Georacing
Ingredients: s’mores and a GPS system
- posted: 06 Nov. 2007
- scrollsports@byui.edu
Scavenger hunts are like finding a needle in a haystack. Participants are given certain instructions to lead them in the right direction, yet the destination is kept a mystery. But what would happen if one added a Global Positioning System (GPS) in the scavenger hunt? Would it still be a challenge?
That is exactly what Joe Michela, a senior studying computer science, and Caitlin Sitton, a sophomore studying recreational leadership, decided to find out.
Michela and Sitton wanted to put their, as well as their fellow students’, GPS navigational skills to use in the georacing event held on campus Friday, Nov. 2.
The 13 participating students split into teams to receive different coordinates, then race to see who could get five pieces of paper, each containing items to make s’mores, strategically placed throughout campus.
Michela and Sitton started the event at 5 p.m., but found that none of the other 11 contesters knew how to use a handheld GPS navigator, so they had to explain how it worked. By the time that was done, the sun was already setting.
They opted to stick together and get done much faster. They entered the coordinates and headed off to where the little arrow on the system pointed them.
“There are at least three satellites working together to figure out the correct location,” Michela said, as the students followed the GPS navigational directions.
After walking a short distance, the students ended up at the Heating Plant.
GPS navigators usually measure within 15 meters of the destination. The exact location of the different coordinates did not always correspond with one another. The coordinates were close enough, however, that the students were able to figure out where they were supposed to be.
“I love using my GPS. It gets me from point A to point B with little to no hassle,” said Tim Chen, a junior studying business finance.
After the group found the paper, they put in the new coordinates for the next building, which took them to the Thomas E. Ricks Building. When they finally found all five papers, the students went to the Outdoor Resource Center to eat some s’mores. 
