Wrench 'n' Win Contest: Week 3 finalists

The third week was charmed in the Garmin Garage Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest and we have another group of entries for your enjoyment on the finalist page. The Week 3 finalists thought outside the box - especially the pizza box - and the creativity and artistry impressed us yet again. As you know, we pick the finalists but you get to pick the winner. If you’ve already entered, be sure to let your friends and family know. And we announced it last week, but it's worth repeating: We’ll be awarding one lucky grand prize winner with a brand new nüvi 205! So keep those sketches coming and spread the word about the Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest!

Ask Garmin: Add New Vehicles to Your nüvi

Our e-mail this week comes from M. Smith: "I recently purchased a nüvi 260 and know nothing about GPS systems." As proof of the popularity of all of the new vehicles we're adding to the Garmin Garage, topping our e-mailer's to-do list was downloading new vehicle icons. "Can anyone help me?"

Absolutely. Not only is it easy, it's free! We have a cheat sheet for installing new vehicles, and we'll explain the steps in detail later in this post. In less than a minute, you can be cruising in style. For those who spend their days helping others, we have the popular service vehicles bundle. We also cater to outdoor enthusiasts, Elliott Sadler fans, or anyone looking for something sleek or pink or futuristic.

Not seeing your ideal vehicle? Draw your own and enter our Wrench 'n' Win Contest!

Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest: The Grand Prize Has Arrived!

Greetings Garmin Garage fans! We’re right in the middle of the Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest and we’ve been flooded with so many great entries, we may have to make more room in the Garmin Garage! If you haven’t already entered, now’s the time to do so. Because in addition to our prizes for our weekly finalists, we’ll also be awarding one lucky grand prize winner with a brand new nüvi 205! This portable GPS device is one of the newest navigators in our extremely popular nüvi line-up and we can’t wait to give it away to the winning entry! So keep those sketches coming and be sure to let your family and friends know about the Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest! And remember – we pick the finalists but you pick the winner! We can’t wait to see what arrives next.   

Forerunner 405: Perfect for Mother's Day - or Win One for Yourself

With its release at the Boston Marathon and arrival at running stores, the Forerunner 405 has raced to the top of wish lists everywhere. And today only (May 7), you can win a free Forerunner 405 from Women's Health magazine. Click here for details and to enter the Women's Health contest.

And with Mother's Day coming up this weekend, Shape magazine says the Forerunner 405 is the perfect gift for active moms. "Speedy moms who still sign up for marathons, races or triathlons, one after the next, can better track their mileage, times and trails with the Garmin Forerunner 405," explains Shape's gift guide. "Near buildings or under trees, no matter where she strides, this gadget will track your mom's distance, elevation, calories burned, pace, and more." Click here for Shape's complete Mothers Day Gift Guide.

Get Reckless, Win A Garmin

Many of us here at Garmin HQ are fans of Reckless Kelly, an Austin, Texas-based rock and roll band with a rootsy twang.  On June 24, they'll release Bulletproof, their 7th album, which is chock-full of hard-charging anthems and heartfelt, down-on-your luck ballads.

You can pre-order the album today, and we strongly encourage you to do so.  Not only is it great music, but if you purchase the album, you stand to win a Garmin nüvi 760!  What's not to like?

Wrench ‘n’ Win: Week Two Finalists

Another week has passed for the Garmin Garage Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest and another round of great entries can now be viewed on the finalist page. Congratulations to the Week Two finalists. The submissions continue to amaze us and we’re sure the voting is going to get tougher and tougher each week. Of course, we pick the finalists but you get to pick the winner. So keep the great ideas coming. We’ve got some great prizes in store for all of our finalists and for the winner, too. And if you’ve already entered, be sure to let your friends and family know, too. A little competition is always fun, right?

More Garmin Geocoins Discovered in the Wild

Stories keep coming in about finding unactivated, limited-edition Garmin Colorado/Wherigo geocoins in random caches. That's what happens when crafty colleagues leave a little something for casual cachers. You see, we could activate them or announce the coin drop on the cache page, but what fun would that be?

