"Don't try to compete..."

J. Gladdis wrote an article for beginners which was probably penned when he was at Minelab ... and on the first page he said you can't believe anything people tell you about coil depth or detector performance because it's all subject to a great deal of exaggeration and even nuggets are often not found where people will swear they dug them simply because (and I quote) "a fib has been told". This is something he has observed when a person claims to have found a nugget and then their partner or friend has come along with their own detector to wave around the refilled hole, finding nothing. Thus giving the impression that "perhaps the equipment was at fault." He notes that he received a lot of calls from people asking why they find plenty of bullets and junk metal but no Gold. And the explanation that he gave is that "Just having a detector and being in the a Goldfield does not guarantee Gold. In fact being in the right area does not guarantee using Gold with a detector, but at least it is on the right track."

"If you are a hobbyist, treat detecting as a hobby and enjoy doing it. If you decide to become more professional, then treat detecting as such. Remember than you only get out of it what you put in; frame of mind and approach is everything."

He continues: "Do not try to compete with others, do your own thing and enjoy what you are doing. The one thing people do when they get together on a Gold field is to compare their findings. In school, this is called "show and tell"; I call it "one up man-ship". For someone new this can be quite demoralizing. They can feel that they are not performing, not knowing what they are doing and/or that their own equipment is inferior, therefore not having a chance at all."

I thought these words might be encouraging to new detectorists venturing out. Don't be discouraged by the stories you read of the success of others and what they've found, or the articles in magazines that are often the highlights of a single person's research and expenses (and commitment) in the goldfields. Something I try to impress upon people who want to pursue a hobby or even a professional interest in Gold Nugget hunting is that Gold is actually a lot harder to find than the publications and internet stories would have you believe. The price of Gold is usually an indication of just how much effort is involved in finding it. If it was easy to find, the price wouldn't be nearly as high as it is. We're very lucky to have the rich Goldfields that we have in Australia and our detecting cousins from overseas must feel a little disenchanted when they see what sort of riches we can find in our backyards.

There's a very competitive nature in Gold Prospecting which seems to draw out a lot of bad behaviors in people... leading to fights among friends and even family. I'm not even talking about internet arguments either! Some psychologists suggest that males are wired to be competitive in all things related to "hunting" and Nuggeting is clearly in that realm. Otherwise it's possible you wouldn't see as much cammo gear available for detecting (eg. Cammo Control Boxes, Cammo Vests & Battery Harnesses, Cammo hats etc). I'm not complaining though because I wear some of it myself but mainly because it hides a lot of dirt stains. But others admit to wearing cammo so they can operate "quietly". Anything that dives them an edge is something they'll consider.

But isn't it really about having fun? Even when the full-time professionals talk about their better days, they usually describe a euphoric experience finding something pretty spectacular. Any detectorist (and probably panner/sluicer) always seems to remember their first gold. For some of the best pros out there, it took over a year or more to find their first piece. If there's anything to be learned in recent years, trying not to be competitive and simply enjoying the experience is really what it's all about.

Regards,


Marco

G’day Marco,
Hell, I admire your spirit boy! You have just been subjected to the most reprehensible character assassination, and defamation I’ve ever seen, after many years of forum browsing, and yet you are still posting away, in an attempt to stimulate our thinking, challenge the status quo, and put a fresh perspective on things.

Link removed

It’s obvious to sensible onlookers what is going on. A couple of individuals have singled you out to put you down in an self gratifying muse to elevate there own self esteem and value, it’s a common psychological ploy of the emotionally IQ challenged. It’s the motivating force behind mob homicidal mania.

Like I said yesterday, much of this behaviour stems from envy and jealousy, it could be your money, your job, your success, your car and house, your wife, your IQ and thinking ability, your religion and beliefs, the size of your willy, the amount of gold you have, ad infinitum, ad nauseum.

Please continue to post and air new ideas, I’m confident there are more people who will focus on what you say is right, than there are who will put you down for making an exaggeration or a mistake.

Best wishes
Grey.

Admin deleted my link above, I want to say sorry to Marco, and all for posting it, I shouldn’t have, with hindsight I see it was perpetuating the insult, and that’s the last thing I wanted to do. I was so shocked at their check, and wanted others to see what a bunch of silly old women they really are.

Grey.

PS. I must stop posting on these forums before I dig myself a hole I can't get out of.

