Jeep Travel Bug Shenanigans

[DarbE]

I was looking at the Jeep travel bug site and noticed that there are a lot of travel bugs that appear to be moving, but when you look at their logs, they are just moving from point to point by the same person. They log it into a cache and then log it out of a cache -- all the while maintaining posession. An example of this is Jeep travel bug #3770 (Use TBH3QN to see log). This guy has had it for many months.

 

Being fairly new to Geocaching, I would love to log a YJTB for my status. Is there any reason for someone to do this? I would be outraged if I had found one early on, was tracking it's progress, and then saw someone hording it! If you are going to keep it, why fein that it's moving? Just keep it and let it become one of the M.I.A. TB's. Just a bit of a rant! Anyone have any different takes?

Edited January 28, 2005 by DarbE

[+strikeforce1]

And here I thought you had me !

Glad it was someone else!

 

I do understand your thought!

 

But, I think the only rule is to keep it moving!

Not, just to handle it once, and let it go.

 

I'm sure, many want to share in the movements.

Maybe, the last 1000 will be released someday.

Jeep On , SF1

[+Milbank]

Being fairly new to Geocaching, I would love to log a YJTB for my status. Is there any reason for someone to do this?

 

I see no reason for it.

 

I know how you feel.

 

When they first started the jeep TB's I thought for sure I would never see one in my area.

 

I was shocked when I seen two placed in a cache that was only a 1/2 hour drive from my house.

 

I had thoughts of keeping the jeep tb and logging it from cache to cache too, but then I thought how I felt when I found it.

 

I wanted to let someone else have the fun of finding there first jeep tb too so I placed it in a different cache ASAP.

 

There have not been many jeep tb's in this area and I feel good about how I played the Jeep TB.

 

I got really lucky later on and the person that was placing the jeep tb's in this area gave me one to place in a new cache I started.

 

That gave me a total of 2 jeep tb's I logged.

 

It would be nice to log another one someday.

 

Don't give up on finding one just yet.

[+souperteam]

We found one just 2 weeks into starting GCing. We were really surprised to find it and were excited for the next one to find it after we placed it in a new cache. We're hoping to see some more but yeah...people hoarding them kinda stinks.

[+tls11823]

My second TB was a Jeep. I had never heard of them before, and didn't appreciate the significance at the time. I just moved it along like any other TB. Since then I've seen so many people trying so hard to get them. I wish I had appreciated it more when I had it, but I was just happy to have a bug at all.

 

I agree that it's ridiculous that anybody would move one along without leaving it for somebody else to enjoy. If you create your own bug (car, dog, hiking stick, etc.) that's fine. But not something that was designed for everybody to pass along.

[+Mastifflover]

But, I think the only rule is to keep it moving!

Not, just to handle it once, and let it go.

 

The only rule is to keep them moving, but common courtesy says to let them go to give others a chance to log one. If you want a personal tb make one.

[+welch]

I was looking at the Jeep travel bug site and noticed that there are a lot of travel bugs that appear to be moving, but when you look at their logs, they are just moving from point to point by the same person. They log it into a cache and then log it out of a cache -- all the while maintaining posession. An example of this is Jeep travel bug #3770 (Use TBH3QN to see log). This guy has had it for many months.

 

Being fairly new to Geocaching, I would love to log a YJTB for my status. Is there any reason for someone to do this? I would be outraged if I had found one early on, was tracking it's progress, and then saw someone hording it! If you are going to keep it, why fein that it's moving? Just keep it and let it become one of the M.I.A. TB's. Just a bit of a rant! Anyone have any different takes?

Someone might log it in and out of a cache for a number of reasons. Like they made a stopover on the way to another cache closer to the goal. Or they took it to a cache, but had plans to take it elsewhere (move it east, then back west or something.) Or maybe they wanted to rake up some miles so they took it on a trip with them to Ireland, but either that wasn't part of the goal or something. Most TBs have vauge goals, just 'travel and meet'. Some owners are just happy when their TB is moving, and don't car if someone moves it to more than one cache, others are more interested in how many people the TB will come in contact with and would like people to drop it off as soon as possiable.

 

I would be annoyed if I put in the effort to move a TB a good distance toward its goal and someone picked it up and just carried around for months. But I'll leave the outrage to the traveler's owner.

