laminated replica of geocoins being released

[GregsonVaux]

My feeling is that laminated paper proxies are an embarrassment. It is like going to a birthday party and the person serves really low quality food and you know they could do better. Releasing a coin into the wild is a social act. You are asking members of the community to help you by moving the coin. We all know that coins are a pleasure, because most of us collect them and they are close relatives to dragon treasure or pirate booty that show up in literature and movies. Since a very young age, we have all held the belief that a well made coin contains a magic that the dwarves craved and we crave too. Holding a coin is holding something with substance and value. The paper copy is a cheap imitation and to serve it to the community is to insult them. Polite people will ignore the birthday host that serves substandard food or the person who hands out paper copies and asks us to move them along.

 

I know that coins go missing, which is why I looked for bargains on ebay. I found some really cool looking coins that I bought for $3 each. I contacted the seller and bought four different style of coins. In total, I bought 60 coins. I have released 20 so far and will release the rest over the next year. I know that many will go missing, but I know that some will travel far. A number have already crossed the Atlantic and the Pacific.

 

Gregson

 

I just grapped a geocoin today, but in fact it is just a laminated replica / photocopy of the geocoin.

 

the owner wants me to treat is as a normal geocoin, as they have the 'real coin' with them and never released it.

 

It is a Doppelgänger not a real geocoin.

 

I'll release it but it seems the owner has 30+ other coins and does the same for them all

 

Somthing about this just feels wrong.

Edited September 30, 2010 by GregsonVaux

[+Pokerfart]

Wow, thanks for all the great feedback. In short some think that proxies are fine and others think they are not. It weird how this simple aspect generate such passion among some folks. I had some private messages from those telling me they HATE these proxies so much that when they find them they destroy them. I also had people go stalwartly negative on me in support of the proxies.

 

All and all, I would tell many of you to relax – try the decaffeinated, perhaps take some time off and go for a walk in the woods. In the end this is a game and it’s for fun, chill out.

 

I’ll sum up my feelings:

 

Personally I don’t like copies of geocoin and won’t move them. I don’t feel like I have seen/experienced the actual coin so don’t want it in my logs. However, a proxies that is a replacement of a released but lost I think is okay.

 

If you are one of those that destroy proxies, please don’t do that. Just please ignore them.

 

If you release proxies, I think you are missing out. Yes you may lose you coin but that’s part of the fun is the mystery of releasing something in to the world watching and hoping. However, if you choose to release proxies – Will you please mark on the item’s travel page that it is a proxy? In fact in the title calling it a “Proxy of ....” would be great. That will help the group that wish’s to avoid these, avoid them.

Edited September 30, 2010 by Pokerfart

[+G & C]

I had some private messages from those telling me they HATE these proxies so much that when they find them they destroy them.

 

You need to report these folks, ASAP. No, I'm not kidding.

[GregsonVaux]

Hmmmm, you raise a legal and moral issue here that might not be clear. What is the value of the proxy and does it have the same status as the original? Could a proxy be traded for a plastic dinosaur and then removed from circulation by the trader? I would never do this, but you are treating this as a breaking of Groundspeak rules and I am not sure that it is. Taking a geocoin out of circulation or a travel bug tag is a definite violation, but the proxy is not offocial and has not been approved. It is a token that represents something real. If anything, Groundspeak might see the use of the proxy as violation of tracking number rules. Perhaps the proxy placer would be in the wrong.

 

I really do not know how this relates to policy. My own instinct is to just leave the things and move on to greener pastures.

 

Gregson

 

I had some private messages from those telling me they HATE these proxies so much that when they find them they destroy them.

 

You need to report these folks, ASAP. No, I'm not kidding.

[RedShoesGirl]

I know that coins go missing, which is why I looked for bargains on ebay. I found some really cool looking coins that I bought for $3 each. I contacted the seller and bought four different style of coins. In total, I bought 60 coins. I have released 20 so far and will release the rest over the next year. I know that many will go missing, but I know that some will travel far. A number have already crossed the Atlantic and the Pacific.

 

that's very nice - if one has the money to spend on coins to basically give away to someone else. if i want to donate a coin to the next finder, then i put an unactivated coin in a cache with a note saying it is swag. i no longer have the $$ to do that.

 

so if you want to spend about $90 on coins that most will go missing, then that is great. thieves think it is great too.

 

i do think coin thieves are not necessarily coin collectors. just people who see something cool and decide to take it without thinking it is stealing. of course, i could be totally wrong on that assumption.

