My personal opinions here...
> Possibly utilize the "accept or decline your trip date", with the non-refundable $15 per person fee payment made when you accept.
This one is a tough one. It will turn the lottery into more of a free-for-all, where the most industrious person would have a better chance than a person playing more reasonably. Say I decided to enter 10 applications, paying the $6 for each application, (and each application could contain 15 distinct start dates). For $60, I would have a 10 times better chance of winning a slot, as compared to someone entering a single application. That favors people with more time and money. I don't like that.
It also begins to look like the river lotteries, where there is about a 5% success rate.
I still feel that limiting the number of applications, but enabling people to enter a date range rather than 15 specific entry dates would be more equitable.
...but this is my opinion only. I'd like to see others' ideas. (and so would Inyo staff.)
I agree, the fact that you can decline the dates you dont want is basically rewarding the person who sits and enters hundreds of start dates.
If you are financially responsible for EVERY application you submit if you win makes it a much bigger deterrent if 4 of the 10 applications that person submits hit... think about it;
last year:
submit 10 permits with 3 people and 4 are winners:
thats $60 for the application and $180 for the 4 trips with 3 people. with a total of $240... thats enough to discourage me to take that gamble
this year
submit 10 permits with 3 people and 4 are winners:
Same $60 but this time I can decline the other 3 winners and only pay $105...
on another note too... serialize the wag bags with a unique number associated with a group leader... they find a bag, record the number, hit that group leader with littering or whatever fine!
No more wag bags on the trail!
