New for 2012, we proudly introduce the PG&E Corporate Challenge.  Designed for businesses that wish to organize a team and have a friendly competition for bragging rights and the chance to win some cash while participating in the world-famous Tech Search Party, any team that registers via the PG&E Corporate Challenge link on the registration page is automatically entered to win a cash prize of $250.  Whichever PG&E Corporate Challenge team finishes with the best score is the winner.  PG&E will even have a team participating.

Teams registering for the PG&E Corporate Challenge will pay $50.00 per person (instead of per team), but are eligible for a cash prize of $250, courtesy of PG&E.   Teams pay more, but have a chance to win more.  Sort of like an Ivy League education.

This is your chance to rally your co-workers and call out your biggest rivals.  For example, we’ve already got a team of Red Sox players signed on and they’ve challenged those &%#! Yankees to compete head to head in the mean streets of Noe Valley.  And the Olsen Twins have called out the Sprouse Brothers for the title of Bad TV Twin supremacy.*

There’s less than two weeks now, so start finalizing your team and get yourself registered!

Some FAQs:
Are PG&E Corporate Challenge Teams Still Eligible for Other Prizes?
Absolutely.  If a team finishes first overall, first in the corporate challenge category, and also has the best team name – well that’s the Triple Crown of Tech Search Party®

Can An Organization Have More Than One Team?
You betcha.

Can Anyone Compete in the Corporate Challenge?
It’s ideally suited to businesses, but if you want to pay a higher registration fee for the chance to basically win your money back, that’s ok with us.

So How Does Pricing Work Again?
For teams of up to 4 people, the cost is $50.  For teams of up to 6 people, the cost is $75.  For teams greater than 6; well, you can’t have any team with more than 6 people.  To participate in the PG&E Corporate Challenge, you pay $50 per person.

What If I Already Signed Up But Want to Change my Team to a Corporate Challenge?
Drop me a line at tsmith@elementpr.com and we’ll figure it out.

* These last two sentences are completely fabricated.  Unfortunately.

With Tech Search Party just a few weeks away, it’s time to start stretching your calves as well as your cerebral cortex.  As much as we like messing with people’s brains when devising our clues, you’ll find real brain experts at SharpBrains.

Here are some expert tips on getting ready for putting your brains to work on February 4.

• Top 50 Brain Teasers and Games
• The Ten Habits of Highly Effective Brains
• Top 15 Puzzles and Riddles
• 7 FAQs on Mental Exercise

As a bonus, the founder of SharpBrains is donating copies of his book The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness.

Each member of the winning team will receive a copy of the book to help them defend their title.  In addition, the Condescending Ribbon prize for the team that comes in last will also receive book copies; so that next year they can improve their standing.

There’s lots more info at www.sharpbrains.com and I’d encourage you to check it out.  It’s a great Web site, and a great resource.

A shout-out to our friends at CitySolve Urban Race.  There are people like me that put on scavenger hunts for fun, and then there are people like Jason Hofsess at CitySolve who do this for a living.

CitySolve is a unique urban adventure that takes a lot of brain, a bit of brawn, and are a ton of fun.  More than a scavenger hunt, but less physical than a 5k-road race, this unique hybrid combines trivia, from pop culture to world history, with a team-oriented adventure.  Add in the occasional checkpoint challenge (think Double Dare without the slime) and you’ve got CitySolve Urban Race.

CitySolve has races all over the country, and even one coming up in San Francisco on June 16.

I encourage you to check out CitySolve’s next local event.  They are generously offering a discount on registration to Tech Search Party aficionados. Use the code ‘techsearchparty’ when registering and your $60 fee will only be $25 bucks.

Check it out!

At Tech Search Party headquarters, we are hard at work on any and all ways to make the evening more fun for everyone.  Toward that end, we’re toying with the musical soundtrack for the event.

We’ve come up with a handful of songs that we think would make a great accompaniment soundtrack.  Some of these are my suggestions, others from my 8-year-old daughter.  Can you tell which ones are hers?