 

I don't think this guy is faking the movement, if he is hes needs to be banned cause hes got hundreads of fakes all over the world. Logging a TB in and out of a cache you haven't been to, and/or the TB hasn't been in would be wrong, but if he's actually taken it there its 'ok'. If the owner likes the idea is another question.

 

Don't get wrong, I don't think some needs to hold a traveler for more than a month. Or in this case since last June (they're the only person to have touched it...). Though, its strange that they've apperently moved 150+ TBs and this is the one they latch onto .

[+pghlooking]

at least it is moving so maybe one day the cacher will grow tired of carrying something thats a game piece and just release it. There arent many in this area, and when looking at ones that were picked up i noticed something uncool. Some people had gotten a YJTB from a cache within 30 days of its release and never dropped it anywhere. They have submitted to the contest and apparently just kept it for a souviner. A shame others cant log them too.

[+Suziq]

I'm sure, many want to share in the movements.

Maybe, the last 1000 will be released someday.

Jeep On ,  SF1

These were released soon after the intial one's were. There are no more to be released. What is out there are all there is.

[+GA Cacher]

I was looking at the Jeep travel bug site and noticed that there are a lot of travel bugs that appear to be moving, but when you look at their logs, they are just moving from point to point by the same person. They log it into a cache and then log it out of a cache -- all the while maintaining posession. An example of this is Jeep travel bug #3770 (Use TBH3QN to see log). This guy has had it for many months.

 

Many cacher here in GA have a TB that they use as a personal TB. TO keep up with their miles. One even has made his car a VW Bug into a bug, complete with logo on front. Check out Blueberry TBGC14 very cool.

Unfortunatly it seems the the cacher you rfere to , who is the only person to log that jeep, has chosen to use the Jeep as his/her personal tb.

[+Kit Fox]

I was looking at the Jeep travel bug site and noticed that there are a lot of travel bugs that appear to be moving, but when you look at their logs, they are just moving from point to point by the same person.  They log it into a cache and then log it out of a cache -- all the while maintaining posession.  An example of this is Jeep travel bug #3770 (Use TBH3QN to see log).  This guy has had it for many months. 

 

Being fairly new to Geocaching, I would love to log a YJTB for my status.  Is there any reason for someone to do this?  I would be outraged if I had found one early on, was tracking it's progress, and then saw someone hording it!  If you are going to keep it, why fein that it's moving?  Just keep it and let it become one of the M.I.A. TB's.  Just a bit of a rant!  Anyone have any different takes?

I wouldn't get so aggravated about how one person moves a Jeep TB. With only three finds, you'll be bound to run into one eventually. I have only logged four Jeep TBs since August of 2004. This is with 333 cache finds.

 

Most Jeep TBs disappeared before they were logged once. The most I have held onto one Jeep was a month, and I logged it into many caches before letting it go. I even gave one to a friend of mine who had never found one, so he could log a Jeep TB.

 

I drove 30 miles one way, to retrieve Jeep TB #2995. I missed it by 8 hours. The FTF (that took the Jeep TB) didn't log the cache as soon as he got home. It took 2 months of watching that Jeep's movements before an opportunity came for me to retrieve it. I had to hike almost a 1/2 mile, over rough terrain, and on Christmas Eve, in order to finally retrieve that TB. I even got in trouble by my wife because I had to go get the Jeep.

 

I understand your feelings, but I suggest having patience.

Edited February 3, 2005 by Kit Fox

[+BilboB]

Being fairly new to Geocaching, I would love to log a YJTB for my status.

 

Trust me...status means nothing.

 

Oh, did I mention I did a little dance in the woods of New Jersey (yes there are woods in New Jersey when I found my first one). Not that big of a deal anymore to me.

[+strikeforce1]

I'm sure, many want to share in the movements.

Maybe, the last 1000 will be released someday.

Jeep On ,  SF1

These were released soon after the intial one's were. There are no more to be released. What is out there are all there is.

Hey Suziq,

I hate to break the news to you, But, Not so!

Check out here which Jeeps still haven’t been released.

JEEP Owner

If you checek the far right column, the "Zero's", mean they haven't been released, yet.

