Location
This isn't your ordinary version of a scavenger hunt and so the location should probably not be a forest, or a school's grounds or anything of that nature. Rather, because this event revolves around driving, instead of walking/running, it should probably be a group of towns that encompass anywhere near a five mile by five mile area.
Length of activity
It's pretty difficult to gauge how too short or too long would be for this particular event but we felt that the 2 hour time limit that we placed on our rendition of the event was a very suitable amount of time.
Rules
The group divides into teams and then drives around in cars videotaping solutions to a set of clues. This is not a collection event in that there are no objects to retrieve. It is not truly based on clues as one clue will not lead you to another. Rather, a clue would be "Find a gas station with the same name as an airline." and the solution would be to videotape a Delta gas station. The main objective is to videotape as many solutions as possible in the given time limit; figuring out what each clue is referring to and mapping out an efficient route from one area where you believe you can videotape a solution to another are techniques that will help you win.
Each clue has three parts that must be solved at the same location unless explicitly stated otherwise. Let's use the following clue as an example.
1. Find someone waiting for a bus.
2. Find someone who is reading a newspaper while waiting.
3. Find someone who is drinking something while waiting.
If you go to one bus stop and find a person reading a newspaper there and then go to another bus stop and find a person drinking something, your team will only be awarded 2 points, not 3. A different situation could occur with this clue.
1. Find a squirrel.
2. Find one in a tree.
3. Find one on a telephone wire.
Here, you can go to one street and film a squirrel in a tree and then go to another street and film a different squirrel on a telephone wire and be awarded all 3 points.
Read each clue carefully and understand how points will be awarded for each part. This clue shows how unique the scoring can be.
1. Film a dog.
2. Film a woman that is walking a dog.
3. Film a pooper-scooper that is being carried by a woman who is walking a dog.
If you film the third part of the clue, that gains you three points. This is because the second part of the clue builds upon the first part of the clue and the third part of the clue builds upon the second part. The following clue presents another scenario.
1. Film a punch buggy.
2. Film a punch buggy parked in someone’s driveway.
3. Film a punch buggy with a 7 in its license plate.
Solving the second part only would get you two points, solving the third part only would get you two points, and solving both the second and third parts of the clue will get you three points.
When filming a solution to any clue, the team should try to remember to state which clue they are solving. If they do not do so, the judge can rule that the video of the solution was incidental and not award the team a point.
No clues that are solved by videotaping something that is outside the established borders of the playing field gains you a point.
No clues that are solved by videotaping a member of your group performing any of the acts described in the clues gains you a point unless it is explicitly stated that a member of your group is allowed to do so.
Equipment
The two necessary components needed for this contest are two cars and two video cameras. In addition to this, everything that normally goes along with a functional video camera is needed. This includes a videotape of at least 2 hours length as well as multiple backup batteries in case any battery dies during the event. Oh yeah, and two hours worth of gas would be helpful too.
Cost
If you don't have access to two cameras, whether it be through ownership or being able to borrow them, this event is obviously very cost-prohibitive. We don't recommend that you purchase, or even steal, a camera just to hold one. Using photograph cameras is a suitable alternative, but you honestly won't get the full experience nor will you have a great video that you can watch in years to come.
In any event, if you do have two video cameras, you'll need two videotapes of at least 2 hour length, as well as one main battery and one backup battery for each camera. Depending on your resources (for example, we recommend using rechargable batteries), the cost for this event could run you anywhere from $??? on the low scale (2 fresh tapes, for posterity's sake, plus 2 hours worth of gas) to $??? on the high scale(tapes, gas, batteries, etc.).
Teams
Depending on the number of people in your group, you can have any number of teams. For our purposes, we used two teams of three since we had six participants. We feel this is a good number as each member can be assigned one of three roles: The Driver, The Clue Man, and The Video Man.
Miscellaneous information
The competition should commence after a 5 minute period in which the two teams are delivered the clues for the first time and allowed to scan through them.
Though not mandatory, it is recommended that an impartial third party write up the clues as opposed to any team member. Furthermore, it is recommended that each team get the same clues, as this is in the best interests of fairness.