A Coin Story

[+007BigD]

We all have so many coins that mean so much to us...I enjoy telling the stories of where my coins came from at events and to all I show and people understand why we do what we do a little better.

 

Some coins have great stories of how we got em whether it was an act of kindness or an extravagant journey mystery coin chase...they've got their stories and I wanna hear the bests of the best!

 

Which of your coins shares the best story of how it was aquired? Lets hear it!...Its story time!

[+intolerable]

While I'm pretty sure this won't qualify as the best of the best stories, I'll go aways :-)

 

I'd had a few 'rough days' caching wise, what started with mightyzinn taunting a very well known cacher we met on the trail leaving a FTF that they would be STF. It was all harmless but was pretty embarrassing for me.

 

Then we had a cache placement go really wrong. First, I read my notes wrong and mistook a '1' for a '7', and then found out that the cache was placed about 50ft from the final of a multi. Of course, all of this came to light *after* being published. The worst part was while making our hide, mightyzinn had actually insisted that a cache was hidden exactly where the final for the multi was, but I just kept telling him, 'no! get out of there!'

 

I was feeling sort of down in regards to caching as we were driving back from picking up our ill fated cache (which was so appropriately titled 'NotNinja!'... I was feeling *so* NotNinja!) and then came an owner alert forwarded to my phone. Moun10Bike had just logged another cache we had recently placed, but instead of him logging the puzzle cache that we placed, it said it was now a multi. Completely frustrated, we headed home, with me pretty anxious to see where I had gone wrong yet again and why the cache was now a multi and not a puzzle cache.

 

Then, right before we got home, I got a call from a local cacher asking me details about the cache Moun10Bike had just logged, apparently because he had dropped one of his 2007 Coinaments there, the first he'd put into circulation.

 

Needless to say, even mightyzinn, who is 4, knows what a Moun10Bike coin is :-) We were off before I even bothered to check the logs. We got to the park less than an hour after he logged, but it was already dark in the woods and we had a long walk. Broke out the flashlights, threw mightyzinn up on my shoulders and off we went.

 

And then the most unexpected thing happened. We totally forgot all about the Moun10Bike coin and just had one heck of a good time, mostly avoiding all the dragons, trolls and aliens that were most certainly hiding out there the beyond the beam of our flashlight. All the bad I had been feeling about caching went right out the door... it was just me and my son, avoiding the evil that lurked in the woods, trying to get to the treasure before they made off with it.

 

Of course, when we got to the cache, we remembered pretty quick why we were out in the woods in the complete dark... and we got the coin! And honestly, while I'd love to have a Moun10Bike version 1, finding this one with a picture of a father and son caching team after the great adventure I'd had with my own son, that beat finding about any other coin ever. And the coin is just a very nice reminder of the unbelievably great time I had with my son getting it.

[avroair]

Story... hmmm... I have a Buy Avroair a Beer coin, back when it was released I would bring it to events for some freebies... my favorite story concerning it was when a geocacher actually gave me a flagon of homemade mead in exchance for logging it... pretty cool. *hiccup*

[+Nochipra]

Well, when we activate a coin I always tell how we got it in the description part of the coin page. I have to say that the very first coin that came to us out of the blue as a gift was the Compass Rose coin given to us by glenn721. That coin will always be special to us because it was given by a special person.

[+fairyhoney]

While I'm pretty sure this won't qualify as the best of the best stories, I'll go aways :-)

 

I'd had a few 'rough days' caching wise, what started with mightyzinn taunting a very well known cacher we met on the trail leaving a FTF that they would be STF. It was all harmless but was pretty embarrassing for me.

 

Then we had a cache placement go really wrong. First, I read my notes wrong and mistook a '1' for a '7', and then found out that the cache was placed about 50ft from the final of a multi. Of course, all of this came to light *after* being published. The worst part was while making our hide, mightyzinn had actually insisted that a cache was hidden exactly where the final for the multi was, but I just kept telling him, 'no! get out of there!'

 

I was feeling sort of down in regards to caching as we were driving back from picking up our ill fated cache (which was so appropriately titled 'NotNinja!'... I was feeling *so* NotNinja!) and then came an owner alert forwarded to my phone. Moun10Bike had just logged another cache we had recently placed, but instead of him logging the puzzle cache that we placed, it said it was now a multi. Completely frustrated, we headed home, with me pretty anxious to see where I had gone wrong yet again and why the cache was now a multi and not a puzzle cache.

 

 

Then, right before we got home, I got a call from a local cacher asking me details about the cache Moun10Bike had just logged, apparently because he had dropped one of his 2007 Coinaments there, the first he'd put into circulation.

