Game Day

Upon arrival, one member of each team had his or her (usually his, heh heh) fingernails painted by a member of Game Control:

Each team also received a game packet. The packet had a lovely translucent red cover, with the title:

Welcome to the

First Annual

Bay Area Treasure Hunt

(BATH)

September 29, 2001

Exceptionally observant/curious team members noticed that the cover page was actually composed of a clear red plastic, behind which was the title page, printed in black AND RED. The red words, which were obscured by the red plastic, were interspersed between the lines of the title, and read:

if you are

reading this

then you've

figured out

something important!!

More about this in the clue solution section.

Also in the game packet were the following:

- A sheet with Game Control's contact numbers that explained the point system (1 point deducted for a hint, 5 points deducted for a give-away, with each clue worth 5 points overall) and tips on when to call.

- A map of Fort Mason (same as the start directions).

- A list of all the Kinko's branches in San Francisco, along with contact information and a map showing the location of each

- A list of all the branches of the San Francisco Library, including names of branches, hours, locations, telephone numbers and a map charting them all

- A map of San Francisco delineating all the sectors

- Two sealed hint envelopes, one for Clue #6 and one for Clue #7 (returning them unsealed was the only way to avoid being charged for these hints)

- A "skip card" with private passphrase:

This card allowed a team to skip over a clue without losing the points associated with the clue. Any hint points a team had been docked for the clue they ultimately skipped were restored to the team's score. Teams that didn't use their skip card were credited with five points at the end of the game. In retrospect, Game Control would likely have had a "use it or lose it" policy with respect to the skip card. Live and learn, we say.