Doris sent us this note just two days after Jake visited: "I just found a Colorado/Wherigo coin in a cache, Man's Best Friend, in Emmaus, PA. It was a very nice surprise." And this post showed up at geocaching.com shortly after Team Garmin was in California for the Sea Otter Classic. "BEAUTIFUL walk to this one! New places are wonderful to find," wrote luvnatuRRRE in the cache log. "Found a Colorado wherigo.com geocoin in this one that appears to not be activated yet."

So keep an eye on those caches. Where Garmin goes, a geocoin may follow.

Wrench 'n' Win Contest: First Week Finalists

Well, it’s been a week since we announced the Garmin Garage Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest and we’re now pleased to release the first week finalists! Be sure to stop by today and take a look! We heard from Garmin Garage fans far and wide and we were quite impressed with all of the entries. There are still three weeks to go and we’re sure we’ll be amazed by the next rounds, too. So keep sending those sketches, drawings and ideas. We have lots of great prizes that we'll announce soon and remember - at the end of the contest, the winning entry will be voted on by all of you and it will then be turned into an icon for everyone to download!

Also - we appreciate all of the photographs but legal reasons prevent us from making icons based on photographs of actual production vehicles or mass-produced items. Apparently, it’s one of those “lawyer things”. Congrats to our first finalists and good luck to everyone!

Wherigo/Colorado geocoin contest heats up in final week

Saving their best for last, our Wherigo Builders finished up our contest in style. Jake and Brad the Engineer were perplexed, not just in sorting out the adventures the competing cartridges took them on, but in choosing a winner. In the end, they let the contest go up in flames.

"The story behind my Wherigo cartridge is based on a true story about a fire that happened down the road from me," wrote John "JDubPooch" about his entry that earned him a limited-edition Garmin geocoin. "The pictures are true pictures from the scene and links to the real videos about the fire."

Wow, John (or should we call you JDub or Pooch?) - that's how you blend the spirit of geocaching with the creativity of Wherigo. And those pictures look awesome on the huge, vibrant screen of the Colorado 400t. Speaking of the Colorado 400t, Jake just checked in from the road and said that he used his Colorado to stash a couple more geocoins at undisclosed caches in Pennsylvania.

For more about John's "Firehouse" cartridge and our two runner-up entries, click on the jump below.

The Rides Keep Rolling In

Since we announced the contest at the beginning of the week, we’ve been flooded with lots of great ideas for the Garmin Garage Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest. We are sure going to have our work cut out for us when we pick the five weekly finalists. It’s been great to get such creative ideas and we can’t wait to see what’s next. So keep those sketches coming and remember – we can only use drawings of original artwork and ideas. As much as we’d like to create icons for your personal vehicles, we have a feeling we’d be hearing from some lawyers pretty quickly if we used real-life vehicles. Send those sketches, drawings and ideas our way and you might just see your icon brought to life in the Garmin Garage!

Talladega kick-off contest

Talladega Superspeedway is home to this weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Aaron's 499. If you're not one of the 175,000 fans that have a seat at the largest track in the circuit, here's a fun way to score some No. 19 gear while you're watching from home. Since this weekend's No. 19 car will debut the Garmin paint scheme, here's a friendly competition for all of the Garmin/ Elliott Sadler fans out there. Be one of the first few folks to send in the correct numbers to the following bits of trivia, and we'll send you a No. 19 Elliott Sadler t-shirt, Garmin-style. Good luck and we'll see you back here on Friday for the race weekend preview!

By the numbers...

Elliott has earned how many pole awards in his racing career?

An avid hunter, Elliott uses the Garmin Astro dog-tracking system with his Tennessee Walker hunting dogs. How many dogs can he track at one time with an Astro?

One week from today, Elliott will what age? 