 

Needless to say, even mightyzinn, who is 4, knows what a Moun10Bike coin is :-) We were off before I even bothered to check the logs. We got to the park less than an hour after he logged, but it was already dark in the woods and we had a long walk. Broke out the flashlights, threw mightyzinn up on my shoulders and off we went.

 

And then the most unexpected thing happened. We totally forgot all about the Moun10Bike coin and just had one heck of a good time, mostly avoiding all the dragons, trolls and aliens that were most certainly hiding out there the beyond the beam of our flashlight. All the bad I had been feeling about caching went right out the door... it was just me and my son, avoiding the evil that lurked in the woods, trying to get to the treasure before they made off with it.

 

Of course, when we got to the cache, we remembered pretty quick why we were out in the woods in the complete dark... and we got the coin! And honestly, while I'd love to have a Moun10Bike version 1, finding this one with a picture of a father and son caching team after the great adventure I'd had with my own son, that beat finding about any other coin ever. And the coin is just a very nice reminder of the unbelievably great time I had with my son getting it.

I like what started out yuk turning to something good !

Edited December 15, 2007 by fairyhoney

[+GEO*Trailblazer 1]

Lewis and Clark

But am I pitching one of my own creations here?

 

It has everything to do with Geocaching,Geoevents,Benchmark hunting the 200th Anniversary of Lewis and Clark and many other aspects of the game.

The coins have traveled the entire route and have visited many of the caches along that route.

Hey some of yours were along too..remember.

I put out the call.

 

From the Start at Monticello to the End at Cape Disappointment.

From the Northernmost,Southernmost and Westernmost travels I have enjoyed while geocaching.

 

Now someday when the ....Geo*girls who are my granddaughters who geocache and now have started Waymarking and maybe some others want to relive were Ole Gram pa GEO*Trailblazer 1 went and what he did along with them on his travels they have a place and the history.

 

I also tried to time this creation with the 200th Anniversary and had lots of great help and support getting the project done.

This is the type of things I like to see happen within a community a good positive creation of something fun and enjoyable that lasts.

 

But I thought I would have fun and add the story anyway.

[+geocachingdragon]

My Best story is about finding a Geocoin Fairy coin. I was on a family vacation 1500 miles from home in Calgary Canada had done a few caches here and there as time would allow .Was out with the wife on the last day and we had to mail a package back home .I knew of a cache that was near by that i had been out to get earlier in the trip but was not able to do as it was in a locked building. I talked her into doing it and we found the cache with ease there were two log books one for locals and one for out of towner's. As i opened the log book i noticed a coin in side of it . It was a Geocoin fairy Version two I had no idea of it being there and never expected to find one. The odds of picking a cache not in America after a visit from the geocoin fairy visited it and to be the next visitor are astronomical so this Easily make it my most Favorite and best story for as coin.

 

Thanks again Geocoin fairy I will never forget.

[+tsunrisebey]

I'll add a little something to the mix.

 

Mystery coins are always great to get and they are in a class all by themselves

 

Outside of the Mystery coin circle; I don't have any one particular coin story but more along the lines of the people who helped me get coins.

 

For the longest time I wanted the Tombstone Justice coin and 2 people worked really hard to find me one. The first person wasn't able to get one for me but I always appreciated their effort. The 2nd person gave me a name of someone who had one that might trade me for it. In the end D@nim@l gave me his activated coin with no strings attached. I always thought it was neat how some people would go out of their way to help someone else find a coin they wanted. This was the first coin that I had actively tried to get I my collection. It took me a couple months and finally people got sick of seeing me post about it, lol.

 

There have been other coins that my friends just freely sent me when I was looking for them, I'm sure others have experienced a small circle of buddies who help each other get coins without asking for anything in return but you slowly pay each other back when the opportunity presents itself. I've really enjoyed that aspect of coins.

 

I posted in the 'Hearts Desire' thread and was fortunate to receive the 2 coins I was looking for; the crop circle coins. I never expected to get those!

 

The latest was a package from a buddy who had sent me a coin that I had totally forgot about. I had been trying for the Real World Avatar coin a few months back and couldn't find a willing trader and so I put that coin in my 'probably won't get file' and low and behold it showed up a couple days ago. Someone had remembered I was looking for it and sent it to me for Christmas, too cool!

 

As far as finding coins in caches, never found an unactivated one and the one time I got excited about a coin in a cache that wasn't listed as having a coin, it turned out to be my own personal, lol.

