Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

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homedg
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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by homedg » 18 December 10 11:10 pm

Hey Cached, you said you probably wouldn't attend.
So Why all the questions? =;

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by MtnLioness » 18 December 10 11:13 pm

homedg wrote:Hey Cached, you said you probably wouldn't attend.
So Why all the questions? =;
=D>
:? :?

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by Cached » 18 December 10 11:32 pm

I probably won't attend at this stage - but I still could be turned around. The majority of people posting here are saying that they aren't planning to attend - there is quite a correlation between their concerns, particularly about moving camp, and their lack of intention to attend.

And as I said upfront, I am speaking for a group of friends who each feel they cannot post here for fear of the attacks that I am receiving. I do not represent a state, but a group of concerned geocachers, the majority of whom attended the last mega event. They are not all South Australian, and some do not choose to visit these forums at all.

My questions were fair and reasonable, and deserve at least partial answers. These questions could be enough to sway my, and others, participation. For me this will be a far larger expense than Wagga, as I will be living in Tasmania.

Let's keep this civil, and not get personal or silly about it. I have not appreciated the personal attacks that have surfaced here. I have not made personal attacks on anyone.

Cached

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by MtnLioness » 18 December 10 11:53 pm

Some of Your questions raise a few good aspects that may not have been thought of.

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by homedg » 19 December 10 12:16 am

So, Let me get this right. AND please correct me if I am wrong (AND please tell me how I am Wrong, I'd love to learn)

=; :^o #-o

Enough said, bring on the event.

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by The Coffee's » 19 December 10 12:33 am

Cached wrote:Before penning another reply this evening, I would like to ask:
  • How is the convoy to Tumbarumba going to be controlled? Having caravans, campervans and hordes of cars parked on the side of the road collecting caches on the way seems to be an accident waiting to happen. This is personally my main concern. For a mega, one could expect in the region of 300 vehicles.
  • What number of attendees are required for the event to proceed? We have now been told that a go/stop decision will be made in April '11. Will the event proceed regardless of mega-event status being achieved?
  • Is the proposed route to Tumbarumba caravan friendly? Can caravans be accommodated at both sites? (Acknowledging no powered sites)
  • Will there be an event geocoin minted? No mention has been made of this to my knowledge.
  • Is the Tumbarumba camping included in the fee? The information provided thus far suggests not.
  • Are dogs welcome?
Yours

Cached

I appreciate your invitation to call, Mr Coffee, but I would rather keep discussions here rather than privately.

edited to get the bullets right.
[*]1 Good question, The event is not a race and was designed for you to move at your own leisure. Yes there may be times where a few cars park but this is a good chance to meet other cachers and talk. Just like any other event, 4wd trip or a 4wd association trip it requires common sense and safe driving to suit the unfamiliar roads conditions. be it 15 vehicles or 200 with caravans it is run the same, follow the advice from the organisers and dont attempt anything stupid. One thing I find useful at 4wd events is a UHF radio to communicate with other drivers. driving with 5,000 others on the South Eastern Arterial at 8am is also an accident waiting to happen but I don't say I better not drive it today.

[*] 2 We have all the infrastructure in place but if the numbers are 100 it would not be viable financially for the participants or sponsors.

[*] 3 As far as i know you can drive a caravan in this area and i will find out if there are any restrictions on the roads in the area and how many can be accommodated for in the camp grounds

[*] 4 coins have not been discussed at this stage.

[*] 5 as per page 1 $95 Per Team Registration Includes:

Free camping for Thursday and Friday nights at the Gundagai Showground.
Your registration pack which will include the “Oz Mega Adventure “ game sheets.
Your Gundagai Tourism large gift pack.
Your coloured logoed wristband for Laurel Hill Forest Lodge.
Entry to the Easter Egg Hunt.
All Friday night entertainment.
All Saturday night entertainment
All Sunday night entertainment.
Entry to all lucky draws and special events.

so Yes.

[*] the area is listed as a state park not national so according to the law yes, it depends on the camping parks, wont dont you ring them and ask.

MY QUESTIONS TO YOU:
[*] Are you planning on attending?
[*] do you own a dog?
[*] do you own a caravan?
[*] I thought you main concern was music and too much hassle

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by The Coffee's » 19 December 10 12:41 am

Cached wrote:I probably won't attend at this stage - but I still could be turned around. The majority of people posting here are saying that they aren't planning to attend - there is quite a correlation between their concerns, particularly about moving camp, and their lack of intention to attend.

And as I said upfront, I am speaking for a group of friends who each feel they cannot post here for fear of the attacks that I am receiving. I do not represent a state, but a group of concerned geocachers, the majority of whom attended the last mega event. They are not all South Australian, and some do not choose to visit these forums at all.

My questions were fair and reasonable, and deserve at least partial answers. These questions could be enough to sway my, and others, participation. For me this will be a far larger expense than Wagga, as I will be living in Tasmania.

Let's keep this civil, and not get personal or silly about it. I have not appreciated the personal attacks that have surfaced here. I have not made personal attacks on anyone.

Cached
<p>
If they fear being attacked then maybe they need to learn a new way of suggesting things or ideas. I am not attacking you but think about it, why all the negative posts, come on offer something I can take to the committee for discussion, but dont hide behind the "fear of attack" angle. It is an event not a parliamentary private members bill in the senate.

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by homedg » 19 December 10 12:56 am

"Here Hear"
LOL
:D \:D/ :D \:D/ :D

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Richary
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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by Richary » 19 December 10 3:26 am

As regards the "convoy up the mountain" bit, Greg told me that departures would be staggered, so we didn't have 10 vans trying to park in one spot for whatever the trail intends.

