Teamwork cache??

[+Korichnovui]

I was reading about cache types and there's an attribute you can choose that indicates "teamwork required", something about this cache being paired up with a cache a great distance away, and needing someone at that spot to help you, and you help them, etc.

Curious, I did a search for caches around me that had the teamwork attribute. I thought there would be few so I set the radius to several hundred miles. To my surprise, I got hundreds of results. These were just ordinary caches that happened to have the "teamwork required" attribute clicked on. Nothing in the description indicated that teamwork was necessary.

What's going on here?

[+Max and 99]

I don't know if this helps, but I think one of my caches requires teamwork for safety reasons (it's important that someone hold the ladder while you climb up, or you might not be able to get down!)

Maybe I misunderstood what this attribute means.

Edited May 4, 2018 by Max and 99

[+cerberus1]

1 minute ago, Max and 99 said:

Maybe I misunderstood what this attribute means.

Yep.  Teamwork caches.

Maybe I'm unlucky in searches, but so far the "team" caches I spotted a while ago seemed to be set up  just so folks can claim a country/state they've never been to.    Haven't looked since.

[+Max and 99]

5 minutes ago, cerberus1 said:

Yep.  Teamwork caches.

Maybe I'm unlucky in searches, but so far the "team" caches I spotted a while ago seemed to be set up  just so folks can claim a country/state they've never been to.    Haven't looked since.

I sure thought when I checked that attribute it said "Teamwork required", not "Teamwork cache".  Oh well, I fixed it.

[+L0ne.R]

25 minutes ago, cerberus1 said:

Yep.  Teamwork caches.

Maybe I'm unlucky in searches, but so far the "team" caches I spotted a while ago seemed to be set up  just so folks can claim a country/state they've never been to.    Haven't looked since.

Thanks for that. I had assumed what Max assumed. 

Glad to see this in the guidelines:

Log the final

The find can only be logged by geocachers who visit the final in France.

The find can only be logged by geocachers who visit the final in Canada.

But suspect, as you indicate, that part of the rule is not usually followed. 

[+cerberus1]

15 minutes ago, Max and 99 said:

I sure thought when I checked that attribute it said "Teamwork required", not "Teamwork cache".  Oh well, I fixed it.

You're correct, but the OP asked about (in their header) "Teamwork Caches", confusing the cache with the attribute I guess.     Sometimes they come up in the  "All Nations" forums

Each teamwork cache must

• Have the Teamwork Required attribute. 
• Be owned and maintained by a local geocacher.
• Be placed in a region where there is a reasonable number of local geocachers, so there will be plenty of partners for everyone.
• Have at least one additional stage with information needed to find the partner cache.
• Have all of its stages (including posted and final coordinates) in the same area.

[+Max and 99]

1 hour ago, Korichnovui said:

I was reading about cache types and there's an attribute you can choose that indicates "teamwork required", something about this cache being paired up with a cache a great distance away, and needing someone at that spot to help you, and you help them, etc.

Curious, I did a search for caches around me that had the teamwork attribute. I thought there would be few so I set the radius to several hundred miles. To my surprise, I got hundreds of results. These were just ordinary caches that happened to have the "teamwork required" attribute clicked on. Nothing in the description indicated that teamwork was necessary.

What's going on here?

This is where I'm confused. I THOUGHT when I clicked that attribute, at the time it said "Teamwork required", but now when you click on the attribute it says "Teamwork Cache".  When did this change? Anyone know?

To summarize: I no longer see the Teamwork Required attribute, only the Teamwork Cache attribute. However, even the Geocaching 2.18 Help Center calls the attribute Teamwork Required. There's a big difference!

[+Korichnovui]

1 hour ago, Max and 99 said:

I don't know if this helps, but I think one of my caches requires teamwork for safety reasons (it's important that someone hold the ladder while you climb up, or you might not be able to get down!)

Maybe I misunderstood what this attribute means.

I figure you could use the attribute in this way, or for example if there was a gadget cache that required more than 2 hands, etc.

But yeah, there is also a teamwork cache. I had kinda thought the attribute would be specifically for that cache (like night cache or UV light required, etc) but I guess it doesn't have to be.

Now I want to make a teamwork cache! My geocaching brother lives in a different state..... And so the plotting begins!

[+Max and 99]

2 minutes ago, Korichnovui said:

I figure you could use the attribute in this way, or for example if there was a gadget cache that required more than 2 hands, etc.

But yeah, there is also a teamwork cache. I had kinda thought the attribute would be specifically for that cache (like night cache or UV light required, etc) but I guess it doesn't have to be.

Now I want to make a teamwork cache! My geocaching brother lives in a different state..... And so the plotting begins!

I would love to be involved in a Teamwork cache too! There was a request i responded to on the forums but I think they already had someone in the U.S. and I was redundant.

