Hey, Competitive Campers!

Summer camp activities range from artistic to adventurous and some challenge you in a thoughtful, contemplative manner while others bring test your abilities in a way that’s a little more hands-on. With Wrestling, you get the best of both worlds as any good wrestler must always be thinking ahead to their next step, but also physically execute a takedown of your opponent in order to claim victory.

Wrestling is one of the oldest forms of combat. It entails at least (and typically) two competitors or sparring partners who use grappling styles such as clinch fighting, throws, joint locks, holds, takedowns, and pins. Styles vary greatly with influence from both historic as well as modern styles. It’s at the core of a plethora of other manners of fighting such as martial arts or hand-to-hand military combat.

To achieve success, wrestlers need to build a slew of beneficial skills that include but are far from limited to their physical fitness. Here’s a breakdown of some of the things that are sharpened in the world of a wrestler:

Basic Athletic Skills—First and foremost, of course, wrestlers must be athletically equipped. Most sports feature your coordination with your arms and your legs, but Wrestling commands the taxing control of places like your neck and your back and the whole body in general.

Personal Responsibility—Wrestlers accept and assume responsible for their training, their weight, their clear-mindedness, their commitment, their score. They recognize that it’s on them to keep themselves in check on the disciplined lifestyle they need to lead.

Mental Fortitude—Wrestlers need to have the mental perseverance in order to push their body far past a state of comfort. Wrestling doesn’t feel pleasant, but a Wrestler’s mind can’t be afraid to endure the pain.

Nutritional Dieting—Good Wrestlers turn down cake and savor their fresh fruits and vegetables instead. Forget the soda pop and go for some water. Wrestlers know that the better their diet, the higher their energy. And the higher their energy, the better their performance.

Camaraderie—Bonds form quickly over the daily challenges a wrestler must face and, being a sport based in diversity itself, it unites sparring partners and competitors alike who come from all around the world.

Focus—Wrestlers have a wide array of techniques at their disposal, but learning them all isn’t necessarily the smartest route. The best wrestlers dedicate their focus to a few different moves that they master and attempt with unfailing determination in matches.

Fun—That’s it. It just is. That’s why young kids roughhouse and baby animals fight each other in play. Wrestlers increase the fun they have in their world simply by doing what makes them happy.

A beneficial sport indeed for kids to get involved with, find a summer camp that offers a wrestling program if you’re passionate about playin’ around with a developed strategy. Enjoy the journey of mastering your wrestling moves and, as always, thanks for reading.

- John

What’s up, Summer Campers?

Some of the activities that you’ll participate in at summer camp may challenge how much you thought you were capable of achieving. The thrill of seeing just how far you can go can come as you calmly sit behind a canvas or it can strike you alarmingly as you traverse a Ropes Course at high altitudes. Today I’m talking about the latter.

Ropes Courses are a challenging outdoor experience with elements that may have ground level obstacles along with portions just above the ground as well as elements that are rather high up, constructed in trees or made using utility poles with the participants suspended for safety with anchored ropes called belays.

An extension of ground-level obstacle courses, Ropes Courses have been a part of military training since the days of the Ancient Greeks. They were used as a means of training Herculean individuals into states of physical fitness—now able to be experienced when you head to summer camp!

And sure, this activity is one that can whip you into shape, but its benefits far surpass the physical level. As campers conquer the Ropes Course at their summer camp, here’s a list of ways this exercise can help build your character as well as mental—and even emotional—maturity:

• Problem-Solving
• Brainstorming Ideas
• Goal-Setting
• Decision-Making
• Self-Confidence
• Positive Risk-Taking
• Leadership
• Enhanced Cooperation
• Teamwork
• Trust

A couple people were quoted in ‘The Mirror’—the official student-run news site for SPASH, the Stevens Point Area High School. Ryan M. said about his experience on his school’s Ropes Course “I enjoy the course very much. It has taught me to face my fears.” Eliza S., a former student, remarked that “The course gives you amazing opportunities to find yourself.”

Maybe you’ll find yourself on a Ropes Course this coming summer camp season. Good luck up there! And have fun attaining awesome character traits as you swing from rope to rope! And, as always, have fun!

- John

Hey, Summer Campers!

Welcome back for our second installment of our fresh, new Everything Summer Camp Blog category, Summer Camp Activities. In these posts, I’ll review the basics of specific activities that you may find at your summer camp and see just what exactly it is that kids like so much about these fun and campy pastimes.

Today, I’m speaking to all you equestrians out there as well as anyone who has no experience but lots of interest in riding on the back of mankind’s other best friend. Today, we’re talking horses!

