[Az-Geocaching] Special equipment

[Eric Quinn]

--- Terry Hernlund <thernlund@hotmail.com> wrote:
> Are you saying that you go out for 1000 caches at a
> time?

We all begin by looking at all of the caches in the
state that we haven't hit and start filtering.

> > If the ratings are consistent, and people stop
> > branching off on their own, then it becomes a lot
> > easier to search for caches.  
> 
> Agreed, but doesn't speak to my point.

I believe it does. You seem to be saying that ratings
don't matter because people should be reading the
descriptions anyway. I say they should be reading the
descriptions of caches they are interested in, not
ones they have filtered out for one reason or another.

> > Think of it this way, would you get upset if you
> went
> > to a four step multi-stage, that said you needed
> to
> > bring a calculator, with a 1/2 rating and
> discovered
> > the last stage required you to do calculus? Sure,
> the
> > special equipment requirement was specified but
> the
> > level of skill operating that equipment wasn't and
> the
> > fact that the equipment was needed anyway, means
> it
> > should be listed as a 5.
> >
> 
> I was talking about terrain (which unless I'm
> mistaken is what the thread
> was talking about), not difficulty.  

What's the difference? They're two sides of the same
coin.

> The cache you describe would no doubt
> be a 5 difficulty, but could very easily be a 1
> terrain.

Not according to some of the arguments pointed out
here. Those comments being that the equipment was
listed in the cache description thus there's no need
for increasing the rating.

> 
> Moot anyway.  I think you misunderstand me.  I'm not
> knocking the rating
> system, I'm simply saying that as difficulty AND
> terrain rating rise, you
> really ought to be reading the description.  If you
> don't read the
> description on a 5-rated cache, you'll likely get as
> much enjoymentout of it
> as research you put in.  None.

I certainly agree with that statement. I think that
anyone who doesn't read the description deserves what
they get. My concern revolves around the ease of
making a decision. While I'd prefer to leave any
special instances out of the terrain and difficulty
ratings, there is no other place to put filtering
information except there.

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