Medallion Hunt has its biggest prize yet

Get ready, Wichita. The Eagle Medallion Hunt starts Thursday with the biggest prize ever.

Eddy’s Everything – a Wichita-area car dealership with five locations – will let the Medallion Hunt winner pick a new 2016 vehicle from 13 options ranging up to $26,289.

“The excitement of somebody, when they get a free car, it’s amazing,” said Brandon Steven, owner of Eddy’s Everything. “It’s just spontaneous. You can never duplicate it.”

The options are: Chevy Cruz, Chevy Equinox, Chevy Malibu, Dodge Journey, Dodge Grand Caravan, Jeep Patriot, Jeep Cherokee, Chrysler 200, Ford Fusion, Ford Escape, Toyota Camry, Toyota Rav4, Toyota Prius. EddysEverything.com has posted the giveaway options online.

The Eagle Medallion Hunt is a Riverfest tradition where participants follow published clues to search for a plastic coin, 2 inches in diameter, hidden on public property in Wichita. Hunters can search individually or in groups, but only one person can claim the prize.

If someone finds the medallion by June 8, Eddy’s Everything will present the winner with the vehicle at the Naughty by Nature concert scheduled for 9 p.m. June 8.

The Eagle will release clues daily beginning Thursday, June 2, and participants have until midnight June 9 to find the medallion. The contest does not require a Riverfest button to participate.

During the hunt, The Eagle will publish clues in print and online. Online clues will be posted at Kansas.com and on The Eagle’s Facebook and Twitter pages around 7 a.m.

For people who want to get the clues even earlier, John Ohmie, single copy manager for The Eagle, said the QuikTrip locations at Washington and Douglas and at Douglas and Seneca usually are the first to receive printed copies of The Eagle. He said all QuikTrip stores usually receive newspapers by 5 a.m., and the rest of the single-copy locations receive papers by 6 a.m.

The clues require historical knowledge about Wichita to crack the answers.

“The whole purpose of the hunt is to have fun at it, to learn things about where we live and the city’s culture and history,” said Sherry Chisenhall, editor of The Eagle.

She’s one of only two Eagle employees who know the medallion’s whereabouts.

This year marks the 42nd anniversary of the Medallion Hunt in Wichita. It took an eight-year hiatus when hunters started damaging public property and teams became overly competitive. Then it became a “virtual” hunt in 2009 and returned to the traditional, real-world hidden medallion in 2011.

Chisenhall said the hunt has gone smoothly since its return.

The clues and hiding place do not require any digging, trespassing or damaging of public property. People who do so, or who don’t obey park operating hours, will be disqualified.

The finder must bring the medallion to The Eagle’s lobby, 825 E. Douglas, by 3 p.m. June 10. Only one person, who’s a Kansas resident, at least 18 years old and has a valid driver’s license, can claim the prize.

Employees and immediate family members of The Eagle, the McClatchy Co., Eddy’s Everything and Wichita Festivals Inc. and board members of Wichita Festivals Inc. are not allowed to participate. Complete rules, eligibility requirements and updated clues are available at www.kansas.com/riverfest.

This story was originally published May 29, 2016 at 7:54 AM with the headline "Medallion Hunt has its biggest prize yet."