Photos for Fodor's could win a nüvi 760

Have you taken a journey to Juneau? Dropped anchor in Anchorage? Do you believe there's no place like Nome? Submit your photos to Fodor's and you could have a chance to win a free Garmin nüvi 760 as part of their "Show Us Your Alaska" photo contest. Click here for details on how the Fodor's giveaway will reward shivering shutterbugs.

With its widescreen navigation and preloaded points of interest, the nüvi 760 is perfect for any vacation or business trip. And the nüvi 700 series is there to help when drivers need it most, answering two of the most common questions: “Where am I?” and “Where’s my car?” To add to your traveling experience, supplement the nüvi's vast database of locations with Fodor's Travel Guide. Just plug this handy card into your nüvi and get helpful details about the destinations that you discover. Good luck!!

Help Wanted

When we opened the Garmin Garage last November, we never realized we’d be so busy. Well, now we’re asking for your help with the Garmin Garage Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest! We want you to design the next vehicle for the Garmin Garage. All you have to do is sketch out your idea and submit it to the Garmin Garage . We’ll collect all of our entries each week, choose 5 finalists and then post the finalists' submissions for everyone to view. At the end of 4 weeks, we’ll open up the voting and you’ll be able to choose your favorite. The winner will have their sketched-out idea turned into an animated icon for the Garmin Garage! We’ve got weekly prizes and a pretty nice grand prize for the lucky winner! So start drawing, sketching and sending those ideas our way. We can’t wait to see what you create!

Visit the Garmin Garage Wrench 'n' Win Contest page for details!

Wherigo Geocoin Contest Enters Final Week

TeacherMike continues to impress us with his Wherigo cartridges, and the latest entry from the Week 3 runner-up was awarded the top prize in Week 5. Mike's persistence serves as a lesson for everyone hoping to win a limited-edition Colorado/Wherigo geocoin in the final week of competition. In the spirit of Monday night's NCAA championship thriller, we're expecting everyone to give it their best shot as time expires in our Wherigo contest.

The challenge in "My Dog Goes Where I Go or Help Find Rex" is to help a boy find his lost dog. "This cartridge takes you around the campus of the University of St. Francis in Joliet, IL," Mike says. "This one addes a timer at one point, multiple choice answers, and the use of the inventory."

Let the Sun 'n Fun begin

This stunning picture has made a name for itself as one of the most frequently asked about photos on the Garmin home page. Pilots and Garmin avionics fans from near and far have written in wondering where this scenic runway is located in hopes of making it their next destination.

But before we fill you in on the details, we want to hear from you! And since today kicked off this year's Sun 'n Fun avionics show in Lakeland, FL, what better way to start a week of flying fun than to have a giveaway?

If you think you've got it figured out, be one of the first to send the Garmin Blog crew a note with the correct answer and we'll send you some cool Garmin schwag! Good luck and keep checking back for more updates from the show.

Jake's Journal: Is there a coin in a cache near you?

We love it when a plan comes together. We hide them. You find them.

Cacher "Rozecki" wrote: "We found a Garmin Colorado/Wherigo Coin today while caching in Yardley, PA. The cache was GC3809. It was that cache owner's first hide and they managed to bring us to a very nice trail complete with large markers identifying the different varieties of trees. As we were leaving the trail a young family and their dog were excitedly starting the trail. Maybe they will be geocachers in the future?"

And "Emmbers" found a coin "at Celeste's Funny Cache (GC18F2Z), while my daughter and I were out geocaching today (in Overland Park, KS). There were two trails in the park she took one, I took the other. I got lucky and had the right trail so I got to the cache first. ... This is the best find ever for me. I'm not sure where I'm going to start it's journey yet, but I bet it will be exciting! Thanks!"

If anyone else finds these coins hidden across the U.S., let us know and we'll post your story.

