Ralph Edwards – zuma!

[zuma]

I am interested in serving on the WGA Board of Directors because I see the WGA as a valuable organization in the creation and maintenance of a community of Wisconsin geocachers. This community should provide the framework for a strong network of geocaches within the state, and friendships among those in the community.

My general philosophy about the game of geocaching is that it is a lot like golf. Like hitting a small white ball into a small hole is kind of pointless, finding and placing geocaches is kind of pointless, unless you enjoy the thrill of finding a tough one, discovering new places, and exploring places you would not go otherwise. Like golf, the score is only important if you make it important, and only worth considering if it is done with honor. Like golf, it is a friendly game, and mulligans should be generally allowed, but kicking the ball routinely is without honor

I have been geocaching since May of 2004, and like best the exploration aspect of the game, going to new places and seeing things that are not often seen by those who do not geocache. My 2 daughters are 23 and 18 and rarely cache with me, but will if food is provided. I am an ICU Registered Nurse, and work 3 12 hour shifts a week, which leaves me 4 days a week to geocache.

I believe that the WGA can do a few things to improve the community of geocaching in Wisconsin, and should do them to the extent possible. I have several ideas along these lines, but will limit myself to 4 general things we can do to improve the Wisconsin geocaching community.

1. Continue developing these forums as a place for Wisconsin geocachers to interact, and continue to be open to new ideas. For example, I thought it was great recently when a WGA member made the suggestion for regional forums, and the WGA BOD acted quickly to implement that suggestion. The current BOD has done an excellent job in making these forums useful, friendly, and open to all, and that should be continued.

2. Develop a new Wisconsin based geocaching game. Minnesota, for example, sponsors a game for Minnesota geocachers. There are several folks that enjoy the extra layer of fun and challenge to geocaching that game play involves. The WGA currently has sufficient funds to make it possible to develop a first rate Wisconsin based game that would be fun and further develop our community.

3. Let’s Go Camping in Rhinelander! and Superior, and Two Rivers, and Wausau, and La Crosse, and Waukesha, and Janesville. The WGA should continue to hold the two events currently held, without substantial change. But we should also add new events, events without temps, events that foster community. When I visited England last June, I attended an event there called Let’s Go Camping in Oxford, which was just delightful. It was a Friday, Saturday camping event, and geocachers from all across England attended. There was a bonfire on Fri and Sat nights, and the day was spent Saturday going out and looking for geocaches in the local area. We could develop something similiar, as a way to visit parts of the state we do not visit as much and it would allow us to meet and cache with folks we dont normally see as much.

4. The WGA needs to readdress the ban on geocaches in State Natural Areas with the Wisconsin DNR. I remain in favor of not having geocaches in ecologically sensitive areas, yet much of the land that the state has designated as an SNA is land that is open to hunters, fishers, hikers, ATV riders, snowmobilers and others. Land that is open to other users should be open to geocaching as well. There are still many geocaches in Wisconsin that are on SNAs, and these caches may very well be suddenly archived at any point, if we fail to readdress the DNRs ban on geocaching in SNAs.

You can email me at ralphruok(at)yahoo(dot)com if you have any questions, or post your questions here.

Thank you for having the interest, and taking the time to read this.

zuma

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