For South Bay members of the Boy Scouts of America, the word took on a new meaning Oct. 12, when Troop 501 of Los Gatos hosted its fifth annual Merit Badge Midway. At this event, held in the classrooms and on the grounds of Fisher Middle School, no luck was needed because there was nothing to win. Skill and study, on the other hand, gave the 217 preteen and teenage participants the opportunity to earn up to two merit badges each.

The appeal of the Midway concept, says chairman Craig Herman of Los Gatos, is that normally Scouts work on earning badges over the course of days or even weeks, as they complete the various requirements and have progress meetings with the appropriate merit badge counselors. For those Scouts who wish to pursue the Eagle rank and the community service project that goes with it, they must first earn at least 21 badges, all by their 18th birthday.

At Fisher, 29 accredited merit badge counselors helped the Scouts realize their goals by running half- or full-day workshops on 26 different badge disciplines, including citizenship, climbing, communication, cooking, electronics, environmental science, family life, first aid, genealogy, music, pets, pioneering, railroading, reading and salesmanship.

"Since badges are usually earned alone, there's no group dynamics. The Midway really expands on the whole badge-earning experience and gives the boys the chance to see what others are doing," says Herman, whose 14-year-old son, Tristan, belongs to Troop 501 and participated in the Midway.

"One key to keeping kids away from drugs is to keep them busy. A good Scouting program does that, along with giving them time to hang out with their buddies," Herman adds.

The Scouting movement might seem a bit idealistic in today's world, but Herman says events like this show it's still relevant. The Midway, for example, drew troops from Santa Clara all the way to Half Moon Bay.

"When you think these boys could be watching TV, playing video games or skateboarding, it's nice that so many chose to spend an eight-hour day with us, doing projects and building their skills," he says with a chuckle.

Los Gatan Danny Dill, a Fisher eighth-grader, forewent his free-time activities to earn a merit badge in first aid. "I chose it because it's one of the badges you have to earn before you can go for certain other ones," explains Danny, a Troop 501 member who says his long-term goal is to become an Eagle Scout.

Danny says he and his friends learned about CPR, how to fashion splints, how to treat snakebites, how to carry injured people and many other topics. "First aid is a pretty big merit badge, so it takes a whole day to complete. It was kind of like school, including a lunch break. The class was really good," adds Danny, whose favorite pastimes include camping and playing the drums—both of which he says he can earn badges for as well.

Troop 501 is the oldest Boy Scout troop in Santa Clara County, having just passed its 82nd year of continuous service. The troop has 70 Boy Scouts.