Week 4 Winner of Colorado/Wherigo Geocoin

Maybe it's the "CSI" fan in each of us or a "Forensic Files" overdose, but we do love solving murder mysteries. Especially when they involve elaborate adventures for our inner Sherlock Holmes. Rachael and Kevan, under the caching name USCCouple, are this week's winners of our Wherigo Builder Contest for "Farewell Mr. Pratt." They worked hard to earn their limited-edition Colorado/Wherigo geocoin: "In this game you will be on a search for the killer which will take you all across Columbia, SC. Before you begin, be forewarned, it will not be easy. Ahead of you is over 60 miles of driving, a short hike and some other surprises!" Makes us glad the Colorado 400t has an automotive profile.

Our Week 4 runner-up, "The Treasure of East Sioux Falls," is the first cartridge for Sioux Falls, SD, created by Chuck Henson, aka StaticTank, who says, "It is a short but fun little quest taking place where the City of East Sioux Falls used to be. It is now the Perry Nature Area. I even included a reference to an incident I had with a park employee in the adventure." Intrigued? So were we.

Week 3 Winner of Colorado/Wherigo Geocoin

This week's top two entries in our Wherigo Builder Contest again exemplify the versatility of Wherigo. From entertainment to education, Wherigo is bounded only by your creativity. This week's winner, Laurie Southwick of St. Louis, proves that: "Easter Hunt takes people around a trail in a park seeking out the Easter Bunny. Players make a decision in each zone. If they answer correctly, they get an egg. There are a couple of surprises thrown in. It can be played to completion using the emulator, but the zones are not visible, so it will require clicking along the trail to find them." Thanks, Laurie, a limited-edition geocoin is in the mail!

Coming in a very close second, TeacherMike lives up to his name: "This is a walking tour of Downtown Joliet, IL taking people to famous and historic places in Joliet. Then at the end it takes the player to one of the oldest and most famous places in Joliet with a cache at the end."

Jake's Journal: Meet the Wherigo Week 2 Winner

We again turn to a California cartridge for the second week's winner of our Wherigo Builder Contest. John Grace, of Rancho Santa Margarita, blends history with adventure in "Closing In on D.B. Cooper" and in doing so, wins a limited-edition Colorado/Wherigo geocoin. While we were doing our Winter Wherigo Tour, everyone kept writing in and asking us how and where they could get one of these coveted coins. It's simple: Go to Wherigo.com and learn about the Wherigo Builder program. Build a cartridge and upload it to Wherigo.com. Send us an e-mail with a brief description and link to make your entry official.

John told us what makes his Cooper cartridge so unique: "I'd say it's the theme. I created a bunch of 'evidence' and strategically placed the stuff in the zones. Zone 3 (bush) for example, has a black tie hanging in a tree. Attached to the tie is a note that reads 'This tie is ugly. Cooper obviously had no fashion sense.' An ammo can at the end is also filled with evidence: FBI reports, photos, a letter from the FBI director, and so on. Having played numerous Infocom text adventures, I really believe the physical items add a little something to the adventure." We agree, John. Continue reading below for some of the entries that made this a tough decision and have us excited to see what everyone will come up with next week!

Wherigo winner gets his coin - and we get to play

In the spirit of showing up on a sweepstakes winner's front porch with balloons, a TV camera and an oversized check, we wanted to do something special for our first weekly winner of the Wherigo Builder Contest. So with a Colorado 400t, his digital camera and a Colorado/Wherigo geocoin in hand - we couldn't find an oversized check - Brad the Engineer traveled to California to meet the creative mind behind "Murder in the Outfield."

Turns out "Murder" has some back story to it. David Brewer, who caches under the name cache_in_pocket, was tipping his hat to a tongue-in-cheek feud with caching friends. And David's mystery was intriguing and entertaining enough to earn him a limited edition Colorado/Wherigo geocoin. To join David as a weekly winner, read up on the rules, build a cartridge at Wherigo.com and send us an e-mail with a link and brief description. Each week's deadline is Tuesday at noon Central.

