Suggestions for keeping traveller safe

[+darklighter]

More than 8 years after the first time I played this game, I'm planning to release my first trackable into the wild early next month. It's a small plush teddy bear meant to be used as a keychain. Since it's not plastic, I'm a bit nervous about keeping it dry.

 

Other than placing it in a sturdy ziplock baggie, does anyone have any suggestions about how I can keep the little guy safe?

[+kunarion]

More than 8 years after the first time I played this game, I'm planning to release my first trackable into the wild early next month. It's a small plush teddy bear meant to be used as a keychain. Since it's not plastic, I'm a bit nervous about keeping it dry.

 

Other than placing it in a sturdy ziplock baggie, does anyone have any suggestions about how I can keep the little guy safe?

Plush toys have been the most dry items I've seen in caches. I once found a little pom-pom completely clean and dry in a cache of wet rusty water, everything else soaked. Maybe the polyester allows water to evaporate.

 

It would be best if you can rivet the TB tag directly onto the teddy bear. Whatever, attach it as securely as possible.

[+Seaglass Pirates]

Agree with Kuarion

 

We have found plenty of soft toys. Always dry. Never thought about it till reading this thread. Some have been in bags and some not. Agree with attaching the tb. The only thing we remember happening to them is that the keychain which is usually cheap base metal - rusts. Keeping it safe in other ways - state on cache page not to go into events will help. Plenty of events encourage new cachers to attend. Not all TB's get logged out correctly if ever. And also include no TB hotels. Same thing.

 

You could say premium member caches only but to be honest that is a waste of time. If your toy is the size of a cup it can squash into most caches. If it's bigger it will only go in regular caches. Again it does have an effect - too big and some cachers will leave it because they know it will be harder to place out again. Too small and it will be taken by anyone and is easier to move on but also easier to lose.

 

Make sure it's not collectable in your country so it's unlikely to be lusted after by a child with a doting parent (yes they have been removed because "I just couldn't say no they had fallen in love with him I'm afraid"). Seen that reported on here a few times which is astounding.

 

Attach a clear plastic keyring that you can insert a photo in. Instead of the photo write it's mission on the paper. Use biro because printing it or using felt pen and it just leaches into a blob. This also helps cachers with a bunch of them to see what the mission is without having to load up the TB page

 

Get a spare toy. If it goes missing you have a duplicate you can send out with the copy tag. This means the TB photo you've taken will match the original or if the toy comes off the tag you could send it out to the cacher to replace on the tag. We made something for someone when their ornament went missing. We just found the tag. They were less than impressed ... you try to help and you get a wet kipper slapped round your face.

 

State geocachings rules on the TB page prominently. Keep no longer than two weeks as per geocachings rules. Unless you contact the CO for permission and you think you can help it on its mission by keeping it longer. It does get ignored ... by anyone with over 5000 finds ironically. But most newer cachers are very diligent and had no idea before reading it on the TB's page.

 

Ultimately you are dealing with the human race. There is no one size fits all thing that you can do. It is chance, educating people ... we posted the rules about having NO rules with regard to tb hotels, on a TB hotel we visted. We did this because the previous Finder to us logged it with "obviously some cachers can't count!" The previous finders have not caching long and are nice people so we stated that there is no restriction with regard to how many TB's can be kept. Because of the previous finders log. They had been misled by the instructions. Blow me if not a month later the owner posts "remember to keep at least 3 TB's at ALL times in the hotel". You just cannot prepare your TB against arrogance like that. And with the introduction of a CO being able to vanish TB's out of their own caches we cannot see the level of missing ones.

[+darklighter]

Attach a clear plastic keyring that you can insert a photo in. Instead of the photo write it's mission on the paper. Use biro because printing it or using felt pen and it just leaches into a blob. This also helps cachers with a bunch of them to see what the mission is without having to load up the TB page

 

This seems to me to be excellent advice - I would never have thought to do that.

 

(The rest of your advice, and the previous poster's, is appreciated too, but this one in particular stood out!)

[+kunarion]

Attach a clear plastic keyring that you can insert a photo in. Instead of the photo write it's mission on the paper. Use biro because printing it or using felt pen and it just leaches into a blob. This also helps cachers with a bunch of them to see what the mission is without having to load up the TB page

 

This seems to me to be excellent advice - I would never have thought to do that.

I bought a box of little acrylic key fobs, and the paper punch for them, and made some pretty nice attachments for TBs with that, with some tracking info on the back of the key fob. The covers snap into the fob, I sealed around the edges. For one, I didn't use the cover, and instead embedded small items in clear epoxy, in the space where the cover would go.

 

 

[+SoggyMoggy]

Hi Kunarion,

 

I like the idea of those - would you mind if I did something similar in the future? Am I able to purchase tracking codes anywhere so I could make my own TBs - do you recommend anywhere?

 

Thanks,

 

SoggyMoggy

[+kunarion]

I like the idea of those - would you mind if I did something similar in the future?

Thanks! Yes, you may use the idea.

 

Am I able to purchase tracking codes anywhere so I could make my own TBs - do you recommend anywhere?

I buy individual Geocoins or TB dogtags, and once bought a set of 8 for a discount. There's a pretty good deal for 8 TBs, in the Geocaching shop:

http://shop.geocaching.com/default/travel-bug.html

 

You may buy tracking codes, but they are supposed to be used for minting Geocoins, so there's an approval process and a minimum purchase:

http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.page&id=332