What is to be next? Are you willing to help?

I'm still very new, but I did post an entry today for the Lonely Cache challenge that I was excited about... I love themed contests whether it's GC related or another hobby I devote time to. I would love to create/manage a contest, but my problem is that with my job, it's very hard to find the time to devote to managing a program AND go out to find caches on my own. I travel for work, so the free time I do have for caching is literally spent in the field doing just that. I might have more time in my "off season" from work, but that's only 2 and half-ish months out of the year, and is in winter when I wouldn't imagine there would be as much field activity due to cold weather. Plus, I'm not sure how everyone would feel about an "annual contest" unless the prize for winning was worth the 12 month wait to try again if you didn't win the last one.

Suggested themes I can at least recommend are... sports related to local NC/SC teams, either pro teams, semi pro, or college. Also, there could be a theme of 'FTF' for an existing cache, but for a specific cache container that has a theme relative to contest subject matter, i.e. take a picture or screenshot with timestamps of your visit and log entry that must be from or after the date the contest began... the prize itself could be a signature swag item or coin for that contest.

IDK, I'm just spitballing since the question was asked, but for what it's worth, I DO enjoy fun contests.

Back in Illinois we had a great trackable race. Whoever's trackable got the farthest in 3 months (all released on the same day) won. I'd have to look into the specific rules in more detail.

I'd be interested in some hide challenges. Best unknown/multi/letterbox/wherigo hidden in a time period, voted on by favorite points or the like. I don't know NC well enough to do a local theme, but something more general like puns or creative containers is usually fun.

A twist on a finds contest might be a hidden set of rules. A few example of caches worth different points are included in the contest rules, but the exact rules are hidden, and finders have to guess what caches would be worth the most (or solve based on the examples given).

These are a few off the top. I don't know how hectic my new work schedule would be, but if it's something I can manage remotely and not have to check on a daily basis I could manage something like these.

Final winner to be determined among the weekly winners.

I have nothing waiting in the wings.
Members have not come forward with a newly created contest.

If you have an idea. Figure it out. What are the rules? How do we play?
Present it to one or more of the Staff.
We will work with you to get your plan up and running.

In the mean time, post your questions and comments.

OK, so the theyellingmadman has brought up some statistics over the years on new hides.
I am going to bring what is normally a backroom discussion to the Rabble, you the Members.
Speak up, as a member.


Is this worth attempting?
How do we do it?
Are there rules? What are they? How do we count participation? Is there a greater goal? Are there sub-goals?
How do we do this overall?

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I was thinking of a year long project to match one of those years.
A contest that is not a contest, a goal for GCGC members to attain with or without the assistance of non-members.

Potential goal numbers:
2008 (the year the GCGC was founded) 294 cache hides
2010 (10 years ago given that this would be a 2020 project) 368 hides (Also the peak year)
These years picked for their obvious reason. Look at the stats and pick a better year.

I guess that the overall concept would be to attempt to match or exceed these numbers within one year (2020)
Which one? What counts?

We could try to match the specific cache types that were submitted that year. (see the original stats post)
We could just go for the total. We could parse it out to cache types that match previous hides.
Is there a method for scoring? 1 for 1, for type, what about new members that join during the contest/project?
Is it a contest at all or simply a GCGC Project Goal with no particular "winners".

We can always give a GCGC Medallion for Participation.
Should we have a contest within that awards the participants for a best in show? or for filling unique types? 
Penalties for exceeding the cache type entries? What if they do not last the year? How does that entry compare to those that are entered earlier or later in the year? Do they have to still be listed or does archival change things? Is there a minimum time that a cache must be active?

Just to add complication what about alternative sites? Do They count? Should there be a sub contest for them or do they not count at all?

So here you go....
This is how a contest, game, theme competition starts in the backroom.
You are a GCGC Staff Member for this Project.
How do we proceed?
What is wrong with it?
What are the potential pitfalls?
How do we score?
What is the goal?
How do members play?
What do we want in the end?
What is wrong?
How can they cheat or get around the concept?
How do we explain the game?
Can you create the rules in our general game format?
What are they?

There's a couple things to consider- would this be just Mecklenburg, or the greater GCGC area? The former is easier to track comparative stats, but it may exclude members who live farther from the city. Why would someone in Salisbury care about a Mecklenburg county contest? If you use multiple counties, how does something the new Geo-Art in Iredell factor in?

