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@gotta run wrote:
I think challenges could have a place for puzzles where the container is incidental…prove your solve to log? Also to highlight an interesting location where the .1 mile rule prohibits a physical cache…perhaps others. What do you think s¦s???
In response, I started this reply about 6 pages back but couldn’t get my post to post. Trying again today as I realize there may still be something worth sharing and besides, with the pot simmering my ego-manically mannered mind won’t boil over and scald any of the other chefs in this kitchen
I remember contemplating the future of the sport in my first year (2006) when I witnessed some dominant names disappear from scene complaining of mediocrity and number chasing. I’m now imagining what they would think of this latest GS endeavor?
Virtuals were pulled about the time I got started. If they had survived a little longer, there’s a good chance I would now own a hundred or more.
But, the game evolves as we know it must and we adjust. I can certainly accommodate a final location for any idea and work around proximity issues if I have to. Pull the ALR’s? Fine, those that do get the reward of doing something extra will do them anyway. Put creative cache creators in a box, and we’ll come up with a way out of it. I was watching the GS forum about virtuals coming back for the past year with some trepidation. Would I now consider re-creating many of my caches which fit better the “virtual” moniker and what was this NEW version going to look like? Now we’re presented with a way out of the box, and I’m not so sure I will consider taking it. Maybe I simply prefer punching my own holes in the construct.I’ve been chuckling for a while now as I page through all the “take your picture” challenges and see where these appear to be going… 🙄 Taking a picture in front of an object doesn’t do a thing for me, but an activity like dropping rubber superballs from a bridge does. Both activities that would qualify as challenges. The question now is, will more of the former appear or the latter?
For the time being, I will be hanging back and watching. I think Jeremy is looking at the success of consumer model GPS sports and apps like SCVNGR and their siphoning of potential GS traffic and interest ( as others have also surmised), and hoped this might stem that tide. I agree with others that it would have found a better market as a whole new sport like Waymarking.
In the end, at least from my standpoint, the future of this category doesn’t matter. I create caches for a certain breed of cacher. People looking for instant gratification are not going to find much by doing S|S caches. Take a picture of you pulling Thomas Jefferson’s finger or take a virtual tour of Monticello and learn something about this incredible man. I know which one I’d spend a couple hours digging in deep and ‘beyond the solve’ to accomplish and which one I wouldn’t waste 30 seconds to complete.
The length of this thread and number of followers says something about a large cross-section of WGA cachers having some kind of opinion on a subject that effects all of us. For cache placers, the impetus to go out and place more quality caches is a direct correlation to how well their current caches are perceived, handled and replaced by the community at large. The more positive feedback you get, the more inclined you are to go out and place another one. This is especially true for the long-time players and placers whose maintenance load can quickly become overwhelming with a change of seasons or a swath of poorly re-placed, poorly re-hidden caches.
Most of us have felt the sting of an MIA cache soon after a pass by an individual or group out chasing numbers and in a hurry to move on. While I don’t get worked up anymore over simple copy-paste logs, I do get irritated when those copy-pasters do the disservice of not re-hiding my caches well in their haste. I realize I’m painting with a broad stroke and no one fits into a particular category.
To Sloughfoot, I’d suggest that you have to come to terms with the bad part of putting yourself time and talent out there for others to enjoy. Some people will not get it, or even take the time to care to get it. I hit a breaking point last year over this disparity between what I gave and what I got and like many of the time, decided to scale back. As a result, I have put out very few new caches and only Tributees when I do put one together. But I still revel on the good part of the game, the one in five logs that give me a chuckle, or a sense of satisfaction that someone went the distance on a solve or had a great time getting the physical cache.
Some of us who’ve been around the block a few times brought the idea up for a caching ethics class or merit badge. Given all that’s been said here (and we didn’t even touch on Trackables and Trash) I think the idea has merit. I think as a state, we should develop an Ethics Souvenir badge that can only be attained by attending a caching ethics class.
