Geocaching – is it time to get outside?

Hello folks,

Have you heard of “Geocaching”? It’s not anything new…but I just received an email about Geocaching at our local Arboretum here in Overland Park and it sounds like I might need to go check it out.

Geocaching is a real-world, outdoor treasure hunting game using GPS-enabled devices. Participants navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates and then attempt to find the Geocache (container) hidden at that location. I suggest just using your iPhone GPS system- there’s no need to go buy a separate hand-held GPS device!

There are different rules for different “games”, but typically when you find a “treasure”, then you leave one as well. Or you simply sign a guestbook in the hidden cache and tell all of your friends about it.

Our Arboretum says: “bring the entire family out for a fun-filled adventure. Find out why over 5 million people throughout the world hunt for containers, called Geocaches, using hand-held GPS devices. Brief classroom presentation followed by a search for two Geocaches. Adult presence required for ages 13 and under.”

I think it’s time for the Arter’s to get involved! My kids are older than 13, but heck, I’m gonna make the go anyway.

Maybe it’s time to hide a few Mission Repair gift certificates in hidden Geocaches across the country? I’m going to make some plans. Stay tuned.

Does anyone have any good experience with Geocaching? Let me know!

Take care, Ryan

It almost looks like he’s smiling!

Hello friends-

I’ve been out of the office for a few days in St. Louis working with NAPWDA and their amazing group of K9 work dogs…there were bomb, accelerant, cadaver, search/rescue and other types of dogs. Melanie (my webmaster) and I volunteered to be decoys at the “area search” station and with the help of Master Trainer Mike Perkins, we landed the job of “decoys”.

This meant that we needed to “hide” in the woods, while each handler took their respective dog through the paces and sent them off looking for us. Since these dogs are also protection dogs (and are used in law enforcement to find suspects), we either needed to put on a bite suit or crawl up a ladder into a tree stand quietly and wait for the dog to find us. Once they did – it was “game on” as the dogs would bark and intimidate while we waited for the handlers to come secure and reward them. Remember, this is training and these men and women need to keep their animals in top shape!

So, this cute pup was my first “lesson” for the day. You’ll notice that I took this picture from about 12 feet up in the air, and had I been any closer to the ground he might have ripped my boots off. It almost looks a little like he’s smiling, but make no mistake- he was all business and could smell my fear.

I like taking a little time out of my busy life to give back to the law enforcement and other agency groups when I can because they actually do lead thankless careers- it’s obvious that their dedication and devotion to protect us civilians just comes from within…so thank you to all of you that provide safety and security to the rest of us that don’t realize it enough. You’re our heroes.

Lastly – it was a fun day and I didn’t get bitten by any K9 dogs- only mosquitoes. They we out to get me!

Have a great afternoon and I’ll be back with some awesome Mission Repair news soon.

Best, Ryan

We’re working a booth at NAPWDA next week!

Hello friends-

We’re in final preparations to work the 2014 NAPWDA workshop in Eureka, Missouri next week. What is NAPWDA you ask? Of course, it’s the North American Police Work Dog Association show! We’ve got a special connection with our local Police Department in Olathe, Kansas and my other business, Mission Survivor, supplies equipment and goods to Police Departments all over the country!

Did you know that I’ve been through the Police Academy?

Ok, it’s not the “real” Police Academy, but more specifically the “Citizen’s Police Academy” that is put on each year through the Olathe PD and it was a blast. It was a good time for me to learn about Police work and to also volunteer to get zapped with a Taser, but that’s a whole different story! It’s on Youtube 😉

So why talk about this? Well, I’m going to be out of the office for a few days (Until Thursday, May 8th) so I’m going to leave you in the competent hands of my General Manager, Troy Harris at the helm of the ship. Email him here if you need him!

I won’t be totally out of touch though – the show actually runs at night so we will be working “remotely”. I might post up at a local Starbucks or even try out the lounge Wifi from the hotel, but certainly I’ll send some pictures of some dogs, our Mission Survivor booth and me in my gear. It’s the ultimate marketing piece when I get my tactical goodies on…and it makes me feel like a tough guy. Like a cop.

Things should be up and running smoothly at the Mission Repair headquarters while I’m away. If not, I’ll take care of business from afar while simultaneously watching the Police dogs work! If you’re interested, and if you’re in town, there is a public display of the Police K9 capabilities on Wednesday, May 7th, at 7pm. It’s a great time…more details to follow!

Talk to you soon, Ryan

Mission Repair Movement. Marvelous.

Hello my blog reader friends…you can stamp this project “done”. We are officially moved into our new corporate headquarters expansion!

We were shooting for April 1st move date – so it’s a nice feeling to be done early. Thank goodness…it’s been a long set of days leading up to this point.

Now I can focus all of my energy on my newest location, Mission Repair Express, due to open on 4/1/14 as well. What’s all of the fuss about 4/1? Well, it is April fool’s day…but this is not a prank. In fact, it’s actually our company Anniversary. This is Mission Repair’s year to grow a bit, and what better day to dedicate our newest sites. April 1st will be a fantastic day for all of us here.

What does it mean for you? Well we are celebrating the early completion of our corporate headquarters and move with an amazing discount code…I would tell you what it is, but you’ll have to read our Newsletter to actually find out the savings. How do you get our newsletter? Just sign up from our website. The signup form is on every page of the site on the lower left hand side (“Nav left” for those webmasters out there).

Once you do, you’ll receive a copy of our newsletter with the current discount. This one expires on 3/5/14, so signup fast and get in on it.

Have a great day! Ryan

**HINT: The newsletter coupon will give you 20% off your order**

Who’s ready for some football? Will you be watching this weekend?

Hello Mission Repair blog fans (and football fans!) –

It’s a nerve wracking weekend here at our sister company down the street and we just had to brag a little bit about it… Mission Survivor is sponsoring the weekly NFL Pregame show here in Kansas City…and the first commercial will happen just minutes before the Chiefs game on Sunday! Here’s what has been running for the last couple of weeks to get the anticipation up:

What does this mean for you? We want all of our Mission Repair blog readers to have a chance to participate too. Watch the video and sign up (from anywhere in the country!) and pick your weekly winners and you could win one of 18 Mission Survivor Gift Certificates! We are hoping to really generate some more traffic at the Mission Survivor headquarters, I’m trying to overload Melanie and Adam that work up front. Since our sales have been off the charts already in September that means that Derrick and Leon in shipping will have their hands full…but I know that I can push them to their limits for a bit longer 😉

That seems fair, right?

Ok, we are looking to hire 2 new employees in the very near future, but for now sit back, relax and get your football season started. Are there any Broncos fans out there? If you’re one, I bet you’re pretty happy today, right? Ol’ Manning can still throw the ball!

OK, we’re almost at closing time here at Mission Repair…have a great weekend but remember that we’re open Saturday and Sunday if you need us!

Best, Ryan