When Jon Jackson first heard about the Summerfest medallion hunt this year, he followed the clues with casual interest. He says he strolled around three different parks, but “nothing felt right.”
When the fourth clue came out on June 23, he knew almost right away it had something to do with horseshoes.
Because he moved with his wife and two sons to Oakdale only last year, he was still unfamiliar with the many parks in the community. So he did an online search of Oakdale parks that offer horseshoes. Sure enough, Horseshoe Park located off Seventh Street showed up at the top of the list.
Larry Eberhard, a representative of the Oakdale Chamber of Commerce, says it is actually pretty common that the people who find the medallions are Oakdale residents who weren’t previously familiar with the park where it was hidden.
Jackson recalls quickly telling his wife that he knew where the medallion was before racing out the door. He was not the first one at Horseshoe Park either. He estimates there were 10 other people poking around in the woods surrounding the park.
He started searching the same places as everybody else until it dawned on him that the third clue included the words “unlock” and “key.” Turning round, he spotted the bright yellow lock box located in the park and felt certain the medallion was hidden near it.
The box wouldn’t open, but he noticed there was something underneath it. He tried to move it, but it didn’t budge.
“No, that’s part of the box,” Jackson remembers saying under his breath, before he paused to take a closer look. When he looked again he saw the shims holding the box in place. He removed the shims and discovered the box was loose enough to pull out.
“It was pretty fast, the last little bit. I pulled it out and realized I had it,” Jackson says. “I was pretty excited.”
Jackson, a graphic designer, says he isn’t quite sure what he will do with the $1,000 prize that accompanies the medallion.
Aundrea Kinney can be reached at 651-748-7822 or akinney@lillienews.com.
Copyright 2016 Lillie Suburban Newspapers.