Watch for Garmin on W_EEL OF FORT_NE

Whether you're a diehard Wheel Watcher or a casual channel surfer, we're hoping you find time next week to join Pat Sajak and Vanna White as three lucky contestants try to spin and solve their way to the big money on Wheel of Fortune. Tune in early to see the first two toss-ups - and then the fun begins when a special Garmin prize is added to the wheel on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. And anyone who has ever used a Garmin knows that it's far more helpful than a Wild Card in Wheel's bonus round. (Because really, beyond R, S, T, L, N, E, an extra three consonants and a vowel, how much do you really need?)

So have your Spin ID number ready, buy a vowel if needed, try to avoid Bankrupt and get ready to win with Garmin and Wheel of Fortune.

Jake's Journal: Our first Wherigo winner is...

...set to get a limited-edition Colorado/Wherigo geocoin this weekend. What, did you want me to announce the actual winner in this post? That would be too easy. If the Oscars and politicians can draw out the drama, we can't be blamed for wanting to do a little something special for our first winner in the weekly Wherigo Builder contest.

What I can tell you is that Brad and I have spent the past week downloading the cartridges that all of you built (as long as you sent us an e-mail to tell us about them) and playing them on the Colorado 400t. If you click on the jump below, I've included links to some of our favorites (in no particular order). And because our weekly contest starts anew every Tuesday at noon Central, we're well into the second round of contestants. So go to Wherigo.com and learn about the Wherigo Builder program. Build a cartridge and upload it to Wherigo.com. Send us an e-mail with a brief description and link to make your entry official. And you could join this week's winner in being the proud owner of a Colorado/Wherigo geocoin. That's all for now. I have to go play ... I mean, work.

Is there a geocoin near you?

We've been saying since we introduced the limited-edition Colorado/Wherigo geocoin that there would be a variety of ways to get one. First, we handed out nearly half of the entire supply during our winter tour. Then we announced the Wherigo Builder contest, where you can build a Wherigo cartridge at Wherigo.com, send us an e-mail and then hope you're that week's lucky winner. (Click here for complete rules.)

Now we're spreading the love. We've already hidden a handful of coins across the country - from Washington to Nebraska and from Pennsylvania to New Jersey - that are just waiting to be discovered in existing caches. Next stop: Austin, Texas, during South by Southwest. If you find one while you're caching, send us an e-mail and tell us how and where you found it. Pass along your picture, and we'll do our best to post everyone's stories and smiling faces. And don't worry, we have even more tricks up our sleeves....

Jake's Journal: Win a geocoin with Wherigo

At each stop on our recent Colorado/Wherigo tour, I've played equal parts Santa and Grinch. I was welcomed with open arms when I was explaining the Colorado 400t and its preloaded topo maps, paperless geocaching and wireless data transfer. I really became the star of the show when I was announcing the winning raffle numbers and handing over a limited-edition Colorado/Wherigo geocoin. But then I was the bad guy when I explained a few ground rules. 1) You can't get these geocoins by trading with me. 2) One person, one coin. 3) When my pockets are empty, the raffle is over.

But now I'm loosening the pursestrings. We're going to give away a coin a week to the weekly winner of our Wherigo Builder contest. The rules are easy. Build a Wherigo cartridge at Wherigo.com and send an e-mail to garminblogs@garmin.com with a brief description to let us know it's there. (Click here for detailed rules.) I'll team up with Brad the Engineer (the brains of our dynamic duo) and pick a winner each week until further notice. And that's just the beginning.

Napoleon's lyrical guide

Super Bowl XLII was the most-watched Super Bowl ever, and the ratings for those companies who had a spot during this advertising mecca are still coming in. That aside, many of you are still wondering what the French lyrics to Garmin's Napoleon commercial translate to. While there have been many guesses, one one has quite cracked the code. So before you go booking a flight to Paris to ask one of the locals, we'll let you in on the translation instead. Thanks to everyone who attempted to translate the lyrics, and for all the kind comments we've received since the spot!

