Youths compete at "Survivor" challenge

  • Published
  • By Connie Hempel
  • 17th Training Wing Public Affairs
GOODFELLOW AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  It's finally summer and people are looking forward to their weekend camping trip as a time to relax while sitting around the campfire and telling ghost stories. A group of youths here signed up to do just that June 4-6, but their camping trip wasn't quite as tranquil.

Fourteen youths ages 9-18 were put to the test during the Youth Center's three-day 9th Annual Survivor Weekend at Hot Water Slough Park. Similar to the TV show, "Survivor," the youths faced challenges that tested their strength while teaching them problem solving skills, team work and self confidence.

"This weekend was all about trying your hardest to meet a goal as a team and as an individual," said Ms. Shandy Scott, Youth Programs director. "Not only did they have to figure out how to solve problems, they had to have the confidence to do it."

To start, the youths were assigned to tribes by throwing darts at balloons containing tribe bandanas. Then, each tribe was given a tent to share, but they had to earn their sleeping bags, food, clothing and toiletries by competing in different challenges.

Tom Zimmerman, 15, said his favorite challenge was Locks and Keys where members from each tribe were locked together with chains. Each padlock took a different key which were all buried in the dirt.

"I was able to use oars to dig and found the last two keys," Tom said.

His find helped his tribe win the first immunity challenge of the weekend.

Some of the other challenges they faced included eating native cuisine, relocating worms and the paddle, swim and run.

"They had to use team work to accomplish and succeed at each challenge," said Ms. Scott, "If a team loses a challenge, they have to vote a member out of their tribe just like the TV show. Those voted out were able to help judge other events."

These contenders were surprised to see that instead of having barbecue brisket on the menu for native cuisine, plates were filled with other local delicacies like cow tongue and liver, raw onions and pickled sardines. The tribe with the most clean plates in the shortest amount of time won the challenge and were treated to a real lunch of hamburgers and hot dogs while the other tribe had only rice. Although they had the option not to eat any of it, team members from both tribes accepted the challenge knowing that the more they ate, the better the tribe's chances of winning.

"Having to eat the food was definitely the hardest part," Kobi Alloway, 13, said about the Survivor Weekend challenges. "The tongue was gross, but the liver was worse."

The relocating worms challenge gave the youths another tasty treat for their taste buds as each team member had to use their mouth to put as many Earth worms as possible into an empty bucket within 30 seconds. The tribe with the fullest bucket won.

Tribes also competed in physical challenges like the paddle, swim and run challenge. Teams had to paddle across a section of Lake Nasworthy in a small rubber boat, pull the boat out the water and then swim back across the lake. Once they were back on the other side, they had to run a lap around camp.

Kobi, who won second place during the weekend, finished the paddle, swim run challenge in seven minutes, five seconds. He said that challenge was his favorite one.
"I like to paddle and swim, but the running part was hard," Kobi said.

The final survivor, Red Bandana tribe member, Casey Lauer, 13, received a $150 gift card and Kobi Alloway, also a Red Bandana tribe member, received a $75 gift card for coming in second.