[+Korichnovui]

1 hour ago, Max and 99 said:

I would love to be involved in a Teamwork cache too! There was a request i responded to on the forums but I think they already had someone in the U.S. and I was redundant.

My thought was that you could write a note on the paired cache page indicating that you want to partner up with someone, and then they could contact you through the app message system. I've already written a rough draft of instructions for a teamwork cache, what do you think? --

 

 

 

This is a teamwork cache! Here is how to solve the cache:

 

1. To play, you will need someone in state X to help you. You may request a friend by writing a note on this log. Someone in X will see the note and contact you through the website message center. Now you are a team.

 

2. Go to the starting coordinates. This is stage 1. There will be a hidden container with information on how to proceed. This information is for your partner in X, not for you! It will be a projection, meaning a heading and distance. Message this information to your partner, and have your partner message the information they find at their cache’s stage 1 to you. Do not post it in a public note -- keep the information secret!

 

3. Using the projection your partner in X sent you, find stage 2. There will be a hidden container there with information on how to proceed. This information is for your partner in X, not for you! It will be coordinates to stage 3, for your partner in X. Message those coordinates to your partner in X, and they will message you the coordinates that they have found at their stage 2. Do not post it in a public note -- keep the information secret!

 

4. Find the stage 3 container from the coordinates you got from your partner’s stage 2. This is the final cache that contains the logbook.

 

Because of the multiple stages involved, it may take more than one visit to this spot to get to the final cache, depending on how active your partner is / how well the two of you cooperate. Please do not volunteer for this cache if you are not willing/able to coordinate with your partner in a timely manner! Maybe state your availability in your note requesting a partner.

 

Do not log the state X cache as a find! Only log caches where you have physically found and signed the logbook!

[+Max and 99]

Very nicely done! I love love the idea!!

[+Lynx Humble]

10 hours ago, L0ne.R said:

Thanks for that. I had assumed what Max assumed. 

Glad to see this in the guidelines:

Log the final

The find can only be logged by geocachers who visit the final in France.

The find can only be logged by geocachers who visit the final in Canada.

But suspect, as you indicate, that part of the rule is not usually followed. 

They added this in the guideline a few years back so some geocacher not aware of that change still log both cache. 

7 hours ago, Korichnovui said:

[...]

Because of the multiple stages involved, it may take more than one visit to this spot to get to the final cache, depending on how active your partner is / how well the two of you cooperate. Please do not volunteer for this cache if you are not willing/able to coordinate with your partner in a timely manner! Maybe state your availability in your note requesting a partner.

 

Do not log the state X cache as a find! Only log caches where you have physically found and signed the logbook!

IMO 3 visit to the same cache is too much because only those living nearby will do it. 

[+Isonzo Karst]

Quote: When did this change?

The edit page was redone, and the attributes moved from their own separate page as part of that process to the edit page. You want the specific date, check the announcements thread, I'm too lazy, sorry. ;-)

At that time, the attributes module improved - both in the original cache report, and for the edit page. Teamwork lost required and gained cache *.  A number of attributes had been stripped of "required" on hover text at some point. Boat, scuba, tree climbing attributes just said, "boat", "scuba", "tree climbing".  This lead to a lot use of them as if they were available facilities - like restrooms. Tons of this in Florida, where there are a lot of places to put in a boat.  I expect half my finds with the "boat required" attribute did not require a boat. 

*even for a teamwork cache, CO cannot REQUIRE teamwork, person wants to do the travel, they can. Near me in Florida a cache with  teamwork mate in Ohio. A lot of people have done it by traveling. 

[+barefootjeff]

If I recall correctly, the Teamwork Required attribute existed long before the concept of a Teamwork Cache was developed, and was often used to indicate that two or more people were needed at GZ to safely access the cache. Now that attribute seems to have been usurped, repurposed and renamed, leaving those original users out on a limb.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

12 hours ago, cerberus1 said:

Yep.  Teamwork caches.

Maybe I'm unlucky in searches, but so far the "team" caches I spotted a while ago seemed to be set up  just so folks can claim a country/state they've never been to.    Haven't looked since.

I hadn't seen that page before but it describes what I've seen as "exchange caches".  That is, two geocachers in different areas have to exchange information required to find the cache in their area.  The All Nations sub-forum has several examples of these and is used to find geocachers to partner with.  I'm sure that there are some exchange caches for which cache owners allow found it logs in both locations but all that I have seen only allow a found it logs if you've found the physical container.  

One of the more interesting "teamwork required" caches I've seen involves using a web page which requires  two or more geocachers simultaneously connecting to it from different places to reveal the final coordinates for a puzzle cache.  

[+Isonzo Karst]

My memory is exactly the opposite of yours, barefootjeff. For one thing, what are now called "teamwork caches" predate attributes ;-)  I have 3 "teamwork cache" Locationless finds, the oldest dates from 2002.   Again much too lazy to hunt for it, but I'd say the attribute arose to accommodate these kinds of 2 (or more) distant location cooperative caches. Attributes have never been well defined, just the text on the attributes page, and some special info in the help center for a few, like Beacon.  I don't know when the Teamwork caches article was added. But the notion of a teamwork cache is as old as the game.

