Scouts rev up expo at Speedway

Kris Hill

Friday, Oct. 27, 2000 | 10:52 a.m.

Girl Scouts teaching younger scouts the rules of golf with candy canes and jawbreakers on a mini-course made of sweets will be one of the many demonstrations found at the Nov. 4 Scout Expo.

Scouts from throughout the Las Vegas Valley will participate in the expo, which runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The expo will feature a carnival atmosphere, Mike Miller of the local Boy Scout council said.

"The expo is an event for scouts to demonstrate something they're really excited about," Miller said.

This is the first year in the history of the expo in Las Vegas that Girl Scouts are formally participating. There will be nearly 30 girls staffing about 10 booths and exhibits. The first event held by the boys was in 1966 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. It was first known as the Scout Fun Fair.

In addition to the candy golf course, scouts will demonstrate skills at more than 170 booths. Skills include knot tying, knife safety, first aid, Dutch oven cooking and bicycle repairs.

The Explorer post from the North Las Vegas Fire Department will be showing others how to use equipment on the trucks and will be helping younger scouts get into fire-fighting gear. They will also demonstrate how to perform CPR.

Explorers are associated with the Boy Scouts, but girls are allowed to join posts. Groups are usually associated with fire or police departments, but there is also a marine science post in town. That post will also be at the expo demonstrating the use of scuba gear and other skills.

The water theme continues with the canoeing booth that will be staffed by local Girl Scout cadets who took a river trip in Minnesota over the summer.

Brittany Henderson, 14, and another scout from her troop, Ashley Schuster, also 14, spent seven days in August in the company of other scouts and adult leaders paddling down the remote Lower Bass Wood Falls near Canada.

There were a couple days that were really strenuous, Trish Elliot, the council's canoeing expert, said. She didn't hear a single complaint from either girl.

"They're very capable young ladies," Elliott said. "They met every challenge that came their way."

There will also be an area set up for commercial exhibits, such as Adventure Las Vegas' 25-foot climbing wall and Southern Nevada Carpenters training center's nail-driving contests.

Tickets for the expo are $3 and are available at either council's office, or at the door on the day of the event.

The Girl Scout council can be reached at 385-3677 and the Boy Scouts at 736-4366.