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Scunthorpe's still safe though... What about s***e? I'm a bit confused about what's a swear word and what isn't these days. Tits, after all, are small birds. Anal is short for anal retentive and bastard is just the correct technical term for someone who drives a BMW 4" from your bumper. Let's see what the system makes of those. SP Edited to say S H I T E. It's an arm of the Muslim faith. Groundspeak is anti-Islamic shocker. Someone call my solicitor...

Penny and Tigger. IOM is only 33 miles by 12 miles. Although I have a vehicle I have done most of the caches here by bus and foot, bike etc. No need for a 4 x 4. I must admit though the island is full of those gas guzzling cars but most if not all have never seen a rough track, let alone the mud. Status symbols, along with the Mercedes and BMW s. Take a week or more here and breath the fresh air, see the views and eat kippers for tea. OH, and do some geocaching.

BTW: The iFinder Phd is "Waterpoof to IPX7 standard". I missed the mention of being water proof, on the Lowrance web site they do not have it in bold print and you have to hunt around for it. This forum is filled with people that use GPSr more than most. Sure Lowarnce has a line of high quality products and their roots are in the Marine field. But when you start looking at Lowarance for Geocaching it seems they are falling a little short as far as features. I looked at Lowrance last Aug. at a trade show in Salt Lake city, as far as use in Geocaching it did not see enough that would sway me purchase a Lowarance GPS. When I look at any GPS I am looking at with through the eyes of a buyer for a retail outlet. To spend money on an item to sell next Garmin and Magellan is not like spending your own money, if the item does not sell it has to be put on clearance and that eats away at the profit margin. As far as I can see, Lowarnce behind Garmin and Magellan. IF Garmin and Magellan are the Mercedea and BMW of the GPS market for geocaching, Lowarance could be the Kia Profit Margins being very tiny on GPS products (something around 20% which is very little) there is not a lot of room for markdown without losing money. I tried to Lowarnce several years ago, before geocaching was around. Then about the time Geacaching started I could even find Lowarnce the trades shows I was attending. Last year was the first time in years I was able to find them at a show, they may have been at Marine industry trade shows, but they were not a shows geared to the hiking and backpacking industry.

I was awarded a BMW company car when I was about 25. I had it three days before the wife acknowledged that my Mondeo had gone. She hated it, and it made me drive like a BMW driver. My next car was a Volvo V70, which was fantastic. I could ignore the rules of the road as long as I went slowly and shrugged alot to make it clear I was a stranger to the area.

Boy I am glad I sold my BMW

It does not appear possible to switch off the front fog lights on many BMWs. Unfortunately, many BMWs were assembled incorrectly, and the fuse which feeds the indicator switch was mistakenly connected to the front fog lights, hence fog lights are always on, indicators never work. Heavily modified citroen Saxos also seem to suffer from this problem. And when the fog lights are on the whole of the right side of the car also becomes strongly magnetised to often extreme extent. You can observe this when a BMW pulls onto a motorway and is immediately pulled to the right hand lane by the steel crash barriers. The force holding the car is so strong that movement to the left hand lane when the driver needs to leave the motorway must be rapid and as close to the junction as possible.

I don't object to them as 4x4's, but can't understand there attraction as a 'fashion symbol'. I reckon 90% of 4x4's on the road are used as a family car, never pulling a caravan, scout tents or whatever. A people carrier would probably serve them better, but hey, they're not as cool! Getting seriously off topic, but on a similar note, is it possible to switch off the front fog lamps on a BMW? Oh No! Now I've done it...

I'm a noob, and like Jeremy I'd like a commentary on "rule changes". Having said that, it doesn't matter if the forums are a cross section of cachers or not. People will gravitate to what they find useful. I also participate in a Boy Scout forum, and the very few posters there are absolutely no way in heck a respresentation of Scouting in general. Both forums are useful and fun, so I'm here. Its like the auto industry: Since I don't drive a BMW, the BMW club is useless to me. I'm still a car owner, just with differences.

any neighborhood where the cacher would look out of place might be sketchy. if you were an affleunt person dressed in a nice suit driving a BMW you'd look WAY out of place on the notch road, where you'd be better coumouflaged if you were a plaid-clad guy with a couple of hound dogs riding an ATV. i am clearly out of place in ANY city because i am unable to mask my sense of "WOW!" at the general big-ness of things. in some neighborhoods simply carrying an expensive toy makes you a good candidate for trouble. racist, my patootie. any neighborhood that's suspicious of outsiders can be a rough one.

