fox-and-the-hound

The coin/book combo is a special promotion through geocoinstore.com so it is not available from Groundspeak. Some of the retailers are each doing their own special promotional pieces to go with the book. There are a couple really exciting ones coming up soon, too

Well played!! That's very cool

This is truly sad news, but no doubt he'll be waiting down the trail for you. Congratulations on the coin and hope we get to trade for it shortly

Sweet!!!! It's available in the Groundspeak store now

Hey, thanks! I just wanted to note that this coin is designed to be added right onto the straps of your swagbag/backpack, too. (note the design loops on either side for threading onto the straps) There are different caching events and activities icons all the way around the center tag which can be dialed to for picture opportunities, contests and fun. MiGO was really great about letting me run a little wild with their ideas and I had a lot of fun on this one

These are awesome! I definitely see the appeal of a trackable, hand made coin, but I worry about how well it would hold up outside. Do you have time to do a little testing? I tried using FIMO for stages of a multicache, but it didn't hold up very well and was easily scratched and dented. It would make a great token of rememberance though. Can't wait to see it painted!

Sadly, no I had planned to be there, but it just didn't work out this year. Frozen Buns will be there though and the books will, too. Hopefully next year

Whoot!!! After disappearing into a cache in Texas, my "Brick" TBYPM8 just showed up at a garage sale in Washington state and went right back into a cache. Life is good!

Thank you! I know what you mean, I've been so busy with this project I feel like it's a fight just to check in on all the fresh new projects here. Thank you to everyone who stopped by at MWGB to talk about the project and offer your suggestions for Volume II. I'm constantly amazed at the wealth of ideas and ingenuity from this crowd!

doh! double-post

THAT IS AMAZING!!! Who made this?

The activation code sequence is on the little slip in the coin flip

Yes, pictures confirm I am indeed a dork. My only saving grace is that I'm even crazier about coins than I am about ridiculous poses for pictures! Thank you so much to everyone who stopped by to talk coins and 'tags, discussed your upcoming designs and shared your advice for Volume II. I'll be at Bloomsburg's Bash next weekend if you're in the area and would love to hear from everyone who has more ideas to share! See you there

See you there! (I'll see if I can bring a couple chairs)

I love hearing these reactions because it confirms that we who love geocoins share some common roots in our interests, too! BTW, I'm heading out to Midwest Geobash tomorrow so if anyone who has a book already is going, just hunt me down and I'd be happy to personalize your copy if you'd like (plus it will give me a chance to see if your sketching! lol)

Thank you everyone for the posts, emails and PMs on the book! Thank you to everyone who has given this project a chance. I'm on to my third page of templates filled now, but hope to have it filled by MWGB! It's been a great learning experience and I'm having a blast hearing people's reactions I'm curious to know what would you all would like to see more/less of in Volume II though? I'm compiling piles of new stories, new tips/tricks, insights and discoveries, but I want to make sure I'm putting in what you'd like to see most, too. I can't guarantee it will all get in there, but I'll sure try. Do you have a coin you admire for design? Which one and why? Not just because it's "pretty", but what really makes it stand out from the crowd? I'll begin composing and editing near the end of summer so the more info I can put together now the better product I'll be able to produce later

A Mayan / Christmas mashup? Interesting!

The coin was a completely separate promotional project by only one retailer. A limited number of those coins was created to be included as an extra incentive, but if you ask nicely maybe they'll be convinced to make a few more Stay tuned though, I've heard whispers of other promotional projects attached to this book in the works, too.

I'd love to do multiple languages, but I think that would only work for a Kindle version maybe. I'll have to see what it takes to have something of this size translated. Someone mentioned it earlier in the project and my concern is still that for some words there are no direct translations I'll give it some serious thought though, thanks!

Thank you everybody for your compliments on the book and your support, too! I really appreciate your feedback. I still want to hear your ideas for how to improve it though for Volume II once you've had a chance to get through this one. Give me your 2 cents, your critique and your suggestions to make the next one even better Every design improves with feedback!

