The hunt begins!

Hello everyone,

The Hunt is on today, right now. If you missed it, here are the first coordinates. Be sure to make it back to Southside to get the final clue at 3pm.

• Find your way Across at I, 14

• Get into Game Day at B, 8.5

• Make your Patriot Pride count at F, 12

• Find Sweet Success at E, 5

• Checkmate the competition at H, 11.5

Stay tuned to our Twitter account for hints and help throughout the day! http://twitter.com/#!/c2mthehunt

Print booklets available

Ready to get going on your way to $1,000 (or up to 4 Kindles), and like getting ink on your hands, too?

Stop by the Office of Student Media on the bottom of Student Union Building II today to pick up a print copy of The Hunt Booklet. They’re available for pick-up here until 5 p.m.

If you don’t grab one today (Friday), you’ll be able to pick one up on Hunt Day tomorrow (Saturday!).

The Booklet is necessary to play the game. In it are rules about The Hunt, the Hunt Map you’ll use to traverse the campus and more. You’ll need to know what’s inside in order to solve one of the puzzles (the rules, the ads…everything!).

(The PDF version is also available for download).

WGMU live-broadcasting on Hunt Day

WGMU is live broadcasting from Connect2Mason’s The Hunt this weekend! They’ll be playing some of today’s hottest music and giving live updates on what’s happening at The Hunt. You can check our Student Media family member out on www.wgmuradio.com starting at 11 a.m.

And make sure to stop by their broadcasting table outside of Southside. You might even get on-air!

Golden Ninja to judge photo contest

That’s right! Better & Brighter than Simon Cowell is Mason’s very own GOLDEN NINJA!!!

Grab your friends. Get goofy. And get those photos up! The Hunt team photo contest will be judged by the Golden Ninja. Be the team with the best photo and win cool prizes!

(The team with the most creative photo wins a free meal in the Southside Blackstone Room for up to 8 members. Fancy, huh?)

Submitted photos will be featured on both The Hunt website and the Connect2Mason Facebook page.

Submissions open until September 2 at 5 p.m. Register your team and upload your photos here.

Merten To Kick Off The Hunt

Want to know a secret?

The President has agreed to kick off our event!

Wait.

Hold on a second.

Don’t get your hunt shoes all in a twist. The President we’re talking about is none other than President Merten himself!

While you’re enjoying some yummies and swag at the event kickoff location, make sure to keep an eye on the Southside balcony around noon for some top secret information–the puzzle coordinates!

Why? Because you can’t hunt when you don’t know where you’re hunting, that’s why!

Hunt Teams! Assemble!

Prizes?  Videos?  Free Breakfast?  Getting overwhelmed just thinking about all the exciting adventures The Hunt has in store?

Enough with all the questions!  Let’s talk about how you can get a leg up on the competition (or at least a pinky toe).

Form a team
Best strategy?  Find friends who are good at math (or at least rule a puzzle of Sudoku).  If that doesn’t work, your regular friends will do.

Teams can be as big or small as you’d like, just remember–you have to split $1000 among all members.  Bummer.

Registration (optional)
Once you’ve formed your super team, head on over to the Register your team link and fill out the registration form.  If RSVP-ing isn’t your style, don’t worry–you’re always welcome at our party.

Submit a team photo
If math isn’t your strong suit, try something with more of a right-side-of-the-brain twist.  Get your creative juices flowing and snap a pic for us.  The team with the most creative photo wins a free meal in the Southside Blackstone Room for up to 8 members.  Fancy, huh?

Submitted photos will be featured on both The Hunt website and the Connect2Mason Facebook page.

Submissions open until September 2 at 5 p.m.
Haven’t heard about our prizes yet?  Click here.
Be sure to follow The Hunt on Twitter for all the latest news and updates! twitter.com/C2MTheHunt

Dean Andrew Flagel Talks about The Hunt

Prizes, prizes, prizes!

Check out the above video with Connect2Mason.com Executive Editor Kevin Loker announcing the big news:

• If you’re a student and your student team wins The Hunt, your team gets $1,000.
• If your team is made up of other members of the Mason community, you can win up to four Kindles.