I own a Garmin 60C and I enjoy it a lot. But how does a Garmin or Magellan handheld GPSr compare with a GPSr that comes in a luxury car such as a BMW? In mean in terms of reception, cartography....

Thanks for that puzzle. I was chuffed to bits that I worked it out. But there really is no-one in my real life that I could share the triumph with. At our Christmas drinks party (well trip to the local) the conversation turned to 'Anorakdom' with a guy who was accused of being one as he knew far too much about the BMW range. He maintained that everyone in the room would have a 'specialist' subject that they knew lots about but everyone else would not see the point of. Now could I openly claim to an unhealthy knowledge of navigation, map co-ordinate systems, datum lines, and tupperware boxes....no. They all know I've got so many anorak areas, what with IT, networking, music particularly guitars, they didn't even have to ask me to reveal mine... perhaps that was lucky.

There may be many reasons why a persons find count is what it is. Besides that person may really get the bug and pick up their level of finds to one that you may find to be of value and their input worthy. But if they get the feeling their input is not worth anything early then they may never bother kicking it up. Good to know you think of those people as bums. But the person that hasn't bought the BMW in your example has not used the service of BMW at all so no they probably would not bother listening to that person. But the person that buys one car every year or every ten years or only once for that matter has used the service. And sometimes what the person who has only used the service once thinks is important, maybe there is a reason they only used it once. I would only add that I know of at least cacher that has been a member since July of 2002 and has 24 finds. Close to your 10 a year line in the sand. I also believe that gc.com gives a great deal of weight to what this person thinks on how the company should be doing business. I could be wrong on that point but I feel pretty sure they have the ear of TPTB.

In the context of the validity of someone's opinion, I don't think the find count matters. In the context of trying to decide how a company should be doing business, it matters a lot. If a person who buys a new BMW every year has a suggestion on how to improve service, they should probably at least listen. If a bum who hasnt had $20 to his name for the last 5 years tries to tell BMW how to run their company better, I doubt they will give it a second thought.

Sitting around the turkey table, one of the folks had their new Sprint phone out, and I asked what one of the screen icons was.... it was the Locator via GPS - Then we got into the discussion.... I did some surfing and found this link about the A-GPS technology and others that might be embedded into various cellphones. http://www.gps-practice-and-fun.com/a-gps.html My comments were basically... how the heck could these cellphones and other devices receive a GPS signal when my 12 channel Garmin laying on the table could not ? how ? One of the other folks mentioned how his laptop with a GPS card worked just fine in his house..... how ? And lastly, another with his BMW mentioned his GPS nav system works fine everywhere, even in downtown areas, and doesn't even have a roof bubble or other outside antenna that he can see - he can't figure out where the signal is being received So - if these devices are all getting GPS signals just about everywhere, including indoors, then why do our Garmin/Magellan handhelds not hold a candle to them ? At that point - I went to the kitchen....

ok this'll sound daft but i'm 6'7'' and until recently drove.......a mini (not that bmw parentless offspring the classic) with seat extention brackets it's roomier than most modern cars as it has no dashboard or console etc. you can get the older ones cheaply, parts easily available great little cars with loads of character. dirt cheap insurance the list goes on. i could go on but you either love em or hate em.