Horseback Riding is a display of mastering the partnership between yourself and your horse. It’s a sport that works the rider’s core muscles and builds abdominal strength, as well as strength in back and pelvic muscles. It sharpens coordination as well as stability and increases focus on anticipating the motion of the horse.

But as you can see from this young woman’s account, Horseback Riding isn’t just good for the body—it typically has a desirable mental effect as well, quieting the mind and bringing the rider to a meditative state of mindfulness:

Maddy M. shared with me how she has battled depression for years now, but one thing that always helps is going to see her horse, Bambi. “On my bad days I’ll go out there and she takes it all away like it doesn’t exist. She makes me feel free. When I’m on her back riding it’s like no one can touch me.”

Maddy’s description coincides with a common sense approach to explain the connection and peace of mind that riders tend to feel—when you’re riding, all you’re thinking about is riding. Riding and balancing. It induces a level of mindfulness that requires constant focus on the proper posture for riding. It makes sense that it quiets the mind.

Follow your heart. If you love horses, then I’m sure you’ll be sure to do some Riding this summer when you head off to your exciting camp experience. Find the Horseback Riding equipment you’ll need at Everything Summer Camp by clicking here and, as always, thanks for reading, Riders—I mean, Readers!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

Today launches a brand new category of posts on your favorite Everything Summer Camp Blog. This post is the first among many that will belong to the ‘Summer Camp Activities’ category in which we’ll review the basics about individual camp activities and what it is that kids get out of performing that particular activity.

And what better activity to lead the way than such a traditional (and my personal favorite) camp activity: Archery.

This sport establishes the skill of projecting arrows forward by use of a bow to pierce a traditional target a set distance away. It requires focus, patience, and a keen eye. While it was the weapon of the skilled archers in historical combat, Archery is revered nowadays as either a hunting or recreational activity. But it also remains the competitive sport that it used to be.

Bowmen have made their way into our folk stories and myths like the iconic archery tournament in which Robin Hood splits his competitor’s arrow directly down the middle with his own arrow or the rebellious William Tell who displayed his skills when ordered under cruel rule to shoot an apple clean off his son’s head.

An adolescent named David was interviewed by ‘Behind the News’ reporters from the abc.net news site about his blossoming passion for Archery. “I got into archery,” he mentioned, “Because when I was a little kid I watched a lot of TV and that had a lot of bows in it and I just thought it was just really, really interesting.”

We can’t help but connect with these heroes of old when eyeing up our shot and drawing back our bow. But aside from making us feel awesome, Archery lends an abundance of benefits to the avid performer such as improvements in coordination, balance, finger dexterity, strength, focus, and patience!

Be sure to try your hand at Archery when you head off to your summer camp experience and, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Safety Kids!

Today is Fire Prevention Day. I wrote about this day on October 9 of last year, offering tips on fire safety around the house so you and your family can learn what to do to increase your chances of preventing a fire. Today’s post, on the other hand, covers the proper way to safely build, maintain, and extinguish your fires OUTSIDE of the house.

First of all, you should only build fires in a designated fire pit that is provided for you in a state park or one that belongs to your family in your own backyard. If a camp site does not provide you with fire pits, check with the park to see if digging your own pit is allowed. Some may allow it while others do not.

If you can dig your own, you should do it 15 ft. away from any tents, shrubs, or trees around you and steer clear of low-hanging branches above. Pits should be about a foot deep and lined with a circle of rocks.

Now you’re ready to start preparing your pit. Place your smallest pieces of dry wood on the bottom and lay your firewood on top of each other around the small twigs and other kindling. It’s smart as you get your fire going (and as it burns) to have a bucket of water close by as well as a shovel.

Furthermore, keep your fire to a manageable size as you continue to add firewood. And never leave your fire unattended!

Potentially the most important part about outdoor fire safety is putting your campfires out and making sure that they STAY out! The best method is to let the wood completely burn to ash, if you can. Then you should pour lots of water on the fire until the logs stop hissing. It helps to stir the ashes and embers with a shovel in between pouring. Make sure everything has gotten wet and cold to the touch.

If you don’t have water, you can use dirt to extinguish the fire, but do not attempt to bury the fire as it will continue to smolder underground and potentially crawl back up to the surface through plant roots and cause a wildfire.

Kids should always have adult supervision when making fires inside OR outside! As Smokey the Bear says, “Only you can prevent forest fires.” As always, thanks for reading and—of course—thank you, Smokey.

- John