 

There ya have it my contribution to your thread. I know it's not 1 coin story but outside of regular trading, I find all the coins I received 'special' because of the people behind them

Edited December 15, 2007 by tsunrisebey

[+bluecherry]

I love all of my coins and I own each one for a speacial reason. However, the story I have is about getting my very first mystery coin. I went to the mail box to find an envelope and I knew I had not bought or traded anything so I'm really curious to find out what was inside. I took the envelope inside and opened it and their was a CCC. I knew nothing about mystery coins so I contacted the person whos name was on the envelope. Just like a newbie LOL Well they informed me they had nothing to do with it and it must be a mystery coin so then I look up the coin by the tracking number and strike my claim. I was so excited I had no clue about mystery coins and was really happy that someone thought of me when making their list of people to give the coin too. After recieving the coin I am better informed about mystery coin now though. So just thought I would share and once again say thank you to the person who sent me the coin.

[+Arrow One]

I went to my mailbox on a cold wintry day and there was a bubble mailer, along with assorted mail. I eagerly went into the house to see what coin had arrived, as I had done many trades.

There was no return address on the envelope, so I had no idea who it was from. I tore open the mailer and just about fainted on what was inside... a Yemon Yime!

I held it in my hands and admired every detail and then jumped up and down in my living room, scaring my dogs.

It must have been their barking that woke me up.... it was all just a dream!

Waaaaaaa!!!!!

[+007BigD]

Great stories... Its fun reading about em!!!

 

As for the mystery coins, everyone has its own story of how you got it. I have a few that accompany great stories well suited for this topic. But I must say, one of my most fondest coin memories that comes to mind was during a trade.

 

It was really late and I was browsin the forums, when "100 Evil Micro's Escape" topic shows up! Turns out Oakcoins let a few outa the bag early and I was one ofthe first to get em...I ordered 2- 5 packs each containing 1 Glow.

 

When I get back to the forum, everyone had missed out on the 5 packs within only a few minutes!!! So I felt bad about swipin 2 of em and offered one of them to the next after me...which was Team Chelmo. I was really new and didnt recognize many of the names in the forums, just thought it was fair.

We ended up trading for the glow Evil Micro and he sent me a little gift package with a DNF and pin! I was more than happy with the trade, but ever since that trade, we have been good friends that have kept in contact since.

 

It was exciting waiting for his coin to be minted, chatting back and forth often, sending a coin to travel beautifull NZ with a full picture tour by Chelmo, getting to know someone outside of the forums and what goes on in their life, and even getting emails from the kids! Not to mention all the killer NZ swag I got in special missions and just recently a NZ fairy tales book for the little one for X-mas!!!

 

Everytime I see my 2-tone Chelmo Silver Fern and I can always tell people "Yeah!!!...This ones my buddies down in NZ~It was a gift, and there's only 50 of em!" People love that coin simply because of its beauty! and I like it cause it reminds me of my first trades ever made and my first geofriends ever met as well.

 

May not be exciting, but its a coin story that stands strong in my mind outside of the mystery coin chases!

 

Edit too add: Just checked to varify and it was in fact my very first trade ever, as well as he being my first geofriend made aswell! Heres the Topic and its Feb 7th the date. I only had 27 posts!

Edited December 17, 2007 by 007BigD

[+tadpole379]

This is the story of how I got my very first geocoin...

 

Back in February of 2006 I placed a new cache in a small Town Park. There was no long hike, but there was a beautiful view of the Hudson River, and the cache itself was concealed with not your ordinary camo of sticks and rocks. I posted the listing on a Thursday night and it was published on a Saturday, just after a huge winter storm dumped 2 1/2 feet of snow on the ground. Walkin Ed, one of the local cachers went out on Saturday in all that snow to look for the cache. After poking around in the snow, he gave up and went home, and sent me an email. I wrote back and told him that the cache was perfectly accessible even with the snow. It warmed up on Sunday and the snow started to melt, so he went back on Sunday to look again. Poked around again, and finally gave up. Emailed me again for another clue. I told him he was in the right spot and don't touch the poison ivy, the cache isn't there. Finally, on the third day, he went back and he found it! He wrote me an email saying how I was right, the snow was never an issue, and the cache completely avoided the poison ivy, and how much he liked the hide. He sent me a DNF coin for my cache-hiding efforts, and because I managed to stump him for 3 days before he made the find.

[+GEO*Trailblazer 1]

Well I got a story for ya.

 

You all know how this time of year goes.

All the Holidays and things happening.

 

Sometimes we forget the True meaning of Giving.

Sometimes this is realised when it is given back to you.

