Lemon Fresh Dog

Unrelated? Has any discussion occured on the main forums about event "icons" or "flags" where the organizor of the event can make note of specific activities taking place that can be searched? For example, if I am having an event, it would be neat to be able to select from a checklist to let cachers know the "type" of event it will be: CITO, Coins, Contests, Puzzles, Competition, Orienteering, Club, BEER, Food.... I am not sure of how deep this list would need to be and/or what activities are "special" enough to get noted. That said - around here and event is an event. There are caches, there are coins, there is food. So it may be unique to areas that have so many events that filtering may be desired.

Thanks to everyone for the responses. I have the 10 coins ready to go. At this point, I can only send out 10 coins, but maybe this summer or fall I will do another 10. Please wait if/when I post to request. I hate to say "no", but if I open it up to more than 10 I am sure to have hundreds of requests. Most importantly - don't forget to give back to your communities by being involved in the CITO events in your areas! The public face of caching is very important to allow parks officials to accept the caching activities. We already have caches banned from national parks - let's keep the local, regional and state/provincial parks engaged in understanding the respect cachers have for the environment in which our caches are placed!

I was a member of the Geocoin Club for awhile and enjoyed it very much. For me, it turned out to be very, very benficial as I ended up with 4 copies of coins like the benchmark, ROT13, Ammo Can, etc, etc -- all of which traded and/or sold for more than I paid and fed the habit even more! Now, I tend to only seek coins that have specific designs that appeal to me - with coin subscriptions you get every coin - even if the design doesn't appeal. My personal thought is: 1) join a coin club to build an "inventory" 2) mint your own personal coin for trading This will build your collection very, very fast.

I was thinking about this (I really need to get a life...) and I thought that maybe we need two phrases: Event Exclusive Event Commemorative At any rate - what happens if you get left over event exclusives? Hmmmm.... I think that if the attendees of the event evenly split the total cost of the coins (hence, no cash surplus or deficit), then the remainders should be cached. If, on the other hand, coins remain - then they should be sold until the cash deficit is covered and the remainders set free. The key is to meet two objectives: 1) make the coins "special" 2) make sure no one suffers financially (unless they want to)

Thanks everyone! I am sure to have plenty of e-mails and will post the coins right away!

Hello all, The first 10 CITO event organizors that contact me with an address can have a coin to give away at their event from me. The coins will be RANDOM (do not ask for a specific coin) selections of: Calgary 2006 Calgary 2007 (new one) Red-Handed Personal Coin random older coins (Finland, APE, BC, etc) Please post below once you have sent me the addess (the event has to be an official CITO event). I will mail the coins tomorrow or Monday. Also - if you are "claiming" a coin, please check to see how many above you have posted - I have 10 to give away. (maybe number your request 1,2,3,....)

I see the event coin as a memento of the event. If there are extras, I don't actually see much harm in circulating them outside of the event. The exception would be if they were advertised as an event exclusive, tightly controlled, and charged for at a premium - then secondary circulation would reduce their value on the secondary market (assuming that folks even wanted to sell them). In the end, I think the coin represents a memento of the event for those that attended and a neat collectible for those that did not. Edited to add: I have several "event" coins such as a Geowoodstock III and some others where I didn't attend the event. I still like the coins and am happy to have traded for them. I think that those attending the event bought or recieved multiples with the express intent of trading them at a premium due to the exclusive distribution method. As another example, more and more regional or city geocaching associations are minting coins for sale to "locals only" - these always are purchased in multiples and traded off. I tend to buy many multiples of the Calgary issues in order to trade, cache when out of town, and gift to others.

I would like both - these are a nice coin and well suited to caching.

