As I drove to Columbus this weekend, I realized the Badger Cache
initiative truly needs to be represented all along the Interstate
71 corridor. In the last 2 years since I started caching, I have
driven this stretch of road more than I had in my life up to now.
Eric drove it a lot too, what with all the visits back and forth
between Cincinnati, Columbus and Cleveland for all of us. This is
probably the furthest North I can place my tributes. Please think
of Eric, and all he gave to the sport of geocaching as you get out,
stretch your legs, and take a very short walk across the picnic
area.
This cache is not designed to be difficult at all. In fact, you
will probably be able to discern the hiding place as soon as your
arrow points you in the right direction. However, I was pleasantly
surprised by the way this particular hiding spot seemed to be
especially designed to hold a cache, just waiting for the right one
to be placed. I think one placed in honour of Eric was what it was
waiting for. You are looking for an M&M tube. No matter what
the coordinates tell you, you do not have to go all the way to the
fence, or beyond it. (I apologize if the coordinates are off. It
was a relatively overcast day when I placed this, although my GPS
seemed to be fairly "steady" at the time.)
Eric "SherwoodForest" was a
very special Geocacher. A Self-Proclaimed Ambassador, he not only
represented the Northeast Ohio Geocachers at events in other areas,
he was an advocate for the entire sport to park districts,
lawmakers, and even people on the street.
You might think that with an attitude like this, that Eric might
have been arrogant or boastful. Nothing could be further from the
truth. Eric has a mild demeanor that earned him the common
description "Gentle Giant". Eric won friends by listening. He
encouraged and welcomed the people who were least convinced of
their sanity in enjoying such an underground sport. He encouraged
people on to their personal bests and challenged all of us to
expect more from ourselves.
Eric is partly responsible for many big initiatives in Ohio. He
was instrumental in the formation of GeocacheOhio (GO) and the
Midwest GeoBash. He helped promote the All-Ohio Women's Event and
aided in the flight of the men-folk with the matching "Ohio Men's
Escape Weekend".
Eric is truly missed, but in so many ways his influence is all
around us. It's in the people, the caches and the culture of
Geocaching. To represent this, we have chosen to dedicate a series
of caches that we hope will represent the impact that our friend,
SherwoodForest had on our sport and our lives.
As Eric would say, "Cache well, and see you 'round the
bend."
HOW IT ALL STARTED! The Badger
Badger Thing
I miss my anam cara. I loved you with all my
heart, Eric.