200 is an easy goal- all you need is 20 cachers hiding 10, or 10 hiding 20. I think 400 would be an amazing reach goal.

You could do ranked category scoring: whoever has the most 2020 hides in each category gets 1 point:
Overall hides, traditional, event, unknown, (other cache types), most unique months hidden, most unique days hidden (1-31), most unique towns/cities hidden.

Perhaps not a competitive goal, but objectives with a prize for ANYONE who reaches a certain tier. With last year's contest, I took an early lead, and hardly anyone competed after that first week. But if anyone who hides 50 points of caches gets a prize (say traditional=1, event=10, unknown=5, each unique month=2, etc.), everyone has a chance to succeed even when there's an upstart like me taking an early lead.

This would absolutely have to be a GCGC AREA project with or without a contest component. [Executive decision]

Forget that the stats that started this were only for Mecklenburg.
I think a good number GOAL for the project would be something simple, memorable and attainable.
365 for 2020 seems a likely goal. [not determined but I like it] It is similar to the Meck best year but more importantly has that 1 cache a day thing going for it.

Doing this within the GCGC as it is now will result in failure.
The goal would very likely not be met as 1 new cache everyday is a lot to ask from the few that generally participate even if we were able to double typical participation.
In fact if every member we currrently have suddenly participated (even those outside the GCGC area) each would have to hide 4 caches over the year to come close.

I like the category and tier divisions. That might add a competitive nature to attaining the goal whether this becomes a contest of sorts or not. [not required to be a contest, a Project Goal is sufficient]

Reaching Members and NON-MEMBERS is the challenge (more than the overall hide goal) 
We can do the usual BLAST e-mail to members. (that gets them to check in but usually doesn't prompt a lot of activity)
Twitter post (but that is primarily non-members that are not local to the GCGC area or country for that matter)
Instagram post (similar followers as on Twitter)
Facebook - that reaches more locals from what I remember but I do not have access and don't use FB at all (who among the staff was it that has access?)
Events -  Sounds good to get the word out, but members and staff would need to arrange them and promote the goal.

Involving non-members also throws in some kinks.
How are we going to keep track of the NEW caches that are part of the Goal if they do not join and let us know in the forum about those added due to the project?
This could be a bit of a membership drive as well. If they participate and post their hides in the forum we can track our progress and gain potentially active members.

Participation trophies Medallions are easy enough but actual prizes are tougher.
Promotional giveaways at events are also non-existant. [we have some cash but for what? can you find us a good promo / prize product deal?]
We do have the GCGC Banner for use at events so that we are easy to find.

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If we are to do this we have roughly a month (with lots of holiday time) to figure this out without me just slapping something together that is not what any of us want that is doomed to fail and be another dissappointment. Any individual (or group) that can pull it together is welcome to do so (subject to the wrath of the few others) if you have a concept, throw it out there. The more complete the better. Don't be afraid to get it wrong or be smacked around for missing something. You have seen (or can go look) how our contests, projects and themes are written and presented to the members. Spit out your own version and let those that are participating in this stage of development praise or slaughter it. Everything can be fixed (or made worse but you won't know until you post your concept). Don't be afraid to "go for it".  Too many times you will want to pull back and not make the call on a point that you are uncertain of. Go ahead and DO IT. Review your post,. Think of how it can be misinturpreted or mis-used and then edit it. If you miss something others will find it (or at least some of them). Incorporate what has been given, modify as you see fit, add things that have been overlooked (there are some) and give me a full blown concept of how this can be done.

What I am looking for here is a complete concept. Not an "I think this or that might work if we do that but I don't know about the other part".
Take charge.  Do this as if you are the only one here that is going to do it (You are, even if you see another post their concept before you)
Don't fret about the prizes or winners unless you have a scoring component to a contest. In that case how do you score it? We will figure out the prizes as long as you don't go nuts on awarding them.

I'm new here, so please bear with me.  Contest? How about "Top Favorite Points Collected" for geocaches found, rated by month, quarter, and year?  Or even a variation of that, "Top Favorite Points Collected" on a certain number of caches placed by GCGC members (maybe 3-6 newly created and placed geocaches at the start of the year), which would encourage quality, fun, well-created, well-maintained geocaches, which smartly in my opinion seems to be a much-promoted focus of GC HQ lately.