Pretty sweet, right?

Keep an eye out for more news on other things you can win during The Hunt. Right now, it’s time to start forming your teams and tell your friends you’ll be there on Hunt Day (Saturday, Sept. 3).

Here’s a recap of who can participate:

Who can participate?

Anyone can participate (family and friends are more than welcome!), but only Mason students, staff, faculty or alumni are eligible to win prizes.

Individuals may participate alone or participants may form teams to compete.

• There are two kinds of teams that can be formed: Student Teams (must be all students) or Mason Community Teams (can be all alumni, faculty or staff, or a mixture of students, alumni, faculty and staff)
• There is no limit to how many individuals can be on one team

Teams who are competing must choose one member to be their team’s representative. The team representative will be required to have their Mason ID or alumni card to present at the end of The Hunt. (Alumni should pick up their Alumni Association Member card Monday through Friday from the Office of Alumni Affairs. You can also bring your old student ID).

Prizes will be awarded to the designated team representative, who will decide with his or her team members how to allocate it among the team. George Mason University, Student Media and Connect2Mason are not responsible for how the award is allocated or for any personal conflicts that arise from this process; once the prize is awarded to the team representative, it is his or her responsibility.

How to Hunt

When you go on a hunting trip, you want to make sure you’ve got a rifle. Forgetting the basics isn’t fun, and this page is here to make sure nothing like that happens to you on Hunt Day, September 3.

Here’s How to Hunt:

• Form your team
  Sometimes two (or three or four or nine) heads are better than one. All students, faculty, staff and alumni who are participating in The Hunt are encouraged to form a team to complete the game.
• Get Supply Item #1: Announcements
  Some say the key to success is preparation.  That might be true, and for our purposes, let’s say it is.  (Keep in mind, someone smart probably said it first). 

  Keep checking thehunt.connect2mason.com for announcements to stay on top of your game.

• Get Supply Item #2: The Hunt Booklet
  The key to everything is The Hunt Booklet. 

  The booklet will contain The Hunt rules of play and a map you’ll use to find the “Hunt Spots” on and around Mason’s Fairfax campus and nearby businesses. Participants will use their map to travel to the designated Hunt Spots and solve puzzles there, using clues found in their Hunt booklet. The answer to each Hunt Spot puzzle, and the last puzzle, leads to a grand prize.

  The coordinates of the Hunt Spots will be announced at the start of The Hunt.

  Keep an eye out for The Hunt Booklet during Welcome Week.  When the date gets closer, it’ll also be available online for download. Every team should have one copy.

• Get Supply Item #3: Yummies n’ Swag
  Come early and get your grub on with Mason Dining.  The first 225 to arrive will not only satisfy their hunger cravings, but they will get a Hunt t-shirt in case some spillage happens.  (Don’t worry, we won’t tell).

• Get Supply Item #4: The Hunt Puzzle Pieces
  At the start of The Hunt, participants will be given a bag containing puzzle pieces.Remember, anything you’re handed could be a clue to help you solve a puzzle.  You have to use your noggin to connect the dots…to see how the ‘pieces’ are coming together. 

  Get it? No? Okay.

• Get Supply Item #5: Prizes
  Okay, so maybe it’s not a “supply” per se, but it sure does get your motor runnin’, right?  Stay tuned for announcements revealing prizes.  Trust us, it’s gonna be big. 

  (You’re going to want to get them for sure).

As we get closer, we’ll tell you more specifics.

One other good thing to do right now: let people know you’re coming on Facebook. Invite your friends, and remember—The Hunt is open to Mason students, faculty, staff and alumni.

Get the latest scoop

Itching to learn more and get that competitive edge?

In the weeks leading up to The Hunt, keep checking this section for the latest news on The Hunt. Don’t get left in the dust about a new development, important announcement or recent addition to The Hunt.

Stay informed here, connect with us on Facebook and Twitter, and stay on top of your game.