Hmmm.... seems that more is happening here than meets the eye. and... being opinionated! Here I go! If someone gives someone a gift, I always think it is just plain rude to accept it and then sell it off. Especially in the case of the gift being given with the intention that the person enjoy it. In fact, accepting a gift that you don't want (as evidenced by selling it) - is rather shallow in my opinion. If someone trades you for something, then the something you traded is now theirs, and the something you got is now yours. If I trade you a coin for a coin - we each have a new coin. If I trade the bookstore $24.95 for a book - they now have $24.95 and I have a book. However.... What are geocoins? Personally, I really do believe they are signature items that are intended to add a dimension of fun and personality to the activity we enjoy. Once I trade a coin with another cacher - the coin I have is not going anywhere. They are free to do what they want with the one I gave them. In fact, several of my coins have been placed on eBay - I simply don't mind. As for my own eBay activities (I sell geocoins on eBay fairly regularly) - I only sell "commercial" coins. These would be ones that were available for sale. If I am so inclined to buy several, I do so with the intentions of: keeping, caching, trading. Sometimes I have to trade for money (via eBay) and then turn around and buy more. Trust me...add up all my eBay sales and add-up what I have spent on coins. eBay is a suppliment. However, I have also recieved coins in trade and as gifts. Selling any of *these* coins would be ungrateful to say the least - and I am very, very grateful for the trades and gifts - these ones stay with me. Now....why go into all this? Well....everyone is different. Choose your friends and your caching buddies wisely. You may occassionally get burnt by bad behaviour, but in the end you will have a surplus of friends and pleasant memories to offset the suffering at the hands of fools.

whimpy! whimpy! me? Ga! Okay....I would list a few then. Moun10Bike v2 - it was sort of my "I'm in the coin-club" coin. Nicolo's coin that he made when his grand-daughter was born - it's a special coin and was a gift Some coin that someone sent me as part of Secret Santa (can't say no more) The Geocoin Fairy and Pay it Forward coins - they were far too kind in getting these to me The SWAGS Christmas and the mini-cow coins (they have my geobone on them!) Oh....there's more.... I recieved a very nice coin gift that was for US Military only - I'm a Canadian, so it was nice that I was able to get one - especially as there was really no reason I deserved one! Now....I'm not being whimpy, but this is just the top of my head (my coins are at home). Tiki's, Shop99ers, Mauison, Yemon Yime, on and on. Almost every coin that I have is a trade (or, if commercial, are ones I bought long ago) - so they all have meaning in that the person trading with me thought enough of my coin to want one. okay.... I'm whimpy....

Whoa! If the mint is selling the coin - that is bad. If the coin has a duplicate tracking number on it - that is really, really bad! In fact, Groundspeak charged you for the tracking number and that tracking number is on a legit coin. So, if they are duplicating coins and tracking numbers - we are all going to suffer at some point. It is great that you have resolved the problem, but we should all remember that checking out your minters before dealing with them is very important - especially if the coin is important to you. We are very lucky in this hobby to have some coin manufacturers that are really, really good. My experiences with Coins and Pins and Oakcoins has been nothing short of fantastic. Landsharkz also has been very good (I have yet to mint a coin with them, but they are really decent people). I'm sure everyone has their own success stories - we need to ensure that we share success and failures with the community to prevent just this sort of thing.

Definately let it go. It's very sad that the person doesn't respect the spirit of the trade as you intended it, but once you trade the coin you have to accept that it is no longer in your control. If you really wanted to limit/precent sales, then you should have activated all your coins under your name. That is no sure way to prevent this though. My personal thought is that once traded, the coin is really gone from me. While I would never sell a coin that I traded with a cacher for - some folks will. There is no way to really control this. I suppose you could always sell the coin they traded you as a way of protest. Mostly - you should let it go. Life really is too short.

I am sad to hear of your friend. It's a very nice idea to create some way for them to be remembered in the community. To be honest - there is no real way to keep coins in circulation. They may travel a great distance, but it seems that most coins will eventually be taken into a collection or lost. I agree that the goals will affect the rate in which these coins eventually de-circulate (as will numbers minted), however, eventually they all will be collected. To keep a cachers memory alive in the form of a travelling item, I would suggest a traditional Travel Bug (or several). To create a wonderful memento or raise funds - the geocoin is a great way to go.