Edited September 30, 2010 by RedShoesGirl

[GregsonVaux]

I'm receptive to your point. However, I chose the birthday party analogy on purpose. When we throw a party, we know that the cake will be eaten and we will never recover those costs. In addition, some people whom you invite might not even like you. We invite tham anyway because it makes life smoother. Besides, I know that I have at times been treated better than I deserved and it made me a better person.

 

Our base assumption in life must be that most people are good, otherwise we descend into paranoia. On the other hand, we must be realistic and know that some people are unable or unwilling to do the right thing. Before I started putting coins into caches, I did some research and found that some coins went missing and others succeeded in going on long journeys. I decided to take the risk and dealing with other people is always risky. If we stop trusting people, our lives become very lonely. The way I see it, geocaching is a social activity and that means we are dealing with people and all of their weaknesses.

 

You mention spending $90 and having some of it disappear. Ask yourself this, what do you spend $90 on and how much does it get you? I used to operate a lottery machine and sell cigarettes as an after-school job in high school. I saw many people without much money spending much more than $90 on what I consider to be vices and what did they get in return? They would say that they got some happiness that might not last, but still real happiness. I spent $180 on sixty coins and in return I get a lot. I have been placing coins on a regular basis and it is taking much longer than I expected to get rid of them. I still have a huge pile next to my computer. I also get years of reading about their stories and travels. I am enjoying reading about one in Australia and another in the Czech Republic. I hope some make it to China.

 

Getting back to the thieves, they are cursed. Every religion and system of ethics has the following concept:

Karma

Those who live by the sword die by the sword

Casting bread on the water

Justice

Eye for an eye

What goes around comes around

Etc.

 

Those who hold ill gotten geocoins will wonder why their lives are not what they should be. Their only hope is to return the geocoin to a convenient cache and log them back in.

 

 

I know that coins go missing, which is why I looked for bargains on ebay. I found some really cool looking coins that I bought for $3 each. I contacted the seller and bought four different style of coins. In total, I bought 60 coins. I have released 20 so far and will release the rest over the next year. I know that many will go missing, but I know that some will travel far. A number have already crossed the Atlantic and the Pacific.

 

that's very nice - if one has the money to spend on coins to basically give away to someone else. if i want to donate a coin to the next finder, then i put an unactivated coin in a cache with a note saying it is swag. i no longer have the $$ to do that.

 

so if you want to spend about $90 on coins that most will go missing, then that is great. thieves think it is great too.

 

i do think coin thieves are not necessarily coin collectors. just people who see something cool and decide to take it without thinking it is stealing. of course, i could be totally wrong on that assumption.

[GregsonVaux]

 

 

if i want to donate a coin to the next finder, then i put an unactivated coin in a cache with a note saying it is swag. i no longer have the $$ to do that.

 

 

Actually I did do that. My FTF prize for one of my caches was an unactivated geocoin along with the activation code.

 

Why do I do this? Same reason that I had children. I want to live in a beautiful world full of magic and wonder. I know that our world falls short and I know that too many caches are just tupperware containers will of plastic junk. I want to live in a world where exciting things are found in unexpected places and I have the power to create that world if even in very small measures.

 

I was at the gym at work about five years ago and some people in another division were talking about the picnic they were going to have and I felt it was so unfair that we didn't have picnics where I worked. It hit me like a bat to the head that it was my duty to create the world that I wanted. When I got started in caching, I was very disappointed in the caches and swag that I found. I decided to change that as I was able. My motto is no plastic junk in caches. By the way, don't get me wrong about plastic, when used well it can be great stuff.

 

Gregson

[+G & C]

GregsonVaux... releasing geocoins with the EXPECTATION that they're going to be stolen, and continuing to do so after they do get stolen, just doesn't make sense. If that's your "beautiful world full of magic and wonder", my definition of the same thing is vastly different.

[GregsonVaux]

GregsonVaux... releasing geocoins with the EXPECTATION that they're going to be stolen, and continuing to do so after they do get stolen, just doesn't make sense. If that's your "beautiful world full of magic and wonder", my definition of the same thing is vastly different.

 

No, That's not what I meant. I try to focus on what will go right and not what can go wrong. I know that some coins will be stolen, but many, if not most, will have great adventures and I will be able to tag along. It is also nice to know that people get get to find a cool coin. In everything we do, some things can and will go wrong. When we look at what will go right with the knowledge that some things will go wrong, we can move forward boldly.