 

When something from out of nowhere happens and opens your eyes to the True Spirit again.

I do not even know what the coin(s) will be yet.

And that is not what is important.

It was the thoughtfulness and kind heartedness we have all come to enjoy here in these forums over the years.

Thanks Fox and Hound for your thoughtfulness and follow through.

 

I want to wish all of you here a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Sometimes life makes unexpected turns and you can not do things like you once did.

I am one not to let others know the reasons behind my recent slow activity here.

 

Now this(ese) new arrivals will be treasured and have a great meaning for me.

 

Well I just thought I would tell ya how the Spirit of Christmas was brought to me in one way this year.

I hope this finds it's way to each and every one of you.

 

PS: Pass It Forward

[+Rockin Roddy]

All I can say is....THANK-YOU ALL!!!

 

Merry Christmas all. Happy Holidays!!

[+ScoutingWV]

I think my best coin story is about the only coin I have released that completed it's mission. Fittingly for me, it is a Hoxie Scout coin.

 

After working out a trade with Sillygirl & Jrr, I asked if they would mind releasing a coin for me to see if it would make it back home. They kindly did so and the mini-adventure began. This coin was sent to them in December 2006 and made it back in October 2007. After dropping it in a cache in Hawaii they asked if it was OK to hand it off to a friend of theirs visiting for the holidays so it could get a lift back to the mainland. No problem at all.

 

Their friend dropped it in a cache and over the next several months it moved steadily across the country. Finally it ended up at the Midwest GeoBash. I though that would be the end of it. I have see many coins get stuck in events never to be seen again. Luckily, it ended up in the hands of a cacher from my home state. A wonderful person I never would have met without this game. He picked it up and sent me a note letting me know he would be dropping it into a cache in eastern Ohio.

 

On a warm fall day a friend and I decided to go pick it up and complete it's journey. As I was researching some other caches in the area for the day I came upon a memorial cache. It was for the wife of this wonderful man who dropped my coin. She was a warm, funny, caring wife and mother. Again, I only know these folks through the game. We live too far apart to be really close friends, but it's always been good to see them and their son at regional events.

 

Sixteen people touched that coin over 9,622 miles. I got to meet several new caching friends through emails exchanged over the travels of that coin. I learned of the passing of a friend while that coin was traveling. I spent time with a friend while retrieving it and I've seen how kind people can be to just help move a chunk of metal from one container to another.

 

This coin is staying with me now. It's special.

Edited December 18, 2007 by ScoutingWV

[+SUp3rFM & Cruella]

We have some stories to share. We've done it here, before. Here's the first, when of our geocoins met one of our travelbugs on a cache, 8300km away from our home coordinates!

 

The other is for us one of the greatest stories ever. It shows a lot how many are there that are so kind. Here's the full story.

 

Those were great to live... the ones you're telling are great to read.

[+gardengorilla]

well, I'm sure it's not the BEST story but it is mine.

A couple of weeks after I started caching, I learned how to check for new caches in the area. One morning, I checked and there was one 1/2 kilometer from my house so my son and I decided today was the day for our first FTF! We ran out of the house in our jammies and drove to the site (yes drove!) and looked FOREVER! Finally, I decided to go back home leaving my son there to pretend he was a muggle and discourage another FTF 'r from trying (mean, I know). I got home, found no additional hints and went back. Finally, the light went on in my head and I found the cache fairly easily (now I know experience helps) and lo and behold! We also discovered our first coin too! It was a Copper Crake Symbology coin and we thought it was so beautiful we took it home and made a rubbing off of it. We've decided to do this since then with all of the coins we discover if it's got raised detailing. Thinking back to that happy day...that's also the day I became bit by the geocoin bug!

[+Cav Scout]

A few years ago when I lived in Washington state a friend and myself climbed a mountain to get a M10bike coin during avalanche conditions. The coin had been sitting up on the top of the mountain for a few weeks. A cacher drove all the way from Oregon the week before in attempt to get the coin. The blizzard like conditions, falling into snow up to his armpits and the threat of hypothermia kept him from getting the coin. To be honest with you I think he just was not in shape and ran out of steam to get the coin.

