The 27 teams
participating in “Toyota’s Amazing Girl Scout Race” have crossed the
finish line and a winning team has been declared in the 275+ mile
event. A combination of teamwork and enthusiasm helped four Girl
Scouts and their moms meet the physical and mental challenges that
carried them across the Michigan “mitten” to victory.
“It wasn’t about the prize,” said Janet
Bliden of Portage, who participated with her daughters Katie and
Mary. “It was about doing fun things with friends.” Rounding out the
winning team were the Blidens’ former neighbors, Debbie and Emma
Rasegan of South Lyon.
Participants came from all points on the
Lower Peninsula to participate in the program that was organized by
Girl Scout councils
from across Michigan
with sponsorship from Toyota.
“We’re very grateful to Toyota for
sponsoring this challenge,” said Arlene M. Robinson, Chief
Executive Officer of Girl Scout of Metro Detroit. “Toyota has been a
terrific partner in our effort to share gems of Michigan’s culture
and history with Girl Scouts from across the state.”
The race began
Friday, July 25 in Harrison, Michigan at Camp Deer Trails, which is
operated by
Girl
Scouts of Michigan
Capital Council. Teams were equipped with a
$100 gas card, tee shirts, and tote bags, plus special items they
would need to meet challenges and solve clues on their journey.
The day’s highlights
included a mini boat race
in Bay City, hosted by the Saginaw Bay Community Sailing
Association, and a search for a gazelle in the gardens of
the Midland Center
for the Arts.
Following a sleepover at the Dow Museum,
the teams headed down I-75 and back in time for an afternoon at
Historic Fort Wayne, where a member of each team was sent to the
stockade while her teammates performed tasks including shining the
guards’ boots and making the beds military style. (The “imprisoned”
member could gain her freedom by solving a math puzzle.) Teams spent
the night at the Boll Family YMCA in downtown Detroit, where they
swam and enjoyed their only opportunity to shower during the
three-day event.
Sunday’s challenges brought the teams to
Detroit’s Cultural Center in search of clues to their final
destination. Teams explored the sculpture garden at College for
Creative studies and were challenged to replicate select works of
art using Play Doh. An orienteering exercise guided teams to the
Detroit Science Center, where they crossed the “mini-Mac,” an
80-foot pedestrian bridge inspired by the Mackinac Bridge.
Having symbolically covered both of
Michigan’s peninsulas, participants rallied at Ford Field in
Dearborn, where they crossed the “finish line” using tricycles and
Matchbox cars.
While the judges compiled the teams’
statistics, participants enjoyed a picnic lunch and had the
opportunity to explore the features of a 2009 Toyota Matrix that had
accompanied them for a portion of the race. The winning team was
photographed alongside the vehicle, proudly holding the First Prize
envelope that contained certificates for a stay at a Best Western
Inn with an indoor water park plus a visit to their choice of The
Detroit Zoo or Henry Ford Museum.
“These girls and their parents showed
great courage, confidence, and character as they met a variety of
physical and mental challenges,” Ms. Robinson said. “Everywhere they
traveled, they broadened their own horizons in true Girl Scout
spirit. We are very proud of all of them.”