"Under the sun, it's perfect, with my friends we drive, on the highway to paradise - alright - let's go in my car - the life before us is a beautiful sight, oh baby, here we go, let's go to paradise - alright - Garmin-Garmin-Garmin!"

Watch the commercial... win some Garmin goodies!

As you can see from the posts below, we've had a pretty busy week around here! And since it's Friday (and just days away from the big game) we've decided to keep the fun going in full force. So in true Garmin-Blog fashion, we're sweetening up our SB commercial announcement for our blog readers, with a little extra incentive. Be one of the first few people to translate the lyrics to the 30-second commercial, and you'll score some sweet Garmin schwag. Watch the spot, and the making-of as many times as it takes here. Then post your English translations below and we'll let you know how you did come Monday after the commercial makes it's television debut. Good luck!

(Sorry over-sea's bloggers, this schwag giveaway only applies to our readers in the States)

Colorado and Wherigo Make Splash in Seattle

   

Hundreds of geocachers and outdoor enthusiasts found shelter from Seattle's snowflakes and raindrops on Saturday, only to eagerly head back out into the elements. Such is the draw of Wherigo and the new Colorado 400t. Continuing what we first saw in Vegas and hope to experience next weekend in San Jose, More than 300 curious cachers came to REI to test-drive Wherigo and the 400t. As a bonus, Garmin and Groundspeak (the geocaching gurus) brought a few limited-edition Colorado/Wherigo geocoins. About 20 lucky winners heard their numbers called during the raffle. Everyone else was encouraged to keep an eye on the Garmin blog and Wherigo.com for more special events and promotions. And before you know it, a coin might show up unannounced at a cache near you. Stay tuned, and enjoy these scenes from Seattle.

Jake's Journal: Calling all Seattle geocachers

You know it's a good 30-hour period when you can go from running mountain roads in single-digit temps to seeing the latest and greatest ideas in the outdoor industry to chatting with the biggest names in geocaching. I started my Thursday with a 10-mile run in snowy Salt Lake City (this time my Forerunner 405's Virtual Partner didn't know what hit him), and finished it by telling an impressed Outdoor Retailer crowd about the 405 and Colorado 400t.

This morning, I flew to Seattle to meet with Team Groundspeak in preparation for Saturday's Wherigo event at REI. As I type this, geocachers are already visiting Groundspeak's lobby and counting down the hours until they get to try Wherigo on the Colorado 400t. There's also a good chance that a few lucky raffle winners will walk away with the new Colorado/Wherigo geocoin. If you can't make it to Seattle tomorrow, or San Jose next weekend, keep watching for events and promotions near you!

Only a few hours left...

As announced yesterday, the nüvi 880 is a finalist for Best of CES and the People’s Voice Award. By going to ces.cnet.com or sending a text message to CNET1 (26381), you can show your support for Garmin's start-to-finish speech recognition that lets you do every command with your voice. And don't forget dynamic content from MSN Direct that includes updates for traffic, weather, fuel prices, stocks, news and movie listings. The nüvi 880's nominee number is PV2, and voting closes when the clock strikes noon in Vegas today, so click here now to vote!

nüvi 880 a Best-of-CES finalist - vote now for People's Voice

Out of the tens of thousands of new products at CES, the nüvi 880 is one of 30 finalists to be named Best of CES. With speech recognition and MSN Direct, the nüvi 880 helps make navigation easier and more efficient than ever. And now nüvi can use your help.

As a finalist, the nüvi 880 can win the People’s Voice Award. This year, votes can be cast online at ces.cnet.com or by sending a text message to CNET1 (26381) with the nominee number - PV2 for the nüvi 880. Voting opens Tuesday, 10 a.m., and closes Wednesday, noon Vegas time, so click here now to vote!

Grab a Garmin and pick up your 'Pirates' DVD today!