 

Gregson

Edited October 1, 2010 by GregsonVaux

[+mynetdude]

Looks like someone beat me to the punch, I found my first laminated "coin" I am not entirely impressed. I am still new to caching despite my registration in 2006.

 

PERSONALLY: Laminated copies/whatnot cheapen the experience, a coin is a piece of wood or metal (and some other hard materials sometimes) not a piece of paper with a photo slapped on it.

 

I do realize that geocoins come in variety of sizes, but my laminated "geocoin" that the owner still has the REAL thing has never set foot in a cache is SO big you couldn't put this geocoin in a cache where this coin might arbitrarily fit thus the chapness of the deal.

 

Proxy coins? This is the first I have heard of it, do I think its a good idea? I don't know, is it better than a laminated coin? In my eyes, not really, all you're doing is putting your geocoin number on another item as does the laminated paper coin .

 

Do I understand the reason for proxies or virtual coins, whatever.... etc etc etc etc? Yes, its a shame people do not have respect to not take what isn't theirs and to play the game correctly (which is why we need more rules IMHO, can't police ourselves can't play right, then Groundspeak should step in, its only logical).

 

My coin collection has gotten rather large quickly for being a newbie, I buy 2-4 copies of the same coin, sure the coin tracking numbers are not the same but at least I have the same coin. For coins I only have one of, I have no intention of releasing at this point; I don't think laminates or proxies should be allowed.

 

If a TB or GC gets stolen/lost/abandoned/trashed/whatever then IMHO the owner should archive it. Do I have to move a proxy? Nope, Do I have to move a laminated? Nope if you guys want to play that way, be my guest I ain't going to stop you; but it seems the majority of us want to play how it was intended the REAL thing not a fake piece of paper I am about to PULVERIZE and FWIW I had no idea it was a copy, until I saw it and I didn't know what to make of it so I brought it with me.

 

Had I read/known about this... I wouldn't be writing nonetheless have one in my possession. I am not a purist, but this does not sound like the way the game was meant to be played.

[RedShoesGirl]

...I am not a purist, but this does not sound like the way the game was meant to be played.

 

the game was also not designed to be played with micros and nanos. guidelines for "small" were smallish tupperware containers. then someone decided a film canister would be fun. (NOT!) now there is the huge proliferation of useless micro caches and geocaching has become less about "caches." but i digress.

 

fwiw, a laminated coin/paper/piece of cardboard is a proxie. proxie/proxy is anything in place of the original item.

 

this discussion is still about how people want to play the game. it is up to the individual.

 

Yes, its a shame people do not have respect to not take what isn't theirs and to play the game correctly (which is why we need more rules IMHO, can't police ourselves can't play right, then Groundspeak should step in, its only logical).

 

and how do you suggest that happen? what rule can be enforced against thieves? if those people wanted to play by the rules, they wouldn't be stealing coins in the first place!

 

rsg

[+mynetdude]

Then I suppose the next thing one might say "learn to adapt" so I guess I should learn to accept proxies, micros, nanos, etc

 

I dunno... but I foresee us cachers having to wade through a ton of laminated coins in the future just to get to the logs, swag, real coins, etc

 

I will move this laminate, but this is it... I prefer the real thing. What is the fun of not being able to see the intricate details of a coin?

 

thieves steal caches not just coins, so I guess we shall adapt.

[+G & C]

I dunno... but I foresee us cachers having to wade through a ton of laminated coins in the future just to get to the logs, swag, real coins, etc

 

If this hasn't happened by now, it's not going to happen in the foreseeable future. It has no more chance of happening than does having to wade through a mountain of real geocoins and travel bugs to get to logs, swag, and proxies.

 

I will move this laminate, but this is it... I prefer the real thing. What is the fun of not being able to see the intricate details of a coin?

 

Cool. Leave them be. I move anything that is headed in a direction that I'm traveling. I take pictures for folks of whatever is around when I move them. I tell stories. I give details. Heck, I give nation wide tours to some coins when people email me and ask me to and I'm headed somewhere interesting.

 

Point being: some of us don't just do it to see the coins. Go buy some if that's what you're after. Some people like to collect icons (I like to collect icons), some people like to make friends (I like to make friends through trackables), and some like to see the coins themselves (yep, I like this too). But not at the expense of making it "illegal" for people to spend their own hard earned money on a coin, and then not have their choice of what to do with it, like so many people seem to be eager to do lately.