Hi Grey,
Maybe that is the reason a lot of people don't post, for fear of sticking their neck out and getting the strap.

Don't let it stop you from posting. Heck, if I took notice of every time I got the strap, I'd never post at all. It's probably just be "Marco month" at the moment and someone else will take over from there. Cheers.

G'day Marco,

mate I think you've hit the nail on the head there re the competition - and unfortunately the tendency toward dishonesty on the part of some detectorists (almost said 'prospectors') who feel they just have to prove they're the best of the crop.

Being an unsociable old bugger who prefers to prospect on my own - or in the company of my wife who normally remains in camp and reads - I've long treated the business as a very enjoyable hobby. If I find a slug of gold, great! It normally ends up on a chain around the neck of one of the girls in my family (such are these riches that the gold chain and hasp brazing often costs more than the nugget was worth, but no matter). To me the bush is and always has been a method of recharging the batteries.

On those occasions I don't feel like detecting I'll arm myself with GPS, map and compass and go walkabout acc by a faithful old Labrador (not at the moment though, fire awareness and snakes have put the kybosh on this particular activity).

Pleased to see you're still contributing, regardless of the recent unpleasantness.

Mike W

Thank you Grey, Qld Sandy & Mike.
Detecting is supposed to be fun. It's an opportunity for people to get away from the constraints of city life and to actively seek something quite elusive. It's a lottery when you go out because anything can happen. There's also risks involved although most of us try to ignore those. The worst aspects should really be the difficulty of digging in hard dirt on a hot day. Poor Lasseter of the infamous "Lasseter's Gold Reef" was heckled and defamed when he tried to draw together investors to pursue a reef of Gold which he'd apparently found. Some say that the reason he clammed up was because he knew that the tracker assigned to him was possibly going to kill him upon locating the reef. There's little doubt the found it because when he first stumbled out of the desert he was carrying a number of very unique and rich specimens and spent a lot of time raising funds to return to where he'd been. But greed and jealousy from other interested parties, keen to make their own name, sent others to hamper & harry him in a day when a man's word was everything. The truth of Lasseter's reef seems to have been revealed in recent years and it may be that he lived a life in ridicule when in fact he was possibly telling the truth all along. We may never know what the truth behind the story really was. Remember that in Lasseter's day, his was the last generation where children grew up, left school and then entered into the family business that their fathers left behind for them. We're so lucky in this day and age to be able to do the things we do - and I think most of us take even our cars and bottled water for granted.

Another thing that hampers communication these days in the "online Prospecting fraternity" is a fear of sticking one's neck out. I agree with those who choose to sit back quietly that this is sometimes the best course of action. And people who ridicule those using cheaper equipment and inexpensive detectors are sadly just going to offend the vast percentage of detectorists who have little need for the more expensive items. A young adventurer - or even a retired person seeking a detector for occasional or casual fossicking is not just going to be able to justify a high end Gold detector. They want a lightweight unit that they can keep in their vehicle or backpack and take it with them if they stop someplace interesting. Most of those people like to be able to have their purchasing decision reinforced by a positive comment on a forum rather than be ridiculed. They also come to places like this one to pick up tips from others. But outside, there's a lot of very serious hobbyists and even professional nugget hunters (who do this for a living) using very expensive detectors and many of those don't find much Gold at all. But they keep trying. Fortunately, this doesn't dissuade them from constantly finding time to head out and search more. And those are the ones who tend to become more successful at their pursuit.

I think it would be good to see a more diverse range of people detecting but at the moment there's a perception of this being an older man's pursuit. I have recently seen a few single young women seeking out the hobby of Gold Prospecting (not just coin & relic hunting) and that was a little surprising. I think many will see an about-face in the not too distant future and perhaps a change in demographics and trends.

Cheers,


Marco

Hello Marco,
Was involved with Robert Ross (Sulli) back in 2004-05, he has been closely studying Harold Lasseters life and his fabled gold reef. His studies were going to result in a book "Lasseteria."
Was also in close contact with Sam Peppiat in California, Sam has had a life long belief that Lasseter was telling the truth. On our trip we were using Sams' theory to the where abouts of Lasseters' Reef.
We ventured into Lasseter country in 2005 however heavy rain prevented us reaching our proposed destination, impassable ground conditions stopped us just 50 km's short.
We were planning to retrace our steps and complete the search in 2008 however the fuel hike put stoppers on that.