Not to France particularly, no, but the French language is the only one I know that has a word with this particular meaning... Also, after having repeatedly jarred his head on branches, rock outcroppings, computer desks, etc...Chris' true and accurate "memories" may have been inadvertently mixed in with dreams, fantasies, and his secret desire to be a gymnast. Therefore, the word "memoires" is much more accurate as he's had to piece together factual geocoin design information from an entire studio wallpapered with post-its and the various permanent sharpie scribbles on his appendages. I think it's all very accurate, except the part about needing to pick up his dry cleaning last November. Take that blunderous snippet out of the book, and you've got a Pulitzer contender. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Okay all kidding aside, I've had the honor and pleasure of receiving a copy of "Discovered"...and it's brilliant. Chris takes you on start-to-finish journeys with some of his most amazing designs, allowing rare glimpses into the thought processes of one truly gifted artist. It's a wonderful documentary, with touches of wit and humility mixed in with Chris' clever eye for cool design. Regardless if you've got one, or one thousand geocoins in your collection, there's something for any geocoin enthusiast to "discover". Congratulations, Chris. I mean that sincerely. You've once again "raised the bar", and furthered the evolution of trackables. Dave (Yime) Thank you Dave! It means a lot to have fellow designers give me the thumbs up

Is that the activation cod error just the book or the coin also? Thank you! The activation code for the book is Discovered. I believe you have to go to the url on the coin flip to activate the coin. Each of these two trackables were built using unique codes and activations.

UPDATE: For anyone who's been interested, but really wants to see one up close and in-hand, they'll be available this weekend at the Berkshire Geobash (GC36CCE). ACTIVATION CODE: "Discovered" For some reason I keep forgetting to include this rather important piece of information.

Noooooooooo! Say it isn't so man! This is an awesome idea and I don't want to see it fade away. Maybe we can pool some ideas here on how to make it happen? What if your amber-suspension company built the amber insets and they were glued into the coin at a regular coin producer? It might cost a bit more, but this is a great idea and should do very well even if slightly more than initially speculated. Maybe even get the base and inset shipped to you and produce it locally? There are a bunch of marine builders who specialize in beautiful and durable marine epoxies that are often available in colored variants. Anybody here have experience with these materials? Maybe you could colaborate?

Not to France particularly, no, but the French language is the only one I know that has a word with this particular meaning. I'll try to explain... The word memoire doesn't have a direct translation to the English language. It doesn't mean memory or memories or a recording of memories even. Memoire has changed slightly over the last few hundred years, but at it's core it encompasses a number of ideals similar to a thesis, but far more fluid. A memoire is a shared presentation of ideas, opinions, and supporting facts and/or data that explain how one arrives at their conclusions. I chose a word that embodies the idea that the ideas expressed in the idea art NOT solid proven theory or fact. The writing in this volume in fact shows how NOT to do a lot of things. It's impossible for any crafter to aquire skill in their chosen profession without making mistakes along the way. This book shares what to do, what not to do, what I've done, what I should have done and most importantly it launches a platform for discussion on what could be done in future designs. It's not unlike what used to be presented in the Public Forums of Rome. An idea or series of ideas is presented and a logical conclusion is presented for argument for or against by a person's peers. I want everyone to question what my conclusions are. I hope I'm right in most, I hope I'm wrong in some and that your response to reading of my conclusions will educate us all to reach greater accomplishments. My biggest concern in presenting this kind of work is that anyone would take the findings as concrete law. The greatest lesson I've learned is that design is a idea that grows. What is true today is not true tomorrow. As you read from the beginning of the book to the end you'll see my standings and opinions change so that what I believe in the first few stories won't actually hold by the final page. This is the idea of a memoire. I'm telling of experience from my personal view that is fluid, malleable and most importantly open to change as experiences shape me. These are my hypothesis, but I hope you'll see what I saw in the process of growth and I really want to hear your thoughts, too. No one has ever written a book on geocoin design and I believe that little can be accomplished by saying designs should only be this way, that way or in the way I imagine. I'm constantly seeing a coin and thinking "Why didn't I think of that?" or "I should have used that for that coin two designs back!" You guys sharing ideas here is how I learned to begin with. So, no connection to France other than a really accurate word to describe this endeavor.