Maybe, you can coax them to release them. LOL

SF1

Edited February 4, 2005 by strikeforce1

[+Hydnckr]

Actually all the Jeeps were released, those not showing mileage simply means that they were taken as souvenirs right away and never placed in a cache.

 

Groups of cachers received 40-60 jeeps and distributed them to their members who did with them what they wished.

 

The Jeep game is all over, the prmotions are done, what's left in the wild is there for people to find if they can.

[+Suziq]

The last 1000 were given out by request. I know I got one and released it. It lived a short life and then was swallowed up. I still have hopes of seeing it come back some day.

 

The last ones were sent out in July and August. Sorry

Edited February 5, 2005 by Suziq

[+klossner]

What about people who virtually carjack a Jeep from another state? Have a look at Jeep 4x4 #4074. While it sat in Oregon cache "Riddle Me This", two people from California logged "retrieve", "grab", and "place" entries, comment "I'm just grabbing this bug to run up my jeep numbers, I'll put it right back."

 

If this were a normal travel bug, I would notify the owner and suggest they delete the entries. But jeeps don't seem to have owners.

Edited February 6, 2005 by klossner

[+CacheSafari]

What makes me aggravated is that people are not even honest about swiping them. I'd say about 75-80% of the caches in the Dallas area which currently show a Jeep TB have had them mysteriously disappear according to log comments. I have been trying to log my first Jeep find. (I'd be happy with just one find and then relocate it to another cache!) One was placed 2/5 at a cache near my house and I went out there the next morning to make an attempt at logging it. It was gone already and the cacher who dropped it was still the last person on the written log. Whether they faked dropping it off, a muggle grabbed it (doubtful), or we have a dishonest hoarding cacher on the lookout of the few remaining, I don't know. I guess my luck will pan out one day.

[+strikeforce1]

What makes me aggravated is that people are not even honest about swiping them. One was placed 2/5 at a cache near my house and I went out there the next morning to make an attempt at logging it.  It was gone already and the cacher who dropped it was still the last person on the written log.  Whether they faked dropping it off, a muggler grabbed it (doubtful), or we have a dishonest hoarding cacher on the lookout of the few remaining, I don't know.  I guess my luck will pan out one day. 

 

Yupp! It happens all the time and everywhere. Not just by you. And not just Jeeps, regular TB’s have it happen, too.

 

If they would at least log them out , then others wouldn’t waste time chasing them.

That’s what I get mad about! I actually stopped chasing tb’s because of that.

SF1

[+CacheSafari]

Yupp! It happens all the time and everywhere. Not just by you. And not just Jeeps, regular TB’s have it happen, too.

 

If they would at least log them out , then others wouldn’t waste time chasing them.

That’s what I get mad about! I actually stopped chasing tb’s because of that.

SF1

Yeah, there's a cache about 20 miles from my house which is high difficulty (canoe/island scenario) where the owner put a jeep in the cache. Only one person has successfully logged it. He said his main motivation to try it was the jeep, but he did not log that TB out. I sent him a PM to ask if the jeep is still there before I try it, but have never heard a response from him.

[+Eartha]

Yellow Jeep Travel bugs have an owner. Jeep owns them. Jeep would like to see them move along, just like any other travel bug (that's why they were given the clever keyword; "travel").

 

In the beginning, the YJTB's were to be used for a contest. You could win Jeep gear and one lucky winner would win a real Yellow Jeep car. The contest is over now. No more entries required. So, now they are normal travel bugs just like any other travel bug. If someone wants to keep a yellow jeep, well then, go to Toys R Us and visit the matchbox car section. These are not to be hoarded. No travel bug is meant for the keeping. Otherwise we'd be calling these "Bugs you paid for so someone else could steal it". Statistics showed that name was too long and not catchy enough, so travel bugs it is and send them on, please. If you need a souvenir (French for 'to remember') then take a picture. No travel bug is meant for the keeping.

 

As far as someone logging a bug in and out of caches, not letting go of it, as long as eventually they do let go of it, that's fine. As long as it's fine with the travel bug owner too. Some people keep their own travel bug in their own hands so they can keep track of their geocaching miles.

 

I guess it depends on where you live, because some Jeep TB's sit for a while without getting picked up. It must be a winter thing.

