In New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, Bret Watson took note of a sassy illustration on a medieval brass bowl of a woman spanking her husband. Deciding that tidbits like this were too good not to be shared, Watson devised a way to get his friends to take notice of such delicious details.
Putting to work his skills as a stand-up comedian - and even as a journalist for TV Guide, Entertainment Weekly and Princeton's (his alma-mater) humor publication, Tiger Magazine - he came up with a little game for them to play. To solve a museum mystery, Watson challenged his friends to follow silly clues and a seriously engaging story line that he wrote, effectively taking part in his first scavenger hunt.
Now, having served more than 150,000 happy hunters in New York, San Francisco and five other cities across the United States since starting Watson Adventures in 1999, the 52-year-old Long Island native ensures Watson Adventurers are using their noggins - and each other - to solve murder mysteries, history mysteries and witty riddles.
Watson's San Francisco scavenger hunts - which began in 2002 - reflect a rising Bay Area trend of people hitting the streets in groups to get more face time with each other.
"Part of this whole cultural shift is reality TV," Watson says. "('The Amazing Race') was almost like an advertisement for, 'Hey, there! There are these people out there exploring in the context of a game.' Well, guess what? It exists."
Blame it on the summer sunshine, but young adult friends looking for an unconventional birthday party option, competitive couples, elderly history buffs and families with children are all seeking ways to get out and about to spend time together.
The Wong family from Millbrae used the Watson Adventures Murder at the de Young scavenger hunt to prep for a trip to Europe, brushing up on some cultural trivia.
"We wanted to look at the paintings and the artists," says Nicholas Wong, 10, who joined the hunt with his parents and sister. "A lot of people should do it. It's actually fun!"
For the Mulligans, the company's Munch Hunt was about learning survival skills. While very savvy with a phone, Neale Mulligan's daughter got to work on map reading. It was also about getting along.
"It's like a marriage test, right?" Neale says about high-pressure problem-solving when gelato is on the line with Kate, his wife of 26 years.
For corporations, it may be a matter of economics. In an age of recession and penny-pinching, companies still recognize the importance of investing in their employees to boost morale and productivity. Particularly young companies, progressive in how they treat their employees and build teams, are turning to hunts.
"You watch 'Mad Men' and the team-building there is, 'Let's get drunk,' 'Let's go to a whorehouse' or 'Let's play golf.' ... Those activities are more passive," Watson says in a phone interview from Manhattan. He believes that, in our more modern age, an active exercise has its merits. "A game artificially raises the stakes. It's a great construct for raising the pressure, but in a way that is fun."
Dan Kleiber, president of the Bay Area's Mr. Treasure Hunt, also tries to get employees of his clients, such as Hewlett-Packard and Wells Fargo, to problem solve in ways they might not necessarily be used to.
"People are very resourceful now. They have a tool in their pocket or their purse that is very powerful," he says, alluding to smart phones. Rather than relying on technology, a team-building activity like a hunt encourages participants to draw on the strengths of their other teammates and talk to each other.
"Once people get out there, you get the materials and you give them a team, their eyes light up. They say, 'Hey, this is something I can contribute to.' "
Watson says that eliminating smart phones in his company's hunts levels the playing field, and also ensures that his clues can't be solved while lazing on a park bench.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/06/07/PKDR1ONO7T.DTL#ixzz1xVFEqaMJ
