Celebrate the Elf Parade

/2 Comments/in , , , , , , /by

The Thanksgiving Day Elf Parade is a tradition celebrated by elves everywhere – including you! (We hope)

Just as we did last year, we are encouraging tracker elves everywhere to join in the festivities of Thanksgiving by sharing photos of themselves in their elf outfit, of their home tracking center, of their decorated trikes, bikes, scooters, long boards or other vehicular transport of choice, or even of themselves in front of their Christmas tree. You can either post them to the Elf Wall or share them via the form below.

We will collect images from this site and from SantaUpdate.com to share with everyone later.

Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving!

Please enter your 4-digit PIN
Click or drag a file to this area to upload.
Please upload only as the following file formats: png, gif, jpg, jpeg
Please see our Privacy Policy for more information.

Elf Crusader Named Sector Lead for Sector 5

/25 Comments/in , , , /by

I am pleased to announce that Elf Crusader has been promoted to Sector Lead in Sector 5. As such, he in effect becomes my assistant here at SantaTrackers.net.

Most Sector 5 elves are already well aware of Elf Crusader. Crusader is the North Pole Naturalist, a city captain, a Senior Elf, a member of Santa’s Council and a popular elf podcaster and a dedicated tracker elf whose presence on these boards is well known and appreciated. He is a mentor to many elves and a constant source of good information.

As Sector Lead Elf Crusader will step up his efforts to communicate with tracker elves of Sector 5 on a daily basis. Outside of my own occasional news reports Elf Crusader will keep elves informed in things I might share with him as we get closer to Santa’s launch. He is trusted, calm and responsible. I find Elf Crusader ideally suited for this role and you can depend on him to provide you with timely information.

My reports post each Friday. Elf Crusader will be sharing information with you via the elf wall daily on a more informal basis.

He will answer your questions. When he can’t answer something Elf Crusader has contacts both with me and other elves he knows at the North Pole and North Pole Flight Command to answer your questions.

He will be available to guide you through your training. He will assist Elf Moe, if necessary, in policing troubled posts. He will remind you of rules, deadlines, expectations and needs.

Elf Crusader will even be able to reach Santa from time to time on matters of tracking and Operation Merry Christmas.

Elf Crusader will work from his home tracking center – for now – but could be called upon if needed for service either here in Mistletoe or at the North Pole.

Some, in applying for the Lead position, have asked me if this position could lead to other positions in an elf career, possibly even a position at the North Pole. The answer to that is yes. This appointment has been approved by both Elf Roger and Santa himself.

Elf Crusader continues to be a pioneer of sorts. He is the first Sector lead to be named. I do not know what progress has been made in naming Sector leads in other Sectors but Santa has told me that we have not wanted to rush this process. It is unknown at this time if other leads will be named this year. However, Santa did say that the choice of Elf Crusader is inspired and that he “wishes this young elf all the best”.

Please join me in thanking Elf Crusader in advance for his time and efforts and in congratulating him on this new position. It is well deserved and I’m excited to have him on the Sector 5 team as our lead elf.

Sector Lead

Elf Promotions at Regional HQ

/5 Comments/in , , , /by

Elf promotions at our Regional HQ in Mistletoe, Kentucky are effective immediately. These promotions needed to be made in advance of Operation Merry Christmas, which kicks off in just a couple of days.

I do not expect you to know these elves as they usually do not have time to be active on SantaTrackers.net. Yet they contribute a great deal to our efforts in Sector.

As you may or may not be aware, Sector 5 is the largest sector in terms of our count of elves and our flow of reports. We need these extra administrators to help us process information for operations at Flight Command.

These elves will serve in the following positions over the course of Operation Merry Christmas this year;

Elf Jennie Quade – Map Room Supervisor
Elf Jennie heads up the Map Room, a very important position that requires a huge amount of organizational skills. This giant room is filled with large computer screens that show weather maps, topographical maps, real estate maps, and transit maps. She also has on files copies or original vintage maps for reference. A staff of more than 40 elves supports her in the efforts to find information about any place within our sector quickly. Frequently she will be tasked with putting together fast reports for Santa about areas where he lacks information. When we do not have an elf in a neighborhood or near a home Santa is headed to Jennie will get the call to provide information quickly. One of her little known tools is an army of drones that she operates with the support of staff from Flight Command. When she needs more information quickly she can contact FC and they will dispatch drones to any location she specifies within 3 feet of her geographical coordinates. She can feed that information directly to Santa via live video feed or video archives.

Elf Gary Fronk – Flight Operations Coordinator
Elf Gary has spent years in Flight Command in Flight Operations and knows global sleigh flight protocols like few others. He will serve as a critical link with North Pole Flight Command as they shuttle sleighs in and out of Sector 5. Any sleigh entering our sector automatically comes under the direction of Elf Gary and his team. With a staff of more than 350 elves Gary leads the largest team at our Mistletoe, Kentucky headquarters. He must know where every sleigh is every minute they are in our sector and where they are going. He needs to keep them on schedule. They need to move with precision and accomplish their missions safely on time every time. This is a vital role and one Gary is very well suited for.

