The video is interesting, but there are at least three guys and clearly they are not finding and logging these caches individually. What they do is analogous to having track & field 4X100 meter relay teams compete against individuals in the 400 meter run. In spite of that, the cachers in the video have only found 350 caches with less than 1/2 the day left. It seems highly unlikely they will reach 900 before the end of the day. I don't see how a lone cacher could find and log 900 caches in a day.Who said anything about finding caches individually?
Usually, numbers runs are a team effort. For that matter, group geocaching trips are often a team effort. Personally, I prefer to play huckle buckle beanstalk style, but a lot of people play three musketeers style instead.
And who said it's a competition?
I've seen Alamogul at a number of local events, and no one has ever proclaimed him the winner of anything (even at the events celebrating another of his major milestones). None of the geocachers I know who have done these big numbers run trails (as shown in the video) claim to have won anything. From what I gather, they mostly compete against themselves, trying to optimize their own numbers run.
Some accounts represent a single person. Some accounts represent a couple, or a whole family. Some individuals use multiple accounts. We're all geocaching together. There is no "solo geocaching" that is distinct from "pairs geocaching" that is distinct from "team geocaching". It's all just geocaching.
But for what it's worth, I found a post from humboldt flier that mentioned finding 640 caches solo, between 2:34am and about 6pm. But I think someone else (perhaps Lil Devil) has found more than that on a solo numbers run, perhaps in the 700-800 range.
For me, it isn't a question of competition. I simply don't feel comfortable logging a cache found and logged in a joint effort as my find. It isn't the same achievement and I prefer not count it that way. To me it is mixing apples and oranges. On the other hand, if they had separate geocaching memberships for groups of two, three, four etc., I would have no problems logging a cache achieved in one of these groupings. It would be kind of like doubles vs singles tennis -- a different category.
While this may not be competition, clearly those guys in the video are trying to get as many caches as they can in the shortest possible time. They are motivated by count. Personally, I don't feel that counting a cache that someone else may have found as mine is the same as counting a cache that I found as mine. I don't feel there is any comparison.
Totally agree with the apples and oranges comment. If you weren't actually there to be a part of the find, how can you "find" it?