[+Zwack_&_Irish_Eyes]

...but it seems the majority of us want to play how it was intended the REAL thing not a fake piece of paper I am about to PULVERIZE and ...

 

So, because you disagree with someone else's choice then rather than just toss the "fake piece of paper" in a cache you are going to destroy it. If you find a cache that you don't like do you destroy that too?

 

By the way how do you make a fake piece of paper?

 

Z.

[+G & C]

Huh. I hadn't read THAT quote from mynetdude before your post, Zwack. I think his perception of "the majority" must be off. Just another poor, misguided geocacher who wants things to be his way, or no way at all. Lame.

 

Luckily those seem to be few and far between, at least in my travels anyway.

[+Roguefinder]

My take on the subject is this. We all play differently. Do I feel that the actual coin should be sent yes. Do I feel that it is better to hold a coin in your hand and admire it than a piece of paper with an image of that coin, yes. Will I send actual coins I ahve purchased into the wild, and not as proxies, yes.

 

However, having recently attended my first event, and having aquired a lackey coin from it, I have to say there are coins that I will not sent into the wild. And yes, I agree that I can just keep it in my collection and share it at the events I go to. However, There is also the fact that I had no idea the lackey coins existed. It's not that it is an exceptionally well crafted coin, nor is it got a pretty design or shape, or material it is crafted from. It is the concept of the coin and what it represents that I find interesting.

 

I think it would be alright to send a proxy of such a coin, so that other cachers have the chance to learn of their existance, and to endevor to somehow acquire one of there own as well. It was the "Oh, that's a cool idea" factor that I can share through the proxy without having to risk never seeing a coin that means a bit too me.

[+fox-and-the-hound]

I get a laugh at anyone who calls a proxy "not a REAL trackable" Really? Didn't notice a tracking number on it? Never logged one of the thousands of trackable TravelBug Tags that aren't actually attached to the item bearing the tracking number before? Never seen tshirts, cars, and other fun items bearing a tracking number? The point is there are an infinite number of ways to use a tracking number and it's none of your business how someone else uses theirs. In fact if you want to get technical about it, the only thing "real" about a trackable is the number, which by the way, is nothing more than an insubstantial number floating in cyberspace.

 

Who are you to decide for someone else how they play the game? Don't want to move it? Then don't. Don't want to log it? Then don't. Don't want people telling you how to live your life and play the game... then don't.

 

edit for grammar

Edited November 15, 2010 by fox-and-the-hound

[hungry4danish]

The only gripe I have about geocaching is when the anonymity makes it possible for people to find a great looking geocoin and then keep it for themselves! Part of the fun of the game is to pass it on and see where else it goes! Now if I found a laminated piece of paper with a picture of the geocoin on it I'd definitely feel swindled! Owning one coin I might be able to understand this, but if the owner has 30 coins all like this they need to physically let some go out into the world to travel.

 

I understand the owner's apprehension about it getting taken, as I feel the same way with great coins I pass on so I just take pictures to remember them by and then post them on http://thebestgeocoins.tumblr.com/

[+G & C]

The only gripe I have about geocaching is when the anonymity makes it possible for people to find a great looking geocoin and then keep it for themselves!

 

Do you not see the irony in this part of your post?

 

The reason people release proxies is EXACTLY for the reason you posted above. Only THEY get to keep the coin that THEY paid money for, as opposed to someone else who just decides they want it somewhere down the road.

[RedShoesGirl]

...but if the owner has 30 coins all like this they need to physically let some go out into the world to travel.

...

 

this kind of statement just rankles. who on earth are you to tell someone they NEED to physically release a coin, probably not to travel much, just to get stolen? yes, there are still travelers out there, but personally i have moved three - and then they disappeared. there have been countless caches where coins are supposed to be, but weren't there by the time i visited.

 

i collect coins as a collector, not as one who releases them. and if i had 30 of one kind, i.e. my personal coin, i would use those as traders and still not release them.

 

i see from your profile, you have found 6 coins and own none that are activated and travelling and have three forum posts.

 

tell you what, you release a boatload of coins and then see if your opinion changes on the "necessity" of releasing them. and how crappy people feel when one of their coins goes missing.

 

and try not to tell others how to enjoy the hobby of coin collecting. which has gone way past geocaching.

