Blame it on working extra hours.
Since St. Joseph's Area Health Services coworkers Stephanie Lippert and Missy Davis couldn't leave work at 2 p.m. Monday, they decided to brainstorm possible locations for the 2008 Community Fishing Contest medallion.
By 3 p.m., the medallion was in their hands.
Davis and Lippert located the object of their quest tied to a fencepost at the new watertower, on the side near Rapids Spirits.
"We pulled in there and found it in about 10 seconds... our total search took less than 10 minutes," Davis said.
ADVERTISEMENT
The coworkers clocked out of work at 2:42 p.m. and saw bronze by 2:52, according to Davis.
This year is also the first either has participated in the search.
Lippert and Davis interpreted the sixth clue referencing the Park Rapids skyline to come up with a list of public places where Wal-Mart would be visible.
The intrepid pair circled TruStar and the American Legion before deciding to scour the watertower.
"It was truly unreal," said Lippert, describing how it felt to spot the medallion after the short time searching.
The treasure hunt inaugurates the 10th annual Park Rapids American Legion community fishing contest.
In addition to the fishing contest from 1 p.m. to 3:30 on Saturday, Feb. 2, the American Legion will hold a Friday night dinner from 5 to 8 p.m. with a welcome dance following.
The weekend culminates with the awards presentation at 5:30 p.m. Saturday and the Fisherman's Ball at 8:30.
ADVERTISEMENT
Anglers can eat meals at the Legion all weekend.
All ticket purchasers will be eligible for raffle prizes drawn immediately after the contest on Fish Hook Lake.
For finding the treasure hunt medallion, the duo will receive a prize package worth about $1,000 in gifts donated by 38 local businesses. Davis said she and Lippert have not worked out a division scheme quite yet.
Lippert and Davis said they were especially happy to prove coworkers wrong about their chances of winning.
"We left work saying we we were going to find it," said Davis. "Well, we found it."
Of course, Davis added, the coworker who opted not to search with them in lieu of tanning may end up a little more disappointed than the others.
