Yup, it’s throwback day. Here’s one from August 2013 that’s still on the money! Take your pick….
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
It’s an age-old dilemma…who are we and what should we call ourselves? More importantly, how do we want to be perceived? Certainly it’s more macho to be a “treasure hunter” because the majority of people haven’t a clue what the word “detectorist” means. If however you are a “treasure hunter” you become synonymous with Indiana Jones, and it can’t get much cooler than that….
Hell, I’d love to be Indiana Jones. Swashbuckling, devil-may-care, daring, bold, reckless, courageous and best of all, seducer of all things feminine….. Yeah, that’s the ticket…that’s who I want to be, no doubt about it. Unfortunately while I am somewhat devil-may-care (as in I don’t give a crap about much), I’m sure not swashbuckling (that would involve getting off my butt and moving around), daring (that means getting out in the hot weather), bold (that usually results in getting slapped in the face), reckless (I have nothing to get reckless with), courageous (my wife beats me) and I sure haven’t seduced anything feminine in many years, not even a mosquito.
Then of course we have “relic hunter“, “artifact hunter” and “prospector”…good labels, except if you are an artifact hunter you are a “hoiker” who destroys the entire history of the world and becomes a millionaire in the process (Well at least according to some). Maybe we could simply become “metal detector enthusiasts” or “metal detector users“, or better yet, “history hunters“. Hmm, I kind of like that….
Oh well, on to the next hoard!
I am guessing that no matter what we decide to call ourselves there will always be those out there looking to discredit us, and they will label us as they see fit. So go ahead, you decide who you are, use whatever name you wish, and the hell with what others think. Want to be Indiana Jones? Be Indiana Jones! Go for it… 24/7.
Do let me know though if the seducing thing works. I could always drop a few pounds, work out some, get a toupee, etc…
2019 Update: Thanks to social media and YouYube we can now add “personality“, “entertainer” and “opportunist“…..
_____________________________________________
ARE WE BRILLIANT OR WHAT?
While I am on the subject of labeling why do we pretend that what we do is akin to rocket science? About the only thing complicated about detecting today is figuring out where to get the $2,500 to buy that top-of-the-line detector. Yeah I know detectors are now computerized, and you can program them, and make them sound like a Buck Rogers space gun, but I am willing to bet a fifteen year old kid (who is already buying & selling stock on his smart phone) can figure it all out in an hour or two.
I can hear you now. “This guy Dick Stout sure has a pair of big ones to say something like this. The old guy who just likes to turn it on and go, and dreams of a one knob detector. He really is a dick!” Well you may be right, but be honest. We push a few pads, swing a coil and “hope” we find something neat, and we all know that if we aren’t in the right spot we might as well be using a couple of willow twigs (and dowsers don’t get on my case).
The detectorists that I see being successful today are those who know “WHERE” to take their detectors, not those who have the latest and the best, and yes experience counts for something but so does being lucky.
I am being selective here in putting these remarks together, but they were part of someone’s earlier comments (with regards to how critical we are when it comes to detecting shows on TV)….
Not very flattering I know, but it’s so true…..
_____________________
Throwback Photo
Jack Lowry (Garrett), Alan Holcombe (Whites), yours truly and the late Gary Bischke (Outdoor Outfitters), Treasure Weekend, 1986
Stout Standards 
Yo!
TREASURE HUNTER!
Really? Had you pegged for a loan shark!
now! now! dick! john’s a good man! he’s STILL watin’ on his double sawbuck!
be nice if you could accommodate him! anybody that can drink “room temperature” beer
on a consistent basis has got to be alright! don’t you go and disparage him now!
(h.h.!)
j.t.
You want to really mess with people you forgot Ther and coinshooter for us old guys from the 70s LOL
You know Larry I thought of that right after I posted. I’m still a coinshooter and as Betty Weeks like to say, a “beeper”..
Nice to remember Betty the roadrunner Weeks. Always ended her column with keep em beepin. Sure miss her. She helped the Packrat a lot in the early years
I know she did Larry an I know how much she meant to you (and others). She’s missed for sure.
I’m basically a relic hunter nowadays. And when I was a treasure hunter, the only real treasure I’ve ever found were fond memories of the people I’ve met in the hobby, friends I’ve had who are gone now, and my wife, Patti, who makes every day I have left worthwhile. But I’ll still dig a coin or two at the drop of a hat! Good post Dick.
Ah you’re a hoiker then….at least that’s the Warsaw warbler’s favorite term. My wife has different names for me…none of which I will share here.
My jury is still out on this – is it a Hobby or a Habit?
If it’s a hobby then I’ll stick with a coin shooter. If it’s a habit and I am so addicted I am just a crazy old guy with a detector, looking for treasure!
Oh an HH to all…….
Tony it’s addicting or in my case it used to be. I’m kind of over the addiction and now it’s a hobby.
You said “I am just a crazy old guy with a detector, looking for treasure”…. I’ll buy the “just a crazy old guy” part!
I agree with you. I am totality glad I don’t live in the Superstition Mountains! I would never come home
My friend Jeff always liked to refer to himself as a Detectionist.
Hah, that’s a new one. Kinda like it too. Thanks Joe….
I prefer no titles at all….I’m just a “guy who looks for coins”. I suppose though I “could” give myself a title which would make me feel all the more important….something like “Digologist”
Another good one, thanks Ed. I guess there’s a lot of labels out there if we wanted to work at it. If I were meeting an archaeologist I might use hoiker, digger or Indiana Jones.
Yo Dick:
Aside from calling you a stingy git who won’t/can’t pay the $20 from 1986 he owes to a true and loyal friend, I’d call you a true patriot.
Like me, and many others of our generation, we kept our countries free of the scourge of communism, instead of hot-footing East to the Komrades for personal gain.
The scum that went East, would if I had my way, be summarily shot out of hand. They have no place in democracy.
HH
Geez I wonder who you are talking about, LOL…..
Pretty sure Warsaw Wally had “good reason” to leave the UK and I’m pretty sure there weren’t too many countries willing to let him in. He’s now banned from another FB page.
As for WW being banned from another FB page, little surprises me about his escapades.