 

rsg

[+3idahospuds]

Found one of these "proxy" coins in a cache today. Frankly, I think its ridiculous. I understand not wanting to lose an expensive coin, and thats just fine- hang on to it. I have a couple myself that I wouldnt want to part with. But expecting the rest of us to transport a cheap piece of paper for you so you can claim your coin has traveled is LYING. I wont do it, I just leave them and to be honest, I know a few cachers who will just trash them. Think about it- why do you care if a stupid piece of laminated paper travels around? It just feels very cheap to me.

[+G & C]

Found one of these "proxy" coins in a cache today. Frankly, I think its ridiculous. I understand not wanting to lose an expensive coin, and thats just fine- hang on to it. I have a couple myself that I wouldnt want to part with. But expecting the rest of us to transport a cheap piece of paper for you so you can claim your coin has traveled is LYING. I wont do it, I just leave them and to be honest, I know a few cachers who will just trash them. Think about it- why do you care if a stupid piece of laminated paper travels around? It just feels very cheap to me.

 

lol, lying? Okie dokie... Just do everyone a favor and leave the paper coins be.

 

I can't even begin to imagine why someone would get so amped up over something so meaningless. If your day is made or broke based on the reality of a coin, or the virtuality of a coin found in a geocache, you probably have some deep seeded life issues that should be worked on. Best you spend your time working on those rather than geocaching.

[+goosefraba1]

Found one of these "proxy" coins in a cache today. Frankly, I think its ridiculous. I understand not wanting to lose an expensive coin, and thats just fine- hang on to it. I have a couple myself that I wouldnt want to part with. But expecting the rest of us to transport a cheap piece of paper for you so you can claim your coin has traveled is LYING. I wont do it, I just leave them and to be honest, I know a few cachers who will just trash them. Think about it- why do you care if a stupid piece of laminated paper travels around? It just feels very cheap to me.

 

lol, lying? Okie dokie... Just do everyone a favor and leave the paper coins be.

 

I can't even begin to imagine why someone would get so amped up over something so meaningless. If your day is made or broke based on the reality of a coin, or the virtuality of a coin found in a geocache, you probably have some deep seeded life issues that should be worked on. Best you spend your time working on those rather than geocaching.

 

A proxie is no form of lying IF it is labeled as such on the coins page. The few that I have found clearly stated on the coin description and heading that it is was a copy/proxy. How would that be lying? Personally, I have released a couple of copies of my coins.... TOL and Gardengorilla personal. I doubt that few "regular" cachers will ever find/see either of these coins. Would it be less beneficial for them to see a copy of the coin than none at all? Could they have collected those icons otherwise? I think not.

 

It has been my personal experience that copied coins don't make it far either. I'm debating on maybe using the tracking numbers of some of my coins more in a TB kind of way. Maybe getting a cheap dogtag... engraving it with a coin tracking #.... then attaching it to a related item. We will see. In the meantime, I try to release at least one real coin, albeit a lesser in value coin, into the wild every 6 months or so. Normally by that time the previously released coin is already lost/stolen.

[+Swansea Jack]

Can't believe all the fuss TBH

 

I've come up with the perfect soloution... If you dont like Proxy's don't take them!! simple realy, but if you intend to destroy them as stated in other posts then your no better than the tosspots that trash or steal cache's... at the end of the day its a game!

 

And what will i be doing with my coins...well they will be staying with me, they can visit cache's i go to and when i die i'm gona have my two fave ones, put one on each eye, the others i'll pile into a ammo tin as a hoard and a just for s***s n giggles i'll bang a few laminated proxy's in as well, then in a billion years time i'll be dug up and caching will have been long forgotten and they'll put me in some museum trying to interpret the meaning of the South Wales Hoard!! WINNING

[+fox-and-the-hound]

The only gripe I have about geocaching is when the anonymity makes it possible for people to find a great looking geocoin and then keep it for themselves! Part of the fun of the game is to pass it on and see where else it goes! Now if I found a laminated piece of paper with a picture of the geocoin on it I'd definitely feel swindled! Owning one coin I might be able to understand this, but if the owner has 30 coins all like this they need to physically let some go out into the world to travel.

 

LOL! These statements really raise my eyebrows because I'm seriously considering replacing the 30+ of my trackable coins with proxies now that they're stolen/missing. My real ones I let go out into the world to travel and now they're gone. Maybe forever. So I did what you asked, do you still have a gripe? I know I feel swindled, but since I did pay for the coin and I did pay for the tracking code on it, I think it might just be my right to use my property the way I like.