The links are down at the moment however it maybe only temporary.

http://www.sacentral.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=57&area=2&c=46870

http://www.lasseteria.com/default.htm

Cheers
Peter

G'day,
Good thoughts fellas, now that I've cooled off I'll add a bit.
Before taking up fossicking with a metal detector, I was a real keen trout fisher. I would spend hours at night tying my own fly imitations, nymphs and drys, to mimic the current trout food of the month or district. I eventually got quite good at it, and found the hobby really satisfying. Over the years I saw the hobby (sport) take off in popularity, and it was funny to watch those new to the game as they practiced their new found passion.

There were some who would tear around the place moving from spot to spot even encroaching on my own space, changing their flies every 5 minutes, thrashing the water with their lines and generally breaking all the rules and sadly missing the point of the whole exercise. Successful fly fishing seems to be for the quiet types, the competitive are better off going in for fly casting competitions and the like, that doesn’t mean that these people will not eventually learn the gentle art, but it seems to me for many, success means changing their behaviour and mindset to a completely different outlook.

Now my quarry is hidden scraps of native gold, and the good part is I don’t have to kill them to take them home. I see exactly the same mentality applied to this hobby (profession). Some arrive at a spot and I’m reminded of an old song here “My boomerang won’t come back” by Charlie Drake, where he sings "I've waved the thing all over the place, Practised till I was black in the face," yes they tear around all over waving the coil erratically all over the place six inches off the ground, cutting across in front of me, and then half an hour later they're scrambling over each otehr to get back into their 4WD and screaming off in clouds of dust to another unfortunate spot.

Well we can all see the lunacy in this, but it's a trap, those who get into the competitive frame of mind tend to concentrate on beating and out doing the other person, and forget about analysing their own performance, or studying and meditating (thinking deeply, mulling over) upon the topography, geology, course of former workings, machine tuning and performance, coil sweep, height and overlap, THRESHOLD etc etc.,

Let them go black in the face, busting their guts and falling over each other, it’s the contemplative, methodical, and resourceful fossicker who ends up with consistent gold finds, just like the fisherman. I read somewhere that 10% of all the fishermen catch 90% of the fish caught, whether those figures are exact or not, I’m not sure, but from experience it must comes close to that.

In the end, more gold doesn’t bring real happiness, exactly the same as more money doesn’t, it’s the satisfaction that comes from applying yourself, picking a stretch of likely looking water/ground, selecting the best fly/settings for the water and day, presentation of the fly/coil to the quarry, and landing the prize, and the good mates who share in your joy, that’s what it’s all about, that is what fuels real happiness.

Cheers
Grey.

Whilst I believe it good advice to all prospectors and detectorists not to compete, it is really the very nature of man to compete whether it be on the footy field, the cricket pitch, the goldfields or whatever. Some people seem to have the will and drive to compete more than others. I recently watched a series on the idiot box about the medical problems encountered by climbers on Everest and there were 2 pommy blokes who scaled Everest twice in the one week - why?. Simply to put it in the record books to give others something to compete with. It took a hell of a toll on their health and could very well have killed them, but they did it to compete.

I like to detect alone and don't give a damn what others find and at the same time don't give a damn if others are envious of what I find - I am not a competitor with anybody, never have been and never will be, but I know that there are a lot out there who are peeved and disgruntled if somebody gets more than them.

caveman

I find its always a competition, & the biggest competitor is yourself, like it or not the disgruntled feeling of driving home empty handed is something you can hide from others....but not yourself. you can do as we do & tell yourself you had a good time, met a few newbies, helped a few even...but you know deep down that feeling of disappointment is still there. part & parcel of MAN.

BUT! there is always tomorrow

G'day Caveman,

I tend to agree with you. I like to prospect alone - though the right company is welcome at times. Usually the only being I have to consider is feed time for my Labrador, which is fine by me because by that time it's cold beer time.

However, I also agree that it's nice to go home and say to the missis, 'Hey check this out. Not bad, hey?' (Naturally, I'm talking here about a slug of gold I may have found).

Mike W

Hmmmm competition maybe for some but not me couldnt give a rats bottom im there for the escape from work (and house chores ) sure its always good to go home with some gold but not mandetory in my books.
Forester01 sorta sums up my feelings about detecting and the last line from caveman, there to relax have a few beers and if i get gold its a bonus.
Regards
John