Actually - Calgary has FOUR coin series. It's just that the 1st and second were metal changes. Series I - Calgary 2005 three metals. Series II - just like the first in an antique silver, but released much later Series III - Lime Green Token w/Calgary Tower Series IV - the Cowboy/Park coin Of course, we have nothing on MIGO!!! haha! They have, 412 different coins (okay, I exagerate) When/If we get a bit of direction - expect us to bid *unless of course if the decision to go US-only is made

I think you can count on Calgary to submit a proposal. At this point, it looks as if Wavevector and I are interested in forming a working group - so we will see if there is a third person we can recruit. My background includes 10 years as a hotel manager for a company called Canadian Pacific (now Fairmount) - so I worked in Banff, Whistler, Victoria, and Calgary in the hospitality industry. I think that I would be able to pull this into a proposal that is very "vacation" and "attraction" orientated. After all - Avro's post really put things into perspective - it has to be worth the time/expense/travel to convince significant others and kids to come along! For structureed attractions - I think no one can beat California, New York, or Florida - however, I think that for the outdoors - both Calgary and Vancouver Island in Canada are pretty good destinations. In fact, having worked very extensively with visitors to these areas - they are world-class destinations. Sponsorship is always a crtitical factor. While the event seems to have been a huge success for cachers and families - what about the sponsors? Did they percive this as a high-value use of their limited marketing budgets? If so, then we are in a good position to approach them for contunued support in the next event. Finally, do we have an idea of the total number of attendees at the event? How many people did it bring to the area? The reason I ask is that the City of Calgary Tourism Department will dedicate a part-time, or even a full-time resource to help us plan the event depending on what numbers we are looking at. It is in their best interest to promote tourism in the area. That being said - a definitive answer on the dates is extremely important for us to know. It can be broad, but late September to mid-April is a little.....colder. To be honest, I live here. Planning an event is not only a way to get a cool event close-by, but also a way to show off the area for future visits. That's hard to do if it's cold and snowy (which is also nice, but maybe more of an acquired taste ) On each of the points in Avro's post - Calgary has some clear, strong, compelling offers. We really are a city built amongst nature. We have a Provincial Park IN the city. Not near it - right inside it. Which is one of about 4 HUGE parks, amongst dozens of smaller ones. Caches? We have many, many good caches in the area. Downtown is, as in most places, pretty much the realm of the Micro-naughts. (okay - personal bias there - not a huge micro fan). However, there is an extensive network of bike paths with many traditional caches (you can also walk on these paths.) Okay - I'll save the rest for the proposal. Numbers of attendees would help in order to get some idea of the magnitude of the event.

Well - I certainly know that we would like to offer a "package" for consideration to the selection committee. The world is full of wonderful places - I've had the chance to visit some nice places in my time. The reason I would like to put together a Calgary package is that I think the area would appeal to a wide variety of cachers. It's really very outdoor orientated, yet metro and urban at the same time. Plus - it's fun to see a new place and still feel safe and welcome at the same time. Calgary is actually the most "American" city in Canada. I once heard we have about 60,000 US citizens living/working here. (oil industry is big here). I can't confirm that though. The biggest appeal I think is that you can really feel like you are in the middle of the wilderness - when you are in the middle of the city. Alternatively - you can get into some of the most remote wilderness going. If anyone is interested, some places to google to get an idea would be: Calgary Parks Waterton Lake Park (borders the US Glacier National Park) Banff Drumheller Lake Louise Kananaskis To give you an idea - Calgary has about a million people in it. You can actually go fly fishing in the river that runs through downtown and the water and fish are healthy. That may not seem like much - but it isn't as common as you may think in a city of a million. Anyhow - like I stated. It would propably be better if some ground rules were given out and then a more structured proposal could be offered. Needless to say though - if anyone is travelling this way personally or would like more info - just let me know!