• Halfway There, by Big Time Rush
• Never Say Never, by Justin Bieber
• I’m Lost, by X
• Ooh! My Head, by Los Lobos
• Lost Ones, by Lauryn Hill
• I Am A Wanderer, by Steve Earle
• Question, by Old 97s

Use the comments field or the Tech Search Party or tweet to @TSPNV to let me know if you’ve got other suggestions.

I’m excited to announce drei/troi/tres new sponsors for Tech Search Party.  That’s three in one day!

Financially, Tech Search Party is off to it’s best start ever, in no small part thanks to the generosity of our sponsors.  I’m proud to announce two new sponsors and one alumnus.

The folks at Wired.com have participated in past events, but this year have gone all in.  Wired.com is the online partner of WIRED magazine, offering 15 million monthly readers an insightful mix of real time news, opinion, reviews and how-to tutorials from the front lines of technology and culture.  If these geeks technology experts pull a team together again this year, there might be a new team to beat.

Another newcomer to Tech Search Party sponsorship is First Republic Bank, representing a distinctive model in private banking and wealth management and with a sharp focus on extraordinary, personalized service.  Stop by their office at 653 Irving Street and thank Rachel Woldeselasie for getting behind our humble event.

Last but not least is returning sponsor Circle Bank.  Circle Bank champions the entrepreneurial goals and personal visions of their customers by delivering uncommonly friendly, responsive and respectful service and enriching the communities they serve.  Another shout-out to Erick Tenorio, who heads up the Circle Bank office on 24th Street, between Noe & Sanchez.

Hey Folks,

With only 57 days until Tech Search Party, The Third, things are starting to heat up.  We are proud to announce our first three sponsors.

Google: Is back backing our event for the third year running.  Google is a search engine and a bunch of other things, for those of you who have been in a bunker for the past decade.

Wyse Technology: First-time sponsor Wyse is the global leader in Cloud Client Computing. The Wyse portfolio includes industry-leading thin, zero and cloud PC client solutions with advanced management, desktop virtualization and cloud software supporting desktops, laptops and next generation mobile devices.

Verizon Wireless: Another first-time sponsor, Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s largest, most reliable 3G network and the nation’s largest 4G LTE network.  There’s a very good chance this year’s participants will be relying on this network to get their answers in.

Tech Search Party is, quite literally, fun and games, but behind an evening of frivolity is the goal to raise as much money as possible to help out SF public schools.  These companies have all given generously to support us in that initiative.

Find your own way to say thank you, gracias, merci, danke, þakka þér or whichever language you prefer.

Hopefully, we’ll be announcing new sponsors very soon.  If anyone has questions about sponsoring, drop me a line at tsmith@elementpr.com

In the grand tradition of the Lord of the Rings, The Godfather and Jurassic Park, we are proud to present the third installment in the Tech Search Party franchise. Many more details are still to come, but for now please Hold That Date.

Tech Search Party III will take place on Saturday, February 4, 2012, from 6:00 to 8:00. The event kicks off at the auditorium at James Lick Middle School, at the corner of Noe and 25th Street in charming Noe Valley.

Delay not. Get your self registered today here

It’s time for the full accounting on Saturday night’s Tech Search Party.

Remember, when two teams answer the same number of questions, we look at who got that answer first.  In the case of our top two, 2+2=5 was about 30 seconds faster than Noe or Nice.

Some highlights:

A shout out to Future Techies +1 Old guy, comprised of one guy with a barely functional phone and a bunch of kids.  Not sure how you pulled it off, but nice work!

This was our first event since the invention of the iPad.  It certainly helped Noe or Nice, although they will claim it was just pure brilliance.

Speaking of (the opposite of ) brilliance, Winoe is on double-secret probation for trying to bribe my 7 year-old for answers, and failing to find the clue at their own house.

Here’s the full reckoning: