Egg & Spoon Relay Race — Activity Card

Overview

A classic, fast-paced patrol-versus-patrol relay race that tests balance, focus, and agility under pressure. Scouts must navigate a simple obstacle course without dropping their "egg" or using their hands to cheat.

Equipment Required

Balloons 1 x Dessert spoon per Patrol 1 x Ping pong ball (the "egg") per Patrol 1 x Sturdy chair per Patrol (to serve as the turnaround point) 1 x Low balance bench per Patrol (to serve as the obstacle)

How to Play

The Grid Setup: Line up the Patrols at one end of the hall. Directly in front of each Patrol line, place a low balance bench in the middle of the floor, and place a chair at the far end of the hall as their turnaround point.
The Handout: Give the first Scout in each Patrol line a spoon with a ping pong ball balanced on it.
The Race: On the Leader’s signal, the first Scout must walk forward holding the spoon out in front of them. They must carefully step up and over the bench, walk all the way around the far chair, step over the bench on the way back, and return to their line.
The Handover: Once they return, they carefully hand the spoon and ball over to the next Scout in line. The race continues down the line.
Winning: The first Patrol to have all of their runners successfully complete the course and return to a seated line wins.

Variations & Adaptations

Alternative Version (Balloon Burst): Swap out the spoon and ball entirely. Instead, give each Patrol a balloon. Scouts must gently tap and keep the balloon in the air using only their hands while walking the course, maneuvering around the bench, circling the chair, and heading back. If the balloon touches the ground, they must pick it up and keep tapping from that spot.

Leader Tips

No Cheating / Two Hands: Scouts must not hold the ball to the spoon with their fingers or use a second hand to stabilize it. If caught, they must step back three paces as a penalty. The Drop Rule: If a Scout drops their egg, they must stop, retrieve the ping pong ball, place it back on the spoon, and resume walking from the exact spot where they dropped it. They do not need to restart the whole course. Small Patrol Equalizer: If one Patrol has fewer members than the others, designated Scouts from that Patrol must run a second time to ensure every team requires the exact same number of total runners to cross the finish line.