@gotta run wrote:
Due to other committments that have significantly cut into our geocaching time, we’ve cut back on our owned caches to about 1/2 of what we had, but we’ve still found it difficult to tend to maintenance issues.
Then I remembered the WGA Cache Rescue program! Problem solved. Thanks to all the rescuers who have been confirming or repairing caches and keeping as many in play as possible.
It do come in handy, although one has to use a little brevity in determining what one wishes to ask the community to take care of in their stead. I’ve used it a few times myself in the past and have found the community eager to help. At the same time I have dozens on my own that I feel some obligation to keep up, if only because they are close, probably more so because many of the containers are custom and it would be too much to ask others to take care of for me. Triangle of Lovejoy would be archived if not for the willingness of a local cacher to go above and beyond and for that I am grateful.
10 Nov 10 (excluding the lonely event)
@zuma wrote:
Pretty sad to be in so much in a rush for a meaningless number that you cannot even take 10 extra seconds to put a cache back correctly.
Twice last year I found an easy peasy cache near me that I own (and use to place TBs in) left half open by cachers on a numbers frenzy. How hard it is to close an ammo box?
zuma
Completely concur. Even an ammo can lid can slide a little from it’s funny-seated slot and jeopardize the seal or have a little debris stuck in its rubber gasket and be forced ajar even when locked shut. Ammo cans are wonderful, but only if cachers make a conscience effort to inspect the seal and fit before closing.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve come across wet ammo can contents, including my own, because of quick or careless replacement. This is probably one of my biggest peeves in the sport and I don’t think it is always about numbers either. The inherent nature of being stealthy and moving quickly plays a major factor in it as well. Any time a cache location is in muggle prone or muggle visible territory, you can expect some issues with careful replacement of caches.
@RSplash40 wrote:
@seldom|seen wrote:
My desire has never been to make caching a struggle
**brrrhhaaa …. x’cuse me… brrhaa..*coughcoughcough* something bblllaaaaahhhccckk… hufhuf… caught… *cough* hrmmmmmmmmghghh.. in my…. *GRRRAAAAAGGGH* throat *coughcoughcough*
😀
Oh Rsplash, you know you’d ave rather run the ET Highway, when it existed, than work through a dozen of my easiest puzzles 😉
The keyword it “desire” translated “intent”. What actually transpires is another matter… It bares repeating that I am always open and willing to assist, though it sometimes takes a couple days to get to requests.
Not saying there aren’t some real challenges in the mix or that I haven’t created a few headbangers, just that it isn’t the motivating factor and I would much rather create a easy puzzle that gets people to experience something new that create a challenging puzzle that doesn’t.
@zuma wrote:
On the other side though, both of these were in places a physical could be located, with a little more effort, both by the placer and the finder.
I think virts appeal to the type of cacher who the main goal is to find great places. Some of us are not so interested in making caching a constant struggle. Understandably, virts tend to not appeal to those who prefer to make caching a struggle either by figuring out puzzles or looking for cleverly concealed micros.
zuma
If virts had never gone away, it is likely that more than 75% of my puzzles would have been virts to begin with. My desire has never been to make caching a struggle and by necessity of having no other cache classification, they become defacto puzzles. Despite the fact that most are about place, history or person and are not, in my opinion, a puzzle. By the same token, I have no desire to just place a container out there simply to get people to come to it and sign a slip of paper, that to me is folly (unless you have an ultra-rare occasion to bring cachers to a place that is new or unique).
Bringing them back certainly changes the game for me. It means I don’t have to trouble with the necessity of having a physical cache for cache ideas that never merited one to begin with. Wouldn’t it be nice to have an opportunity to reclassify and pull all those useless defacto caches out of the field!
03/08/2011 at 5:40 pm in reply to: Thoughts on the budget repair bill and protests in Madison. #1943325(pulls thumb and index finger off tongue)
I’ve stayed way clear of this debate centered largely around the contextual and often very personal issues of salary, compensation and worth of public employee service. It is clear that I will not win any arguments with any of you on the other side. All I will say is that my father who worked diligently for the UW-M as the Chief Mechanical Engineer for 20 plus years, and was the sole bread winner, was not a wealthy man. That or my mom just thought we liked eating beef tongue, sorghum sandwiches and braunschwiger as kids. I remember a distinctly lean childhood, but he made it work and put in his time. Thankfully he retired and wasn’t let go as is so often the case and certainly will be with many public employees near retirement and a means to shed pensions.
