surely recognize; Daniel Carter Beard, David Ambercrombie, Ezra Fitch, William Hornaday, and George O. Shields. Other member names you may recognize are Theodore Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot, Townsend Whelen, and Bradford Angier. And 116 years later, CFCA is still going strong.
You can bet we will have more on the history of woodcraft in later articles. Now back to the challenge.
Here are a combination of results and other videos shared with us thus far. Enjoy!
As my daughter said after watching this first one with me… Girl Power!
http://youtu.be/7AS4iALdMtE
[…] of woodsy knowledge at our campouts and his website. Find more on the history of this challenge here and […]