 

Not to be out done I gathered up my snow shoes, watched the weather and went after the coin when the conditions was right. When I reached the parking lot a mile or so from the cache I noticed snow shoe prints heading in the direction of the coin. I strapped on my snow shoes and told my friend I would meet him on the top. I did a straight line azimuth to the cache. The snow was deep but it seemed I was making good time. I also was thinking someone else was ahead of me. After about a mile into the trek I figure no one was going after the coin and it was just me and my friend. My friend was having a hard time getting to the cache, so I continued on with out him. About within 300 feet of the cache the snow became really deep. The incline must of been about 18 percent. I kept going and surprisingly I had no problem getting to the cache. Once on the top I found the ammo box with the moun10bike coin in it. My buddy stopped at about 100 feet from the cache. He was crying saying this sucks and he was not going all the way to the top. I started teasing him and said it was because he was in The Air Force and that was why he wanted to quit. With a little teasing and nudging my friend finally make it.

 

Once on top I gave him the Moun10bike coin. Needless to say he was very happy.

 

With the view, snow, and finding the cache and giving the coin to my friend made the whole trip worth while and will be something I never forget.

[+Renegade Knight]

So back in the day I invented the Redneck coin. Some dude came along though and infringed on my patent and actually built the first coin based on my patent. I didn't really know about this until I ran a cointest for my first production redneck coin that was won by Deafhunt. While in the long slow process of building this coin (you can never underestimate the craftsmanship requirments of converting a washer into a redneck coin) that same dude who shall remain nameless had the audacity to send me a custom XXLLEEE Super Ultra AE version of his coin. Worse he one upped the coin I was working on by doing a better redneck coin because of an upgrade. I was crushed. It was with great shame that I could not at least match the upgrade on the Deafhunt coin. I tried, but the upgrade just would not fit. Not even using a sledgehammer. I sent my coin off to Deafunt head hanging, but already plotting my act of one upmanship. After all that's what rednecks do best and why hospitals stay in business. Unfortunatly rednecks are not good at thinking so this redneck revenge coin may take awhile. I'm fairly sure making that coin will involve destroying something though. It just feels right to do it that way. To be continued...

Edited December 20, 2007 by Renegade Knight

[+007BigD]

So back in the day I invented the Redneck coin. Some dude came along though and infringed on my patent and actually built the first coin based on my patent. I didn't really know about this until I ran a cointest for my first production redneck coin that was won by Deafhunt. While in the long slow process of building this coin (you can never underestimate the craftsmanship requirments of converting a washer into a redneck coin) that same dude who shall remain nameless had the audacity to send me a custom XXLLEEE Super Ultra AE version of his coin. Worse he one upped the coin I was working on by doing a better redneck coin because of an upgrade. I was crushed. It was with great shame that I could not at least match the upgrade on the Deafhunt coin. I tried, but the upgrade just would not fit. Not even using a sledgehammer. I sent my coin off to Deafunt head hanging, but already plotting my act of one upmanship. After all that's what rednecks do best and why hospitals stay in business. Unfortunatly rednecks are not good at thinking so this redneck revenge coin may take awhile. I'm fairly sure making that coin will involve destroying something though. It just feels right to do it that way. To be continued...

 

Oh man...The nerve of that guy I tell ya!!!! Ill bet Deafhunt was a happy recipient of his redneck coin and has a story to share because of it, as do you with your patent infringed one upped redneck coin...only I doubt it was one upped at all!

 

PS...did you try a carbide burr, with a hi speed grinder to make a slight taper?

 

Thanks for the story and we look forward to the sequel!!!

[+007BigD]

Think I am gonna try to re-title this topic as well as change the opening statement.

 

I am sure we all have good stories to share about our coins...or at least a few of em...screw the best'est story...we just want stories!...so once again~Lets hear em!!!

 

Great stories so far, I can almost put myself in many of these situations and thats what stories are all about!!!...Thanks

[+Marpomem]

I am new to all this, so my best coin story is my only one so far! My son gave me a gorgeous coin that we named Mem's Forest Frog Geocoin. I registered it with his help, but I still am not sure what I did or what that even means! Because of its sentimentality, I will keep this one forever and will have to get another one to put in a cache.

 

All of this is sooooo exciting. I can see how y'all get addicted to the geocaching and everything involved with it.

[+007BigD]

I am new to all this, so my best coin story is my only one so far! My son gave me a gorgeous coin that we named Mem's Forest Frog Geocoin. I registered it with his help, but I still am not sure what I did or what that even means! Because of its sentimentality, I will keep this one forever and will have to get another one to put in a cache.

 

All of this is sooooo exciting. I can see how y'all get addicted to the geocaching and everything involved with it.

Your very first coin...aaaaaaaah Just you wait, you'll figure it out and when you do~Run like hell! We gotta tell all the newbies that ...but believe me there's a reason!!!!!!! Congrats and welcome to geocoins...NOW RUN!!!!-dont say we didnt warn you!!!

[+Eartha]

Title change at OP's request.