Yes. However, the advantage is that you get to visit another country! Did you know that Calgary has an Urban park called "Fish Creek Provincial Park"? It is the largest urban park in Canada and has over 80KM of trails. In fact, Calgary as a city has over 200KM of bike trails! I ride my Mountain bike to work every day - and only have two short blocks where I am not on a dedicated bike path. Perfect for families! I have gone on 8 HOUR bike rides without ever having to encounter vehicle traffic. We have 27,500KM of parks and over 500 sites in Alberta (which is pretty big - so you won't get to see them all A city of over a million people that feels like a small town..... come on up!

Howdy! ... or even Ya-Hoo! I think the process of the next location selection should really be put up to a bid process in which each area creates a "Host Committee" that is willing to organize a pitch - sort of like the Olympics If this ever came to pass, then I think that you could probably expect a bid from the lovely city of Calgary, Alberta in Canada! There are some very compelling reasons to think about coming a short distance north. We have the Canadian Rockies - Banff, Lake Louise, Ice Fields, Kananaskis Country. That's one direction. The other direction gives us the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palyan... Pheoli....Dinosaurs! Calgary itself is served by an International airport, has major road connections, plenty of camping, budget to 5 star hotels. Great infrastructure (we had the Winter Olympics in 1988). US currency is still strong - so you get an automatic discount on everything! What really makes the location a win are the variety of outdoor, indoor and cultural experiences available. It gives folks a safe, friendly vacation well-suited to the family, the outdoors person, the seasoned traveller and .... the cacher! Good caches in all varieties exist. So, if the process is determined, then I think there are serveral of us that would consider putting together a "Calgary Caching" package for your consideration. (Wavevector and I were discussing this briefly this morning at Tim Hortons - yet another excellent reason to visit Canada). Here's a link to start you thinking.... Tourism Calgary Geography buffs - we have hoodoos, mountains, foothills, prairies, lakes, rivers. Check out: Alberta's Parks..... seriously diverse! Photos are here! Park Photos - don't look unless you want to drool!!!

Ug....there is no way I could choose three. Basically, any coin that I traded with the person that created the coin has special meaning to me -- so I guess I have a few hundred favourites. Sorry.

Did I get your address's (how *do* you pluralize that?). Anyhow - if you are a winner and have not gotten a gift - please PM or e-mail me your address and I can ensure you get some cool stuff! (in fact, I even have something new to add - the Calgary coin!)

Although it seems that I will not be there physically - I will be there in spirit. I'll send the "last of the golden geobones" down to the event. Maybe it will be in a cache? Maybe it will be a prize? Maybe it will be part of a raffle? Have fun!

THAT is really, really cool!

Crazy rare indeed! Yipes. I know that I get a lot of folks asking about these coins, and I also know that I don't have any left (well...of course I have one each for myself, and I also did have one of each for some special caches.) As it turns out, I just gave away the silver one I was saving - so this means that I have the one gold one left for a special cache. That said - you can talk to my kids. I know that I have left coins on my desk that "disappear". They ussually show-up in the toy room. I'm pretty sure we have one silver geobone that is MIA. Probably to be seen during my next duct cleaning - my 18 month old seems to like the "plunk" sound of dropping things down the duct vents. To be honest - most folks I traded or gave these to seem to want to keep them. (that said - once they are yours they are YOURS - so trade, sell, give, or throw away as you see fit) So "crazy" rare? Maybe. I know that I don't have any.

Ga! Looks like my passport may not arrive in time for me to get across the border from Canada..... Darn...all those years of cross-border moonshining have finally made it hard to get across the border to the US for us Candians. Maybe I'll just drive to the border and look over the fence at all of you. (except I'll be many 100's of miles (and Kilometers) away.

It seems like a good step in making sure the situtation is cleaned-up and doesn't occur in the future. To be honest, 15 coins is WAY too many "portfolio" coins in my opinion. However, that's just my opinion. Needless to say, I will now ensure I clarify up-front what the minters policy is on producing additional coins and avoid those that I feel have excessive "extras" created. Given that all the coins were placed in portfolios of three partners, I think it would be reasonable for the coins to be removed and given the the creator that was unaware of this policy. I am sure there are 100's of other coins that could be used to demonstrate workmanship.