Is there any interest in a High stakes treasure hunt?

[Billandlisa]

, along with a few friends, have for the past few years, kicked around the idea of setting up a high stakes competition hunt in North Arkansas, with prizes hopefully, of up to $10,000.00, lots of gold coins, Certified Silver coins, Metal detectors and accessories, and of course, smaller prizes.

The high stakes portion of this would of course be proportionally higher entry fees than the smaller hunt portion would, probably with an entry fee of over $200.00.

What i am asking, is for just a simple answer to whether or not we can get enough support for such an event?

Prizes would have to be proportionate to the amount of money taken in in entry fees, but I believe with a lot of set up time and promotion, we could all have a great hunt, and a lot of great prizes could be given out.

Please answer me either on here or via email, and just let me know, and also, pass along any ideas you may have. Thanks, Bill

 

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[warsawdaddy]

I think first,we would need a little 'experience' background from you.How long have you been into mding?Would this be a seeded hunt? A $200 entry for $10,000,that's 50 entries and that doesn't cover the other prizes and expenses,therefore,you would probably need at least 150 entries.It may be duable depending on several other things,like what is 2nd and 3rd and 4th worth? You probably won't get the entries at $200 just for a shot at one large money prize.But I don't know anything about it either.Tell us who you really are and give it a shot!The term"high stakes" rather than "high stake"intriqued me,especially since it's not really an md term.

 

[SHERMANVILLE ILLINOIS]

Just not interested in "competition hunts."

Do a few with a local club, but that is more of
a club thing and no entry fee; sure I would
never pay $200 getting in one.

Just me. It's a slow hobby for me, not a race.

have a good un.................
SHERMANVILLE

 

[stoney56]

On something like this, I'd say you should have the money and prizes set up ahead of time. i.e. be prepared to invest the funds fully and then get your investment back with the entry fees. It takes about a year to properly prepare a good sized hunt, maybe a bit longer if you've never done it before. You need a good sized place to hold it, a place for those coming in to set up RV's with hook-ups, trusted people to run the prize table and collect fees paid on the day of the hunt, liability insurance, advertising, trusted hunt masters, dealer tables, concessions, etc.
I could go on and on. I've read of a hunt where they were giving away a car and when the hunt day appeared--everyone found out the car was 10 years old.
You have to think fast on your feet--also checking the hunt field for how much trash is there initially. A friend gave away a car, burying the key to it in a field with about 5,000 other keys-then when the hunt started, he found out that the field was a scrap metal area of shredded aluminum from old WWII aircraft.

 

[warsawdaddy]

You also would need to pay back in cash probably one place for every 10 entries,with the last 3 or 4 at least getting their money back.What Stoney said is true.The worst thing that could cause a riot would be for a 'friend' to stand up and say"I found the token!".Would take a heap of planning and preparation.But don't let this 'cold water' put you off.

 

[Billandlisa]

This would be a totally new concept as far as I know, it has never been done, therefore, it cant be like the traditional hunts. I have been an avid detectorist for 20 plus years, and love the hobby. As I see it there would have to be different divisions with different prizes and categories, but that is why I am asking exploratory questions to see if this is something that could be developed over the next couple of years. I have access to the land, and r.v. hookups, as well as a lot of media coverage to promote the event, should it start to take shape. I will repeat, alot of the response is geared toward the style of traditional club hunts, and since this is an absolutely non - traditional concept, it will have to be alot different, for instance, I would like to see one hunt geared toward 2 box / deep seeking machines for a cache of gold and silver, possibly a dowsing competition as well, to try and cover all aspects of the treasure hunting hobby. I think this could be a great event for alot of clubs and detectorists to come together, and for most to leave with some great rewards, as well as some new friends. It may not work, or get enough support, but if not, that is fine, we will all know. I think with media coverage, it would promote the hobby, and also inspire similar events. It will take alot of work, and a lot of planning well ahead of time, and many different people involved to insure that it is kept honest, including law enforcement, and some independently appointed overseers. I would love to hear any ideas to see if this is something that can be done, and what all of the hunters would want out of it. Thanks, Bill

 

[sumrtym]

Actually, I fail to understand why this would be any different / harder than a regular hunt. Only the entry fee / prizes are higher.

The easiest way to avoid the "cheating" inferences is if the fields are planted by people not hunting in it (trustworthy, and with proper technique / spread on targets). Then, for prizes, use copper pennies with numbers hammered (imprinted) into one side and the other side painted. Plant tons of copper pennies that are NOT numbered as well. Thus, if planting lots of silver too, if you ignore the pennies, you ignore the prize tokens. Do NOT assign numbers to the prizes before the hunt. At the awards, draw numbers for each prize. Thus, it's entirely RANDOM and you avoid accusations that the grand prize tokens were planted and told where to a hunter.

Easy.

Now if you specifically want to follow the "two-box competition", etc., that's a different matter and anything like that will of course open up accusations of cheating. There's no way around it, and why hunts of that type are NOT done.

 

[Ocean7]

nope no interest whatsoever - don't get these gigs at all.