[+Pokerfart]

This is one of those issues that is really low priority. I'm not a fan of proxy, but I really don't care anymore if others use them or not. Personaly, I like to get my real trackables out there, and then over time plan on finding ways to get some back or just let them travel. Yes I will lose many, but the risk is part of the excitement for me.

 

Anyway, it's just a game and we can't take it too seriously. I've grown smarter and wiser since some of my earlier posts on this subject, and everybody can play the game the way they want to play - as long as they enjoy themselfs it the important part.

Edited March 31, 2011 by Pokerfart

[+MustangJoni]

This is one of those issues that is really low priority. I'm not a fan of proxy, but I really don't care anymore if others use them or not. Personaly, I like to get my real trackables out there, and then over time plan on finding ways to get some back or just let them travel. Yes I will lose many, but the risk is part of the excitement for me.

 

Anyway, it's just a game and we can't take it too seriously. I've grown smarter and wiser since some of my earlier posts on this subject, and everybody can play the game the way they want to play - as long as they enjoy themselfs it the important part.

 

That is a great attitude!

[+G & C]

This is one of those issues that is really low priority. I'm not a fan of proxy, but I really don't care anymore if others use them or not. Personaly, I like to get my real trackables out there, and then over time plan on finding ways to get some back or just let them travel. Yes I will lose many, but the risk is part of the excitement for me.

 

Anyway, it's just a game and we can't take it too seriously. I've grown smarter and wiser since some of my earlier posts on this subject, and everybody can play the game the way they want to play - as long as they enjoy themselfs it the important part.

 

That is a great attitude!

 

Agreed. That is a great attitude.

[+TinkyTinks]

Just found this thread so here's my two penneth worth!

 

When people show me their holiday photos, I don't claim to have therefore visited them.

When I read books I don't then claim to have seen an elephant, shark, dodo or whatever is in the book.

When my friend shows me photos of cool caches she has visited, I don't claim to have found them.

When a plane or train spotter sees a photo, they don't claim to have seen the actual plane/train.

 

When I see a photo of a coin, why can I claim to have seen it, when all I have seen is a photo of a coin?

 

I like collecting the icons you get when discovering different coins, but those icons are owned by the people who make that particular coin and maybe they don't want them being given to a representation of their coin? They've paid for the icon (think it's about $150) in addition to the expense of having their coins manufactured so should they just produce photocopies in future?

 

As you've guessed I don't like or place any value on photocopies. I understand why people do it, but I don't agree with it and to me they will always be just a worthless piece of paper and not in the spirit that geocoins were intended.

[+ModelCitizen]

I have a couple of proxies out there. All of them were crafted with something of substance attached along with a fair replica of the coin. All of them were released at least 1 year after the date the real coin went missing/stolen. All of them plainly state they are proxies in the titles so no one who can read should get confused that they are hunting a real coin.

 

I'm not going to let a coin thief steal the pleasure of watching my travelers move. I've done my part, I've released the real thing and have watched it die. Now I am reviving it so I don't let the few bad apples spoil it for the rest. If you move it or discover it, you get to keep the icon. If you don't like it - sorry but it isn't up to you to decide what I do with MY travelers.

 

If you choose to move it, I thank you for helping us keep our traveler alive.

 

WOW! That's EXACTLY what I do! I always release the original geocoin into the wild first. Sometimes they last for a while and get to travel around. Other times the only geocache they visit is the one I drop them in. After the original coin has been missing for over a year I glue a high-res photo of the coin onto a washer and send it back out as a replacement for the missing original coin. The name of the trackable coin is also changed to "*COPY* of MC's LOST/STOLEN ----- Geocoin". Oh, and the original coins always make at least one skydive with me before they're released -- so do the copies. The copies don't get picked up and moved as often as the original coins, but they sure last longer!

 

Blue skies!

Model Citizen - Zero Discipline

[+fox-and-the-hound]

I have a couple of proxies out there. All of them were crafted with something of substance attached along with a fair replica of the coin. All of them were released at least 1 year after the date the real coin went missing/stolen. All of them plainly state they are proxies in the titles so no one who can read should get confused that they are hunting a real coin.

 

I'm not going to let a coin thief steal the pleasure of watching my travelers move. I've done my part, I've released the real thing and have watched it die. Now I am reviving it so I don't let the few bad apples spoil it for the rest. If you move it or discover it, you get to keep the icon. If you don't like it - sorry but it isn't up to you to decide what I do with MY travelers.