Hi guys, Thanks for all the interest in the thread... here's my 2p worth: Firstly, it must be said that stonefisk travels in style The Suzuki Jeep doesn't pass go because it's too much like the Toyota RAV4/Honda CR-V - it's more a lifestyle car than an offroader. If I did go down that road (and plans are afoot) then it would have to be a used (possibly ex-military) Land Rover Defender 90. They're just cool. And as for geocaching in one - it's very, very practical but those long motorway trips would be a pain. The BMW 316 has been up for consideration due to its looks, reliablity (those engines have been known to do up to 4 million miles) and all-important RWD setup. Unfortunatly this comes at a price, as insurance companies have "roundabouts and rain" in mind. Insurance quotes for a BMW 316 are 40%-50% more than a similar priced Cavalier/Mondeo. At least that's what I got back. But as for price - these E30's go for £400 upwards, so it would be one for the future. inukshuk merits special attention for his Merc Estate. These were built to cover huge mileages and many still do. A local taxi driver I know here is heading for over 500k on the clock in one without major worries. They also look cool and would carry 5 adults and gear to an event without a bother. Sadly, for me the engine sizes are too big at the moment (I'm 23). I really would love one... Lance, my friend in motoring and pilot of the 'cruise ship' (he said it, not me) that is the Citroen C5... my MkII Golf GTi restoration project has not gone away (you know). you can tell the wife that I did manage to get the smell out of the car after the 7 days on the road during the "Cache O'The North". It did take an afternoon and a "New Car Smell" tree, as well as a trip to the car wash but now she looks loverly again. As for a used VW... you see, they're not madly reliable cars either - don't believe everything you hear. Considering one as a used car for geocaching... I looked at a 1995 MkIII Golf Estate for a bargain price - but the basic spec is very poor - the 1.4 CL didn't even have power steering, and the 1.4 barely gets 60bhp out. Space it may have, but it won't tug 5 lads and equipment into North Wales. In fact, only the GL/GT/GTi/VR6 versions have anything decent in them... and there's the insurance hike again. A Citroen diesel was on the shortlist, the engine and mpg is supposed to be fascinating, but as The Hokesters say, doubts hang over the car itself. As for the Ford Focus, they start at £3,000 (1999) and I dare say, are just a bit too mundane for me. I have driven them and am always suprised, particularly by the handling and especially the zetec engined ones. mattwaggie - a Pug GTi would be just lovely - they're going cheap too. Sadly, it would have to be a 1.9 and the insurance is crazy on it. And you'd have to either chain it down or fit an aftermarket immobiliser and alarm. Me, I'd go for a Fiat Uno Turbo. Just for the noise. So... you're probably curious as to what I'm hankering after... well, I'm not sure yet. It'll all come down to whether I can wedge the GPS between dash and windscreen.

You probably still can't get a Focus for that little without it having done a 1/4 mill miles but if you could raise the money to go for a 1.6 then that is the best petrol car you could get for your money. You could get a Suzuki jeep for this kind of money but avoic ones that have had any flarey, chromy things done to them because they are bound to have been boy racered and that just doesn't do Suzukis any favours. Avoid anything with a lot of electic gadgets if you are paying this sort of money especially if it is French or Italian! A quick search on AutoTrader.co.uk (for my area of course) revealed this 1993 K Reg BMW 316i Motordrive 4 Doors, Manual, Saloon, Petrol, Red. alarm remote controlled, Bmw alloy wheels, Body Coloured Bumpers and Mirrors, power steering, Electric mirrors, Electric windows, Sunroof. which if it drove well would be a reasonable buy, should be reliable, parts reasonably priced second hand, etc. Email me through profile if you want any more advice. 10 years in the motor trade and as an MOT authorised examiner I know what makes it through when it gets to this sort of value. P.S. No offence if anyone owns anything french, italian, suzuki or broken - these are general observations only.