[+CacheSafari]

Yeah, there's a cache about 20 miles from my house which is high difficulty (canoe/island scenario) where the owner put a jeep in the cache.  Only one person has successfully logged it.  He said his main motivation to try it was the jeep, but he did not log that TB out.  I sent him a PM to ask if the jeep is still there before I try it, but have never heard a response from him.

Interesting conclusion to this one. Today, after the discussions here, I was determined to log at least one Jeep TB before they all fall into the Twilight Zone. I found one about 50 miles from home in a little town which did not have a great deal of hyperactive cachers like Dallas After work, I took a gamble and drove all the way out there and it paid off! I was honest and logged the TB find. I plan to find a good cache for it this weekend. Hopefully, it will stay in the wild for a little while longer. (I guess I don't have a spouse to stop me from such senseless follies...heh.)

 

What was interesting is the guy who visited the local canoe/island cache said he already had one and did not grab that one. Alas, the e-mail arrived while I was out grabbing the long distance one. Ah well, at least I have one logged now.

 

My First Jeep TB Find

[+mortaine]

One of the only Jeep TBs to show up in my area was very quickly vandalized, the tag taken off and put onto another, different, matchbox car (I want to say it was a woody station wagon, but I don't know).

 

I thought that was both (a) really stupid and lame of someone, and ( very appropriate to Santa Cruz.

 

EDIT: I found it, still in Santa Cruz here. It's a dune buggy. Still appropriate to Santa Cruz. Still the only "Jeep" TB I've seen in our county (no, I've never retrieved or logged it).

Edited February 8, 2005 by mortaine

[+1NatureMom]

Actually all the Jeeps were released, those not showing mileage simply means that they were taken as souvenirs right away and never placed in a cache.

 

Groups of cachers received 40-60 jeeps and distributed them to their members who did with them what they wished.

 

The Jeep game is all over, the prmotions are done, what's left in the wild is there for people to find if they can.

What happened? I have been wondering.

[+Eartha]

Actually all the Jeeps were released, those not showing mileage simply means that they were taken as souvenirs right away and never placed in a cache.

 

Groups of cachers received 40-60 jeeps and distributed them to their members who did with them what they wished.

 

The Jeep game is all over, the prmotions are done, what's left in the wild is there for people to find if they can.

What happened? I have been wondering.

I couldn't tell you, I've just gone to all the Yellow Jeep contest links I could find to see if a winner was announced and they alll lead back to the GC.com main page now. But I will ask, and see if there is an answer available.

[rescue557]

I have a Jeep TB. Anybody want it? I'm willing to trade for any other travel bug, Jeep or otherwise.

 

Please let me know.

 

tom@tomslatin.com

[ElementalJay]

I spent a good deal of time reading all the posts for this one. There are a few YJTBs sitting around southern Arizona and not moving. Now that the contest is over, I suspected a lot of interest in the Jeeps went away. Since I own a real Jeep YJ (red with a dead cow head on the front - see my gallery), I wanted to keep a YJTB, paint it red, and glue a little toy cow skull to it. Since I have used my Jeep to get some gnarly caches, that would be a cool tie-in souvenir to my two favorite hobbies.

 

Having read the logs, I now realize there is still sufficient interest in the YJTBs. I will keep my paint and glue to myself, and set this Jeep free in a few days. Hopefully it will stay in play.

[+CacheSafari]

I did review of all the local Jeep TBs. Of the eight or so which are listed in caches within 50 miles, looks like only maybe one is still there. The only reason I have hope for that one is that there haven't been any "no jeep" comments logged yet. The rest of the jeeps are MIA. I made an MIA comment in each of the missing jeep pages that did not already have one.

[+willcall]

I hate to say it, but it looks like it's almost the last chance to collect. Over the last month, there's been a serious decline in the number of Jeep drops in the Seattle area. Yeah, we still have some legacy postings, where the car was lifted without being logged. Still, we used to have 4-5 new Jeep caches a week (unscientific numbers, of course). Last few weeks, I think I saw 2 total. I get the sense that people now are afraid to drop any in their hands, for fear of never getting another one as their final momento. Sad, but a predictable human behavior.

