Wow. That's all I got. Wow.

Apryl

>From: "Team Tierra Buena" <teamtierrabuena@earthlink.net>

>Reply-To: listserv@azgeocaching.com

>To: "Arizona Geocaching" <az-geocaching@listserv.azgeocaching.com>

>Subject: [Az-Geocaching] RE: More info (LONG)

>Date: Tue, 25 Jan 2005 22:22:28 -0700

>I can hear what you are saying about my post, however, I would like to hear

>more of what you have to say on this topic. I know Carla and realize some

>difficulties you may have come across. I will take your advice and put my

>thoughts out of my head, but cannot bury my head when I know what is right

>or wrong outweighs who is right or wrong. What is your history/connection

>with this topic? Tell me more than "just forget it".

>You're right. You and the other relative newcomers should know a bit more

>about why you have a better chance of getting a cache in a National Park

>than you do in the Preserve.

>If you haven't figured it out yet, I was the [expletive deleted] that showed

>up at that meeting in an attempt to get the Commission to reconsider their

>original decision to ban caching, which had been made as soon as they heard

>about it, with no attempt to solicit public input. Claire Miller, the

>Preserve manager, was sympathetic to giving Geocaching a trial period, but

>Claire serves at the pleasure of the Commission as an employee of the city.

>On Claire's advice, I was told to submit a written request to the Commission

>to have the policy reconsidered, which I did on December 11, 2002. I was

>told to prepare a presentation in support of my argument, which I did (I

>still have the PowerPoint). I was granted a slot on the agenda at the

>meeting of April, 2003.

>Now, a couple of pieces of background here. I learned of the Commission's

>original ban at the Land Managers' meeting of September, 2002. That was less

>than three months after Arizona Repugnant originally raked their muck. So

>the Commission wasted no time responding to that bit of alarmism. The other

>thing you should know or recall is that the summer of '02 saw many public

>lands closed due to the fire danger. On June 21, a then-young cacher went

>after a now-archived cache that many of us, me included, thought was on

>State Trust land. Subsequently, we learned it was within the Preserve by a

>few hundred feet. Regardless, he did two things: He entered the Preserve in

>spite of the closed sign, and he posted that fact in his online log. You can

>read it at: http://tinyurl.com/5rndy.

>The perpetrator, by the way, is now serving his country in the uniform of

>the US Navy and has grown up a bit. But I'll bet you a dollar if you ask

>Carla today why she opposes caching in the Preserve, she will bring this up

>in less than two minutes, as though it were a daily occurrence. (She

>probably thinks Geocachers dumped that car body out on the Taliesin Trail,

>too, but since nobody ever logged that she can't say it publicly.) To this

>day I think the worst thing I ever did to Geocaching was to not follow my

>instinct and convince that young man to delete or amend his log the instant

>I saw it.

>Okay, back to the meeting. I think it's instructive to read the first major

>item on the agenda that evening, even though it has nothing to do with

>Geocaching. About two months prior to this meeting, you may recall, a plane

>took off on a moonless night from Scottsdale Airport and crashed into

>McDowell Peak, killing both its occupants. This agenda item was the

>Commission's response. Instead of trying to figure out how to make the

>preserve safer, they brought in the Airport to try and ban aircraft from

>flying over the Preserve! (It turns out they are legally powerless to do

>this.)

>Now, after they get this bit of bad news, it's my turn. I am blindsided with

>the information that a) they will not permit me to make my presentation as I

>was courteous enough to make copies for everyone at my own expense, and b) I

>am instructed that I may speak only in direct response to questions from the

>Commissioners.

>There weren't a lot of questions. Carla began with her rant about how

>Geocachers were hell-bent on destroying archaeological sites (it must be

>true, it was in the Repugnant) and ignoring "keep out" signs. When I tried

>to rebut those points, the Commission Chair instructed me to be quiet as I

>was not responding to a question. One of the newer Commissioners thought

>Geocaching sounded like a harmless, family-oriented activity, but she was

>quickly straightened out by the rest of the Commission.

>I did get a chance to bring up CITO, but Carla maintained that the Stewards

>and other volunteers would do that ".without having to leave litter of their

>own.". And when I was able to point out that we would increase Preserve

>visitation, Carla said (not an exact quote, but close enough), ".we don't

>need increased visitation from this kind of people. We have our own programs

>for bringing people out here."

>By this point there were no brows left to be beaten. The vote against

>reconsideration (in other words, we're voting against just THINKING about

>it, let alone actually DOING anything) was unanimous.

>You know, between the National Forests, the BLM, and State Trust Land, who

>needs 'em?

>Steve

>Team Tierra Buena

>NOW I am going to bed.

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