But that’s not the primary issue at hand and these pitted arrangements from both sides of the middle class against each other drive me nuts, because most Americans get caught up in the details when the perspective necessary to understand the driving force is a few steps back. We live in an oligarchical collectivist state where wealth is slowly and inexorably atrophying to the top tier through corporate manipulation of legislation and media. At some level, all politicians are corrupt and beholden to those who buy their office, including those who get boatload of cach from Unions. Guess what, they are Democrats and Republicans alike. That’s the broken system and what we should be fighting, not trying to justify the actions of either. Look at the stats…
@gotta run wrote:
The Minnesota event from what I can tell involves puzzle owners and respects their wishes, and it seems to have a LOT of buy in from puzzle owners based on the extensive list of puzzles included in it.
In contrast, in the 50-mile radius of these events here, we have had tremendous acrimony and several puzzle owners archiving their caches. So you can draw your own conclusions based on those facts.
If you’ve been around a while, you know where I stand on this issue and also know the toll the last tour of this kind had on many of the area puzzle caches and owners, as referenced above. I am not going to give the event organizer the satisfaction of reading any post by me, save this one, that hints at the deep-seeded resentment I feel for what he and his ilk take away from this worthwhile aspect of the game.
I would only ask that those who consider attending take some time to look into this organizer’s particular mentality and approach with regard to disrespecting puzzle owners wishes, instead providing solves in order to log “?”‘s in the sole effort to clear them off the screen.
Ask around. Read old puzzle forum threads about past “tours” in the valley and get to know the lot you are throwing your hat in with. If you agree with them, so be it and enjoy your tour. If not, seriously consider giving it a miss.
And that is ALL I have to say about the matter. I am content to let the hollow cookie-cutter logs speaks for themselves for those who can’t see beyond the numbers…
The second to last Bald Eagle count for the season also occurs on this day in many parks along the Fox. Lutz, Alica, Fritze and more beginning at dawn and lasting 2 hours. If anyone is interested, shoot me a PM and I’ll give more specifics.
Trekkin’ and Birdin’ will be celebrating their 10,000th find shortly after the count is over (relatively speaking), beginning their FTF trek to Bald is Beautiful I think around 8:30am. If you happen to be in the area of Fritze park at that time and just happen to be walking the Friendship trail, you might endeavor to “stumble” into them and offer your congratulations on this mega-milestone. 10K increment finds don’t occur very often and I think a few familiar faces on the trail might make for a more memorable occasion… 😉
My goal was to not get on the board at all last month and I did it!
@gotta run wrote:
Well, I remember your log, but I believe you deleted it in your “I’m deleting my logs on all the puzzle caches I found but didn’t solve” frenzy. I wasn’t gonna say nuthin’ but… 😆
Some people might not catch the subtle humor in that remark, so let me clarify, the frenzy was to delete all logs on caches for particular cachers who’ve lost my respect, if they ever had it to begin with. I wasn’t gonna say nuthin’ either, but…
I think the frozen Chukie pic should be submitted for the home page header!
@vtwinspin wrote:
wow thats cool good job hurry up I have a spot picked out for you commeritive 10000 find that I would like to place for you guys it a fun one but what is 10k finds 1k is silver 5 k is gold 10k is ? emerald green
Bald is Beautiful is all lined up for 10K. That one was actually placed for 7K but because of timing and distance, has not worked out for a milestone to date. However, it looks like it may finally fall into place for this one. Looking forward to the Eagle count and tagging along for this auspicious occasion…
At least the potential for police encounters like this keep the felons out of the sport. Plus, if you gotta tell the wife you were cuffed and read, this is the best possible scenario 😉
is that trackable 😉
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