[+VegasCacheHounds]

I finally got a YJTB today at lunch. I saw that someone dropped one in a cache near my work yesterday, and so I just had to see if I could get it. Luckily, it was still there, and now is in my Isuzu. As an added bonus, there was also a Geocoin, another first for me!

 

<RANT>

My only beef about this YJ is that its been painted, badly I might add, as a "tribute" to Duke. I might try and remove the paint, but if I can't I'll repaint it just out of spite Maybe I'll paint it red and silver and put a Runnin Rebel icon on it (UNLV once beat Duke to win the NCAA championship, back when UNLV had the best team money could buy).

Why do people mess these up? I saw that one of the ones out there was destroyed by being ran over by and Xterra. I think that ones completely gone now, but still, why?

 

</RANT>

 

Shannon

[+pghlooking]

how are people offering to trade them when clearly they dont own them? place it in a cache and give others the chance to log them they same as you did. this is a game and by removing the piece you dont own, for your personal collections, isn't fair to others playing the game. i have found a jeep and glad i did, but i do feel bad for others who havent and have tried. seems too many are either taking them without logging them or just never placing them back. its a shame when someone has to keep a cheap game piece instead of thinking about the game itself. on second thought, Yes i would like to trade. how about placing in the nearest cache to you and i will stop by to pick it up. Thanks

[+welch]

how are people offering to trade them when clearly they dont own them? place it in a cache and give others the chance to log them they same as you did. this is a game and by removing the piece you dont own, for your personal collections, isn't fair to others playing the game. i have found a jeep and glad i did, but i do feel bad for others who havent and have tried. seems too many are either taking them without logging them or just never placing them back. its a shame when someone has to keep a cheap game piece instead of thinking about the game itself. on second thought, Yes i would like to trade. how about placing in the nearest cache to you and i will stop by to pick it up. Thanks

Are you complaining about people that are just outright stealing them to keep?

 

or those that are stealing them to trade?

[+pghlooking]

Are you complaining about people that are just outright stealing them to keep?

 

or those that are stealing them to trade?

Both.

 

These are still TB's whether there is a contest going or not. They are not our property. They are a game piece and should remain in play. People are going to caches and taking the Jeeps and not logging their visit. This means they know what they are doing is wrong. I understand theres no cache police and everything, but for a family sport, don't these people feel a little greedy, selfish, and all around dirty for doing this?

 

As far as stealing them to trade: Stealing is wrong (see above) and then to advertise in the forums that you are looking to trade them is unreal. Look in just this post (and i have seen the same posts elsewhere in the forums) alone and you will see someone in possession of a Jeep wanting to trade it. How can you trade something you don't own? Put it in a cache and move it along. Not only are they trying to trade it but for another TB! So someone makes the trade. what happens to my cute little TB that he likes so much? it replaces the Jeep on his shelf? still not logged and to me stolen.

 

This might be more of a rant than anything from me and if so i am sorry. I thought it was suppose to be take bug, log bug, move bug, drop bug, log bug. nowhere have i ever seen keep bug but dont log so the next person will come out to that cache looking for it. But i guess some people play the game way different.

[+welch]

Both.

 

Thanks for clearing that up.

And I agree with what you said.

 

How can you trade something you don't own?

Didn't some Sioux somewhere sometime ask that too??

[+CacheSafari]

These are still TB's whether there is a contest going or not. They are not our property. They are a game piece and should remain in play.  People are going to caches and taking the Jeeps and not logging their visit. This means they know what they are doing is wrong. I understand theres no cache police and everything, but for a family sport, don't these people feel a little greedy, selfish, and all around dirty for doing this?

I believe it's not just the people taking the Jeep TBs. There are also those who feign dropping one off, just to make it look like someone took it from the cache when it doesn't turn up for the next cacher. They believe it's a way to make the evidence trail disappear. There was one guy who dropped his off at the Travel Bug Graveyard, saying he wanted to keep it. I didn't like that he was withdrawing it from the hunt, but at least he was being honest about it.

 

I totally agree that it violates the spirit of the game to not keep these in play. Jeep was good enough to manufacture 5,000 for our community hobby/sport and nowhere does it say they are gifts to individuals. In fact, each one say their mission is to meet other geocachers.

 

My rant for the day....

 

cachesafari