Last Fun Friday we left off after discovering the safe deposit box held the orb and we’d won The Quest!
A few days later we were able to pick up our $5000 prize (wow) from the Columbian. Besides reading a few negative and petty comments on the chat boards (left by sore losers and frustrated hunters) we were thrilled.
Of course things always seem to happen for a reason, and before we ever picked up the check our furnace went out. I’m sure you know what’s coming next… the bill for the replacement was $4500 and we actually had the money to pay for it (God is good)!
The following year (Quest IV) the hunt began again and my husband watched the clues and chat boards on and off, but we were busy with life… and of course had already won so we didn’t really try to keep up. We eventually heard about the winners, where the orb was located, and that there was once again ‘drama’ from frustrated Questers.
When the next contest was announced (Quest V) the format had changed and it had my husband excited to try again. This time there weren’t the traditional clues from the previous hunts… instead there were pictures posted each day of various locations in Clark County.
The task was to figure out where the photo was taken, then go to that spot and take a pic of whatever was shown in the clue. At the end of the contest, whoever had sent in all their pics and discovered the last location first (and found the orb) would win.
This is where I have to be honest and say that my husband did all the work. He loves to take pics and was incredible at recognizing the locations (the kids helped a little as well).
When it got down to the last week (approx) of the hunt, and he’d taken all the pics he could up to that point, I started to feel that old adrenalin rush coming back. Soon the whole family was once again treasure hunting, and having a blast!
The eve of the final clue, my hubby sent in all the photos… and per the rules, each Quester was assigned a time for the last ‘pic clue’ to be emailed the next morning. Our time was one of the top 3 slots, and we were very anxious to know where in the world the last location could be.
After many discussions we concluded it made sense to load up the family and the laptop and drive to a more central spot in town. This way when the clue came we’d be in a good position to jump on any freeway, and quickly arrive at our destination (that is if we recognized where it was). After another sleepless night we piled in the car and were on our way.
I think we refreshed the computer screen a million times before the clue actually showed up (right on time). We were driving on 205 close to the Van Mall when the pic popped up, and we looked at each other dumbfounded.
Is that really where I think it is, was the unspoken question on both of our tongues. When we finally could speak, we realized leaving our home was the craziest thing ever since the final location was less than 2 miles from our driveway.
Instantly we turned ourselves around and wondered if the decision to be more central had cost us the win. Upon arriving (after what felt like an endless drive) at the bike trail off of Hwy 14, we didn’t notice any unusual activity or people lurking so we felt we were either golden… or completely in the wrong place.
We rushed down the trail to the sign pictured in the clue, and to our complete and utter amazement the orb was located a few feet away just as indicated.
After walking (floating) back down the trail to the car, we stumbled upon a woman drinking coffee (she ended up being the person in charge of the contest). She hadn’t realized anyone had arrived yet, and was waiting to greet the winners… which turned out to be us! (this time the prize was $1000)
It was all very surreal and within moments cars started pulling up left and right. When they realized they’d lost there was disappointment, although when they heard who had won (again)… there were a few comments that were less than enthusiastic.
Overall it was an amazing experience, and the people were great (but they did ask that we go out of town during future hunts).
The Quest hasn’t come back since (economic and financial issues) but it was a ton of fun, and if it does return… the Chumbley fam is ready to hunt!
{ 1 trackback }
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
That’s amazing… do y’all have Indian blood in you?
Y’know, with your skills, the U.S. Military might be contacting you to help them hunt for bad guys in Afghanistan!
Funny how what we are looking for can be right under our nose.
Too bad there are so many sore losers. When someone works just as hard as everyone else and wins, it would be so much nicer if people were happy for them! Congratulations! It sounds like so much fun, I wish there was something like that around here.
BTW – I think that you are great at telling stories.
That is so exciting. I just don’t know if I’d have the patience to keep up with all the clues. Good for you guys!