Edited May 4, 2018 by Isonzo Karst

[+Team Christiansen]

I saw the explanation for the "Teamwork cache" in the help center. Thanks for pointing that out and now I want to try one.

But I don't understand what a "Partnership cache" is or what the difference is. Both have their individual icons, but in the list of attributes section of the help center, a teamwork cache is listed as a "condition" such as "may require swimming" or "stealth needed", but a partnership cache is listed as a "special" such as a "lost and found tour" or a "geotour".

Somebody please explain for me.

[+Team Christiansen]

Nevermind. I found it. Partnership cache is essentially a sponsored cache.

[+hzoi]

Teamwork required isn't just for international partner caches.

 

Apparently I missed my chance to go for this cache, so I don't know how it was executed,* but per the description, it required a team of at least three people to find it, two apparently hunting in different locations at the same time and the third using info the away teams found to get the final coordinates.

 

*Given the amount of favorite points, I presume it was executed pretty darn well.

[+GeoElmo6000]

I mark my events as "teamwork required", because the last thing I want to see at an event is someone feeling left out.

[+briansnat]

On 5/4/2018 at 8:29 AM, barefootjeff said:

If I recall correctly, the Teamwork Required attribute existed long before the concept of a Teamwork Cache was developed, and was often used to indicate that two or more people were needed at GZ to safely access the cache. Now that attribute seems to have been usurped, repurposed and renamed, leaving those original users out on a limb.

I placed a teamwork cache with two out of state cachers in 2005.  Mine certainly wasn't the first and I don't think attributes even existed back then. 

[+Team Christiansen]

Bumping this thread as I would like to solicit partners from other states or provinces to create teamwork caches.

Back when this thread was active, I had a cache ready and thought I had a partner on the east coast. But he has since fallen silent for the last couple months while I was waiting for final details to submit for review.

Anyone, please let me know if you are interested.

[+briansnat]

8 hours ago, Team Christiansen said:

Bumping this thread as I would like to solicit partners from other states or provinces to create teamwork caches.

Back when this thread was active, I had a cache ready and thought I had a partner on the east coast. But he has since fallen silent for the last couple months while I was waiting for final details to submit for review.

Anyone, please let me know if you are interested.

You might be better off posting this in the general geocaching forum https://forums.geocaching.com/GC/index.php?/forum/6-geocaching-topics
This forum is meant for novice cachers who are looking for help and may not be ready for such a concept. You will probably find a better response in the general forum

.

Edited July 25, 2018 by briansnat

[+Max and 99]

10 hours ago, Team Christiansen said:

Bumping this thread as I would like to solicit partners from other states or provinces to create teamwork caches.

Back when this thread was active, I had a cache ready and thought I had a partner on the east coast. But he has since fallen silent for the last couple months while I was waiting for final details to submit for review.

Anyone, please let me know if you are interested.

I'm game. Just fyi. Oklahoma.

[+Team Christiansen]

54 minutes ago, Max and 99 said:

I'm game. Just fyi. Oklahoma.

Thanks. I'll PM you.

[+Team Christiansen]

Since this forum topic started, I have created two of these caches and am having a lot of fun with them, especially hearing from our local cachers -- lots of PMs on message center. I initially took @Korichnovui's proposed description and tweaked it. See GC7P829 and GC7VJEW as examples. My partners @Max & 99 from Oklahoma and @J Grouchy from Georgia have been great to work with.

 

Both caches have come with some challenges. When my first published, the abondoned building at Stage 1 which provided answers to a puzzle had been demolished. While both Oklahoma and Utah cachers were put on hold, I had to hurry and come up with a nearby item to provide answers for an updated puzzle. Fortunately, the cachers were put off only for hours.

 

The second cache was more difficult. On my first cache, one reviewer recogizing what these caches were, reached out to the other reviewer so that when the second reviewer was ready, the first would publish both cache. I had assumed that would happen on the new cache. But the first reviewer went ahead and published almost immediately without coordinating with the other. The second reviewer, understandably, had life events that got in the way, such as a funeral and more. It was two weeks before the second cache was published, all the while, Utah cachers that knew a cache was coming, as well as Georgia cachers who already had information to trade so they could find their final stage, were all anxiously waiting. But it was all fun. A couple of my local peers have found both, some are currently working on one or both, and a few are actually waiting to connect with a partner from the other locations.

 

Bottom line and lesson learned in this post is to be sure to include in a reviewers note something to the effect: "Please reach out to and coordinate with the reviewer(s) of the partner cache so that both caches can be published at the same time."

 

I am ready to create a third cache and will be looking for a new partner from somewhere other than Oklahoma or Georgia and will post a request in the solicitation topic.