Elf Debbie Bartles – Messaging Director
Elf Debbie has spent decades working for Elf Ernest in the Public Relations Department at the North Pole. She is knew to remote location work this year and was selected to help keep the mail flowing to Santa within Sector 5. Her team of 80 elves directs all incoming electronic communications from internal sources, from government contacts, from military and industrial complex leadership, from states and municipalities and other authorities who seek coordination with North Pole Flight Command about Santa’s flight, Operation Air Lift and all other sleigh flights originating from the North Pole. She directs the most important messages to the correct party at the right time to keep communications current and timely. It’s a huge job. She also works with the North Pole Post Office to keep messages to Santa flowing back and forth between the North Pole and Santa.

Please stand-by for at least one more announcement of an important promotion that will affect elves worldwide.

Sector 3 Report

/1 Comment/in , , /by

Friends and Trackers in Sector 3, hello!

I am pleased to report that as of this date, our sector is on track for our goals for 2022. Operation Merry Christmas is depending on us and we have done very well so far. Congratulations!

Here is where we are by the numbers:

North Pole Tracker Elves: 7,894
Freelance Tracker Elves: 1,238,673
Total Tracker Elves: 1,246,567

I know we have de-emphasized the number of elves in our area. I understand as well the need for better and more information for Santa as he flies on Christmas Eve. But, common sense and some amount of math tells me that in order to grow our Tracker Elf reports we need to grow in tracker elf numbers. From the “elf purge” earlier this year we LOST more elves than any other sector. By the week of Christmas, I figure we’re going to need better than 5 million elves overall to do our part. So, spread the word. Let’s get some of those elves let go from earlier this year BACK. And let’s find some new elves, friends. Surely there are many others out there who want to be an elf. Show them how to become an elf.

Here’s our report status so far:

North Pole Tracker Elf Reports: 23,682
Freelance Tracker Elf Reports: 3,468,284
Total Tracker Elf Reports: 3,491,966
Tracker Elf Ratio: 2.8 

That tracker elf ratio is an important number. It basically tells us how many reports have been sent in from each tracker. We need that number to get to 8 by the time Santa flies. So we have a LOT of reporting to do. Our goal for the season is 40 million reports. That’s the second highest goal on the board.

So as you can see, we have a lot of work to do.

Feedback from Santa:
Trackers of Sector 3, hello! Thank you for your many efforts. Sector 3 is always a very supportive and festive group. We have many believers from North to South in this Sector. But they live in very different kinds of areas and their homes are all different. In the North, there are more chimneys in this part of the world than any other. So our needs for chimney inspections are great. The chimneys in Europe especially are really old and some are in poor condition and falling apart. I don’t want any of you getting on a roof top to inspect these chimneys but if you can get pictures from an upper window or other safe location it really helps me. In the South, chimneys are fewer but the wildlife is much greater. We may have to develop a new report about stray animals in places in Africa. But for now, Elf Rolf will instruct you on how to report on this issue. I have a lot of worries about Sector 3 and most of the time it is centered on the weather. Do you best to keep Flight Command of what the forecast is in your area. Thanks! — Santa

Please follow this direction and send in this information for this week:

Have questions? Just ask them via the comments below. I’ll do my best to get someone to answer them.

Thank you for your hard work!

Sector 2 Weekly Update

/1 Comment/in , , /by

Greetings, Elves of Sector 2.

As this report shows, for the very first time, we are as a sector SMALLEST in number but LARGEST in size. That means the contributions of each one of you is mighty important. Here are the numbers:

North Pole Tracker Elves: 964
Freelance Tracker Elves: 105,774
Total Tracker Elves: 106,738

From all of those elves scattered from the east coast of Asia the to western borders of the Middle East, we have received so far the following reports:

North Pole Tracker Elf Reports: 3,374
Freelance Tracker Elf Report: 296,167
Total Tracker Elf Reports: 299,541

Our sector report goal for 2022 is 6.5 million total reports.

As you can see, we have quite a hill to climb.

Note from Santa for this week:
Trackers of Sector 2, thank you. I see your many efforts. One of the many metrics followed closely by Elf Clif is your report rate, which presently sits at 2.8. We need to get that number up. The higher it goes, the more information I have on my flight. Now, I know it’s early and your area is HUGE. But I need more information from Sector 2 than any other part of the world. There are billions of people in this sector and getting to them all is a real challenge. I don’t want to miss anyone. So your information is vital. Please do your best to send in more reports as directed by your elf supervisor. Thanks and have a great week. – Santa

Instructions – please send in the follow reports for this week if you can:

Also please note. We’re low on elves. There just not enough elves to cover all the big areas of our Sector. Do you know anyone who wants to be an elf? Send them here to SantaTrackers.net. We need more elves. Sector 2 is depending on you.