As for the majority posting here saying they aren't going to attend, that is at odds with the main topic asking who would. Those who will post in the "attend" thread, those who won't will post in the "Concerns" thread. Human nature.

I see some problems which I have mentioned already, and others have brought up valid points about the relocating especially for those who require motel accomodation. In fact why not make it 2 events? One in Gundagai and one in Tumbarumba a day later - we can get 2 megas for the price of one? That solves the problem for those who don't wish to break camp, or do the run up the mountain. And solves any potential problems (if there are any) with GC having the event over 2 locations.

This thread is intended to raise concerns about the way it is being run. Feedback here from Farmers 5 and Mr Coffee indicate they are listening. Which is what the thread was intended to be. Nobody is criticising anyone for doing it, and nobody should criticise for asking questions or offering suggestions about how it could be better. There is 16 months to go, and the Committee has said they will look at doing things differently depending on feedback.

OK, it turns out here the majority on this thread at least don't like country music. That's fine, don't sit and listen and do your own socialising (I will probably join you). Taking part in any of the event, comps, country music, bonfires etc is up to you. I know I had a great time at the previous Wagga event, enjoyed meeting a lot of people and catching up with old friends from SA.

We have a huge team of people across Australia if we think about it, so if we can provide positive suggestions on how to improve the already great event planned, then lets suggest them. As has been said you can't please all of the people all of the time, so aim for what the majority wants in terms of entertainment, have things that suit those who are competitive, and others for those that aren't. If anybody can offer things that they feel will help this event go off even better than what has already been stated then contact the committee and offer them.

And thanks cached for being brave enough to put this up so people can air their concerns, with nobody needing to be flamed for their opinion.

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by Bundyrumandcoke » 19 December 10 8:00 am

We are contemplating attending this event. We are also contemplating attending the NZ event as well, and starting to work out the logistics of attending both. At Wagga, we attended in our Nissan Patrol, with roof top camper, We came via Tasmania. This trip looks like it might be a lot quicker, straight down and back again, saving the majority of our holidays for NZ. So, having said that, I only have one question. Are the roads that will be travelled on dirt, ie are they bike friendly, thats two up on a big road bike towing a trailer friendly? Like this

Image

Cheers
Bundy

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by the farmers 5 » 19 December 10 8:19 am

Thanks for the question. All the details and calculations were put in place over many months during the winter by the Committee members.
What will occur is like this. After all the Good Friday night entertainment finishes, all geocachers will retire to their tents, campervans or accommodation in caravan parks or motels etc.
If the end amount of attendees is huge ,we will delete the 3 planned stop points on the way to Tumba' for safety reasons. Safety is a high priority on the components.With everyone having different sleeping habits eg" some will sleep in and some will go early :D , teams will gradually filter out of Gundagai over the course of the whole day.
Many will want to go direct straight to the Laurel Hill. I can tell you there is not one bit of dirt road once you leave the Gundagai Showground right to your direct camping designated spot .This even includes the entrance road of 400m into the premises. :D Now, there will be a ground crew at Gundagai and one waiting your arrival at Laurel Hill. We figure alot of teams will want to cache along the way especially around Tumut and make a day of it and we even encourage that.
So, the answer to your question is ...yes. The whole trip of around 1 1/2 hours up is a good road and scenery out of this world.Thats why we selected it. :D

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by shrek4 » 19 December 10 8:43 am

The Mrs just suggested 'RV Runaway Vacation' for the movie on the big screen if you go that option :D

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0449089/

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by McAdies » 19 December 10 9:45 am

Richary wrote:
I see some problems which I have mentioned already, and others have brought up valid points about the relocating especially for those who require motel accomodation. In fact why not make it 2 events? One in Gundagai and one in Tumbarumba a day later - we can get 2 megas for the price of one? That solves the problem for those who don't wish to break camp, or do the run up the mountain. And solves any potential problems (if there are any) with GC having the event over 2 locations.
This is a great idea Richary we will be hoping the committee thinks about it too.
It might sway a few people who were concerned about the move to come and just attend one of them, or because you get 2 "MEGA" Smilies :D :D it might seem like it's worth the hassle of moving.

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by The Wackys » 19 December 10 9:56 am

Ok, so I said I would only add my 2c worth, but I'm now going to add another:

To all those who have bothered to organise such a huge event - good on you all, you make us proud!
To all those raising valid concerns - good on you all, you make us proud!
To all those jumping on the band wagon just to big note yourself and cause trouble - go jump, you're only making it harder for any resolutions to be worked through, causing angst amongst the geocaching community, and making complete idiots of yourselves!

Now I understand that I may get flamed myself for this, but I won't care as I'm not going to bother reading this thread anymore - the whole idea of even attending has been soured by a few idiots, and before anyone has a go saying I probably wasn't coming along anyway, read my original post again, it wasn't ruled out and if at all possible, I would have been coming, it just doesn't look doable for us at this point, but 18mths is a long time and things can change.

I am so sick of a few idiots thinking they have the right to railroad people for their own entertainment, it's about time they were ousted from what used to be a great community!!!

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Re: Concerns re 2012 Oz Mega.

Post by Cached » 19 December 10 10:01 am

Mr.Coffee and the Clan wrote: If they fear being attacked then maybe they need to learn a new way of suggesting things or ideas. I am not attacking you but think about it, why all the negative posts, come on offer something I can take to the committee for discussion, but dont hide behind the "fear of attack" angle. It is an event not a parliamentary private members bill in the senate.
Have you been blind to the trolls in this thread? Those on the committee have answered the questions well, but the trolls abound... I have been nothing but polite and professional in my concerns and questions, but that hasn't stopped me being flamed - how else do you suggest that I should have presented these concerns in a public forum.

They fear being attacked with good reason. I certainly have been.

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