Invasion!

[+501Panda]

Hey guys, I recently got back into doing Geo Caching, now with my wife and daughter. I'm looking at starting the huge endeavor of releasing 51 trackers simultaneously for the purpose of watching each one go to a state capital (plus D.C). It will be a space invaders themed "event", where the goal will be telling the story of the invasion of America through the eyes of these bugs, and hopefully getting most of them back to base for part 2 of the invasion, each with their own story. I had a few questions, before I begin.

1) Has anything similar ever been done. Obviously not Space Invaders themed, but similar.

2) is there any way to buy tracker bugs in *BULK*. I need 51 of these guys, almost $300, and could allocate elsewhere, for other parts of the game.

3) is there any way to receive donated TBs from people not using them/no intent on using them. I know my mom still has 3 she's looking at giving me, since she won't be using them, maybe theres more idle bugs itching to go on a trip too

 

I have 1 year to get the project launched, as I am trying to get stationed in Japan, and would like the full story completed in the 3 years I'm there. If it's successful, I might even look into doing a global size invasion cache.

 

Any thoughts and ideas welcome.

[+Manville Possum]

Hey guys, I recently got back into doing Geo Caching, now with my wife and daughter. I'm looking at starting the huge endeavor of releasing 51 trackers simultaneously for the purpose of watching each one go to a state capital (plus D.C). It will be a space invaders themed "event", where the goal will be telling the story of the invasion of America through the eyes of these bugs, and hopefully getting most of them back to base for part 2 of the invasion, each with their own story. I had a few questions, before I begin.

1) Has anything similar ever been done. Obviously not Space Invaders themed, but similar.

2) is there any way to buy tracker bugs in *BULK*. I need 51 of these guys, almost $300, and could allocate elsewhere, for other parts of the game.

3) is there any way to receive donated TBs from people not using them/no intent on using them. I know my mom still has 3 she's looking at giving me, since she won't be using them, maybe theres more idle bugs itching to go on a trip too

 

I have 1 year to get the project launched, as I am trying to get stationed in Japan, and would like the full story completed in the 3 years I'm there. If it's successful, I might even look into doing a global size invasion cache.

 

Any thoughts and ideas welcome.

 

Sounds like a popular idea.

[+kunarion]

1) Has anything similar ever been done. Obviously not Space Invaders themed, but similar.

 

I've heard of similar sets of trackables, particularly for "races". One important thing for you to do, would be to ensure only one or two start in any cache. I can't suggest a lot of them (or all of them) be placed into one cache. Maybe just one or two in specially chosen caches, because if one guy takes them all, that's a lot of logs for that guy, and if they all end up together in another cache, it's the same problem. Don't put all your eggs in one basket, that kind of thing. And secure TB dogtags in a rock-solid way, to the space invader (or whatever the attachment is). Some mission info engraved on the item somehow (laser-etched?) might be good.

 

2) is there any way to buy tracker bugs in *BULK*. I need 51 of these guys, almost $300, and could allocate elsewhere, for other parts of the game.

 

A simple idea is to use Travel Bugs, and the Geocaching Shop has them for as low as $4.25 each. Last time I bought some, that was the cheapest I could find for "The Travel Bug". But keep an eye out there, and at other Geocoin shops, and you might find discontinued tags and coins, for a little less. You don't have to attach an official "tag", you could engrave tracking numbers directly onto an object. But the TB tag has the advantage of being easily identifiable as a Trackable item. Finders know what it is, or can look it up, with the info on the tag.

 

3) is there any way to receive donated TBs from people not using them/no intent on using them. I know my mom still has 3 she's looking at giving me, since she won't be using them, maybe theres more idle bugs itching to go on a trip too

 

Sure, why not . I guess you can ask around.

Edited June 7, 2017 by kunarion

[+cerberus1]

Has anything similar ever been done.

Our local caching site decided to have a race with as many members that wanted to play.

Most around a few years decided to skip it.

 

Only eight people participated, and no one had their trackable return.

Two never moved from the first cache (swiped).

IIRC, they raffled off the race prizes at an event.

 

If you have the spare cash, and aren't easily disappointed, sounds like fun, and I wish you luck.

Who knows, your idea may pan out.

[+lee737]

Sounds cool. Most will probably end up missing, but it would be fun doing it.....

 

We went to an event last weekend, and ended up with 10 tracakables that people left there to be moved on. All by experienced cachers. I had to 'grab' 6 of them from the holders as they hadn't been properly dropped off at the event. I can't fathom how people have such a problem with trackables.

[+kunarion]

We went to an event last weekend, and ended up with 10 tracakables that people left there to be moved on. All by experienced cachers. I had to 'grab' 6 of them from the holders as they hadn't been properly dropped off at the event.

I considered warning the OP to avoid "Events" as an option to send off the TBs, nor even making a special Event for that. But, except that there are a lotta TBs at an Event, the "Event" is actually not the problem that makes TBs vanish. It's the cachers.

 

I picked up twelve Trackables at an Event one time. Eight had difficult log issues. A couple still needed to be logged as dropped into a cache in Europe (then retrieved) before I could "Grab" them, or else the logs and mileage would become even wackier than they already were. These were leftovers that nocacher could figure out how to unscramble, and now I got suckered into taking them. I could simply dump them into a cache and pay it forward, but that seems worse. "Discover" trackables at an Event, don't try to take or leave any. Those trackables are in limbo, mournful shadows of what they once were, and soon to fall into a black hole and never be heard from again.

Edited June 8, 2017 by kunarion

[+lee737]

...... These were leftovers that nocacher could figure out how to unscramble, and now I got suckered into taking them. I could simply dump them into a cache and pay it forward, but that seems worse. "Discover" trackables at an Event, don't try to take or leave any. Those trackables are in limbo, mournful shadows of what they once were, and soon to fall into a black hole and never be heard from again.

 

I really don't try to unscramble trackables that have been hopelessly mislogged (often by 'experienced' cachers). If picked up at an event, if they haven't been properly dropped off at the event by the time I do my log, I just grab them from wherever they are logged as being. If found in a cache, I try and ascertain who put it there and when, and will leave the 'grab' for a day or two if it seems it has only just been left there.

 

 

[+cerberus1]

I really don't try to unscramble trackables that have been hopelessly mislogged (often by 'experienced' cachers). If picked up at an event, if they haven't been properly dropped off at the event by the time I do my log, I just grab them from wherever they are logged as being. If found in a cache, I try and ascertain who put it there and when, and will leave the 'grab' for a day or two if it seems it has only just been left there.

Little OT, but yeah, same here...

We used to, but when it's sometimes every-other one, that gets ridiculous.

Now we make sure we did everything properly, and not worry ourselves over something that has nada to do with us.

 

Last Summer I got an email from a person asking if I'd mind "regrabbing" a trackable that they forgot to drop in a cache.

It was picked up by me three months earlier, and had already passed through over a dozen others.

Guess they planned on going through the list, hoping that everyone would agree, instead of them simply losing one.

- Sheesh...