Thanks, Elves. Have a great week!

 

Sector 1 Weekly Report

/1 Comment/in , , /by

As reported yesterday by Elf Roger Star and as requested by Santa, here is a recap of activities in Sector 1 to date:

North Pole Tracker Elves: 4,358
Freelance Tracker Elves: 403,561
Total Tracker Elves: 407,919

North Pole Tracker Elf Reports YTD: 13,510
Freelance Tracker Elf Reports YTD: 1,251,039
Total Tracker Elf Reports YTD: 1,264,549

Feedback from Santa this week for Sector 1:

The vast size of Sector 1 presents many delivery challenges. Most populated areas have homes without chimneys. Therefore, things like roof reports and chimney inspections are not called for in this sector as often. However, especially in northern areas where the weather can be much colder there are housing structures that DO have chimneys. From these locations I DO need chimney inspections done soon. Take pictures if you possibly can. For homes without chimneys I need two bits of information: good landing locations for the sleigh and the easiest way into a home without a chimney. So detailed reports, with pictures if possible, are greatly appreciated.

Your instructions this week:

  1. Please give us an update of your status by sending in an Elf Status Report
  2. Please survey your neighborhood and submit an updated Ground Report
  3. If you can take photos of access areas, obstacles and new structures in your area, please send them in via a Photo Report
  4. Please do a Local Christmas Report as time allows

Thank you!

 

 

Tracking Santa Status Report

/2 Comments/in , /by

Good day, elves!

I am pleased to update you on the status of the Tracking Santa for Santa program. This is the first of a series of weekly updates that I will be posting each Sunday. You will see a breakout report for each sector going forward to be posted by your elf supervisor on an assigned day of the week.

Before these reports are posted I review the data with Santa and receive direction from him. That information is shared with the Elf Supervisors late Saturday evening. After receiving that information it is reviewed by each supervisor, who then has a conference call privately with Santa for specific direction.

As of Saturday, November 19th, 2022, here is the status of elves worldwide:

North Pole Tracker Elves: 71,698
Freelance Tracker Elves: 8,606,898

Total Elves Tracking Santa for Santa: 8,678,596

From this pool of trained, professional and mostly-remote located volunteers we have, year to date, received the following reports as requested from Elf Supervisors and North Pole Flight Command:

Reports from North Pole Tracker Elves: 105,600,216
Reports from Freelance Tracker Elves: 133,794,567

Total worldwide tracker reports so far received: 239,394,783

This puts us at roughly 24% to goal for the year. Considering the date on the calendar, the number of days left until Santa launches, and the anticipated growth in the recruitment of elves over the next 30+ days, we believe these efforts to on track.

We can also report the status of the following important elements of Operation Merry Christmas associated with Tracking Santa for Santa:

North Pole Flight Command: To date, NPFC has a fully operational 24-hour command center located at the North Pole. Regional support locations have been established and are now operational in the following locations:

  • Sector 1: Wiseman’s Creek, Australia
  • Sector 2: Bethlehem, Palestine
  • Sector 3: Bethlehem, South Africa
  • Sector 4: Milagro, Ecuador
  • Sector 5: Mistletoe, Kentucky, USA

North Pole Navy: In addition, extensions of Flight Command and support for sleigh operations have been launched through the North Pole Navy with ships deployed in the following locations:

  • SS Jingle Bell – Pacific Ocean
  • SS Snowball – Artic Ocean
  • SS Tannenbaum – Indian Ocean
  • SS Donner – Northern Atlantic Ocean
  • SS Eggnog – Southern Atlantic Ocean
  • SS Mistletoe – Coral Sea
  • SS Frosty – Antarctic Ocean

Santa’s Reindeer: Santa’s reindeer are all accounted for and healthy. The entire team is presently located at the North Pole. They are engaged in training for the Reindeer Games, scheduled to begin soon.

Santa’s Sleigh: Santa’s sleigh design for 2022 has been under rigorous testing since July. A brief break in test flight operations is scheduled for Thanksgiving. Immediately after Thanksgiving test flight teams will be redeployed to test Version 9 of Santa’s sleigh, presently planned over the skies of the Pacific in Sector 1.