 

If you choose to move it, I thank you for helping us keep our traveler alive.

 

WOW! That's EXACTLY what I do! I always release the original geocoin into the wild first. Sometimes they last for a while and get to travel around. Other times the only geocache they visit is the one I drop them in. After the original coin has been missing for over a year I glue a high-res photo of the coin onto a washer and send it back out as a replacement for the missing original coin. The name of the trackable coin is also changed to "*COPY* of MC's LOST/STOLEN ----- Geocoin". Oh, and the original coins always make at least one skydive with me before they're released -- so do the copies. The copies don't get picked up and moved as often as the original coins, but they sure last longer!

 

Blue skies!

Model Citizen - Zero Discipline

 

This is cool! Thank you for having the faith to just throw the dice and see what happens If it weren't for you and cachers like you, I'd have probably never seen a real geocoin in the wild. Of course if I find your copy I'm going to treat like exactly what it is... a traveler

[+southern_angel]

I've just found this thread and it really got to me when I read cachers were destroying the proxies so this is my opinion...I have released new original coins in the wild. Excited about letting it go into the wild for others to discover and then get disappointed that they were stolen/lost in the wild. On some occasions I've found that some cachers were holding onto them and not letting them go and I would write to them asking them if they still have it or have they misplaced it somewhere. I was just wanting a simple answer and I would never hear anything from them. Some were giving me an attitude saying they will drop it off and never do. All I was wanting to know if they still have it or not. So, since most of my geocoins went missing I had someone to make proxies for some of my new geocoins. I thought this was a good idea that way those who wants to discover the coin and get the icon they can. NOTE...on my geocoin page it DOES say GEOCOIN PROXY. Anybody who discovers the geocoin proxies if you think it might be interesting for you to feel and touch the real coin go out and buy it. I wouldn't mind discovering any coin whether its the real coin or proxy. If I see one that gets my attention I would try to get one like it. No need in stealing someones geocoin or DESTROYING a proxy. I have seen that my proxies hasn't been moving and since I've read on here that SOME GEOCACHERS DESTROYS them when they find them well that makes me not want to share any of it anymore. Not the real geocoin and not a proxy. So, don't be surprised that you will never see anymore trackables in a geocache in the near future because of some other cachers wanting to steal them and destroy them. I will never put a geocoin in a cache unless its unactivated and I intend on letting another cacher have it. I might put a cheap geocoin and one that doesn't really mean anything to me out in the wild. If it does get stolen/lost like all the others then it really won't matter cause it didn't really mean anything to me. But, thats the only way i will ever put another geocoin out in the wild. Its unfair to the true cachers that wants to discover the trackables and that will send it on its way but theres always someone messing up something for everyone. I don't really see what all the fuss is about for proxies. If you see one log it and get the icon and if you think you might want to really "feel" the actual coin then go get yourself one. If you don't like the proxies then please leave it for someone who really cares...that is said on my geocoin page also. How would you like it if someone went to your home and destroyed something because they didn't like it or destroyed anything that was yours?

[+TheSapaFamily]

I've come across one proxy coin and I moved it along, never once did I think about destroying it just because it wasn't the original coin.

[+artican]

Ok here is my opinion on the matter,I have spent hundreds of dollars on coins and TB's and use to send them out all the time and they did well.Until i received a WDC(World Diabetes Coin) from the diabetes foundation i sent it out to spread the word of diabetes since i am a type 2 diabetic myself. It did not even get out of the first cache it was placed in and i have had others go missing. Would you like it if say you bought a car, tv, computer etc. and someone just took it, and there was nothing you could do about it. yes i like to see the actual coin and feel it but there are people out there called prates that like to steal and cheat and take things that don't belong to them, i spend my hard earned money on precious coins and to just see some of you maybe even some of you that have posted in here take them and put them in a collection of your own. Well here is a wake up call "THEY ARE NOT YOURS TO KEEP" would you guys like if a family member was kidnapped. People like myself buy certain coins to commemorate events or things in our lives and want to share it but with pirates all around that think they are funny i have a few words for you " GET A LIFE AND GET YOUR OWN COINS" stop taken others, if there were no pirates or theft of coins then there would be no need to send out proxies/copies of the coins. so to the ones who say they don't like seeing copies/proxies and want to see the real coin then stop stealing the real ones from geocachers like myself who believe in this game.