A few things to consider before denying hunters their chosen sport on Sundays for what I suspect started out as a religious reason, which would be unconstitutional due to seperation of church and state. 1. Hunters pay a lot of money to participate in what is a very short season for most, and the money they pay in the form of tags and liscenses primarily goes to conservation of wildlife in your area. This is outside of the normal taxes that everyone pays, along with expenses such as camping gear, rifles, ammunition, etc. How much do you pay to be in the woods? 2. You can cache all year round, and can select which areas to go to according to your preferences, not what the rulebooks tell you when and where you can. Hunters (the legal ones)have to follow very specific rules that you are not subject to. 3. How would you feel if the new rules stated that due to hunting season you are no longer allowed to go into the woods to geocache from Sep. to Dec.? Banning hunting on Sundays so that non hunters can go into the woods without having to hear rifle shots is essentialy the same thing. Sounds a bit hypocritical to me. Yes, there are bad hunters out there that make "sound shots", but you have the option of finding caches in other areas during those seasons if you are worried about it. Hunters don't have those kinds of options. Luckily in Idaho we don't have such silly laws (although we have enough of our own), so the only thing I can't do on Sunday is buy liquor (another stupid religous reason I'm sure). So in short, go find some other place to cache hunt during hunting season. The hunters will appreciate your not crashing through the woods scaring all the game, and you'll be less likely to have to deal with Bambi running out in front of your BMW on the way home from caching next spring. Everyone wins.

I clip my Etrex to my BMW and it goes dead at 132 MPH. I think it is from the vivration.

you bet, especially if i could trade it in for a BMW

Wow, thats pretty cool! I didn;t know that BMW made a dual sport. I have a Kawasaki KL250 as a dual sport bike, as my first bike its been pretty good. Here is my other cachemobile, a 2001 Isuzu Rodeo: Shannon

My current cache mobile is a BMW 325i as well. Hey my motto is, if you're gonna go caching, you might as well go caching in comfort.

It's a BMW F650GS motorcycle. Tomorrow when I have time to take a pic of it i'll upload one here. My car is a BMW 325i and I really don't take it off the pavement, especially with the sport suspension and low profile tire. Rocks tend to reek havoc on those!. But when you live really close to a National Forest some cachers tend to hide them off the beaten path! LOL. Which I want to do and now I can. Ken

Both the 60C/S and 76C/S have the same basemap. The 76 will only route you city-to-city as well. Gotta give up the money for the detailed maps - no way around it. Not true, the 76C has this, Americas Autoroute Basemap: This basemap comes factory installed with the BMW Motorcycles Navigator, StreetPilot III, StreetPilot 2610, StreetPilot 2620, StreetPilot 2650, StreetPilot 2660, GPS V, GPSMAP 196, GPSMAP 276C, GPSMAP 296, GPSMAP 76C, GPSMAP 76CS, and Quest. Garmin mapping units come with built-in, permanent basemaps that cannot be altered. These basemaps come in a variety of global designations (i.e., Atlantic basemap). Please see your local dealer when purchasing a Garmin mapping unit to ensure that you are purchasing one with a basemap that's appropriate for your location and needs. Factory-installed basemaps cannot be altered. The Americas Routable basemap includes the United States, Alaska, Canada, Mexico, and Central and South America, and covers an area from W180 to W30 Longitude, S60 to N72 Latitude. Also included is a high-level worldwide map with political boundaries and major cities. standard map coverage includes: Oceans, rivers, and lakes (greater than 30 sq. miles) Principal cities and a small amount of smaller cities and towns Major interstates and principal highways Political boundaries (state and international borders) Railroads Major Airports A. United States - In addition to the standard map coverage, it also includes: Small lakes, major streams, and rivers Principal urban areas (including Alaska and Hawaii) National- and State-level roads Many local roads in or near urban areas More detailed coastline Airports A database of exits for the Federal Interstate highway system. This includes many businesses within about ¼ mile of the exit, including: restaurants, diesel/gas, hotels/lodging, overnight RV parking, dumps, campgrounds, truckstops, medical facilities, shopping and outlet malls, ATMs, and many more attractions. Tide stations B. Alaska - In addition to the standard map coverage, it also includes: National- and State-level roads, plus some local roads in or near urban areas Lakes greater than 5 square miles Small cities and towns Tide stations C. Canada - In addition to the standard map coverage, it also includes: Lakes greater than 5 square miles (Southern Canada) Lakes greater than 10 square miles (Central Canada) D. Mexico, Central and South America Standard Map Coverage while the 60C has this, Detailed basemap with general map data, including highways, major roads, river, lakes, and borders

Here's mine.... 1993 BMW R100GS. Great for caching, benchmark hunting, and daily driving. - Kewaneh