Santa’s Feedback (from Santa himself)

Friends, thank you for your willingness to serve the cause of Operation Merry Christmas. This week, immediately following Thanksgiving festivities, we officially launch Operation Merry Christmas. This is the flight phase of our mission and it very much involves each and every one of you. Your elf supervisor will be posting direction and needs for your area. Please pay attention and from this point forward plan to visit each day to learn of news and assignments. The detail in the information you provide I find extremely useful. We started out this year making an effort to improve information that would support my visits. That effort has already paid off. What happens over the next 30+ days is critical to the mission. So please do not let up and please report as you are asked. I am very pleased with the overall effort and I feel that we are in a good position to have a successful run this year. Thank you and Merry Christmas. – Santa

This is my report for this first week. Future reports will not be as lengthy.

Thank you.

Elf Roger Star

Changes to the Tracker Elf Conference

/5 Comments/in , /by

The Tracker Elf Conference is designed to help good elves become better trackers. It’s about training and communicating needs for everyone – for you, the tracker elf, but also for North Pole Flight Command, your Elf Supervisors and, ultimately, for Santa.

In years past we have done this as a long event over one or two weekend days.

Your response to the Tracker Elf Conference Survey told us that this didn’t work out well for you – mostly because December is packed with so many other events. Most seemed to feel that access to the information as soon as possible through news and posts was better than the chat-heavy events of the past.

So we’re going to do that.

But we’re also going to do some chat events too. That has already been announced by Elf Winslow earlier.

We are going to focus on two major changes going forward-

  1. Weekly updates from your elf supervisor. This has already been announced and it begins this Monday.
  2. Your questions answered: We got a lot of great questions from the survey. We’re going to hold roundtable discussions with Santa and key elves and then provide you with an transcript of those discussions for your review. The questions and answers will specifically address:
    • Operation Merry Christmas
    • Santa-specific Stuff
    • How Santa Tracking Works
    • How to Answer Tough Questions from Skeptics
    • Questions About Reindeer
    • Christmas Eve

We believe these broad topics cover the majority of the questions submitted via the survey. We invite you, however, to continue asking questions through that survey. If you think of something new, just submit it via that form even if you have done that before.

We will be using your questions verbatim in holding these discussions.

Thank you for your attention. It’s going to be a great Tracker Elf Conference this year!

Saturdays in Elf Chat

/4 Comments/in , /by

Saturdays in Elf Chat is a new feature for this tracking season that come as a result of your participation in the Tracker Elf Conference Survey.

The surveys were split on the topic of the Tracker Elf Conference. In the past the Tracker Elf Conference was held on one or two days and chat was where it was held. For many however, especially since we all live in different time zones, it wasn’t a convenient way to get information.

But for those who COULD attend those live chats the information was very helpful.

So the decision has been made to tackle the format of the Tracker Elf Conference in several new ways – by still using chat but also by posting articles about important topics.

So, we will be holding live chats featuring key elves you have asked to chat with. Specific times of these chats will be posted as we get closer to these dates:

  • Saturday, December 3rd – Elf Victor, Head of Reindeer Operations at the North Pole
  • Saturday, December 10th – Elf Frank Myrrh of North Pole Radio News
  • Saturday, December 17th – Elf Crash Murphy, Santa’s Eye-in-the-Sky Reporter
  • Saturday, December 24th – Elf Roger Star, International Director of Santa Trackers

A couple of additional notes for you:

  • We are trying to find a time for a chat with Santa. That might not happen on a Saturday as those are really busy times for Santa. We’ll keep you posted on this.
  • The chat on Christmas Eve could be interesting because we’ve never tried that before. It’s a very busy time, of course. Elf Roger is being very generous in giving us some of his time for that day.

The topics for these chats are not set in stone. Between this and other features we are offering this year we believe we can get to all the questions our tracker elves have. If you have a question that you haven’t thought of to ask before just submit it via the Tracker Elf Survey (even if you’ve already filled out that before). We’re taking all questions.

Thanks!

 

Elf Supervisors to Report to YOU

/4 Comments/in , /by

Elf Supervisors have been meeting with the leadership team at Flight Command this week in response to the Tracker Elf Conference Surveys you have all been submitting. Some decisions have been made and over the next several days a number of announcements will be made.

The first announcement is that each Elf Supervisor will be posting up a report each week of activity in the sector. This report will not only show you what is happening but will also include a list of things you will need to do that week as a tracker elf. Included also will be a brief statement from Santa about anything he might want from you in your particular sector.

The reports will follow a pattern for each week leading up to Santa’s launch:

Mondays – Sector 1
Tuesday – Sector 2
Wednesday – Sector 3
Thursday – Sector 4
Friday – Sector 5

I will also be posting a report every Sunday that recaps our seasonal effort tracking Santa for Santa along with any news and information you might be needing.

We are hoping this spreads out the work of tracking Santa so that when Santa launches you will be more available to watch the skies and report the weather and news from your location.

This is an all new format for us this year. We are all learning how to track Santa different. Please be aware that we are following Santa’s plan and that these many changes were designed by him because he’s the guy driving the sleigh.

His goals, as you help him with the reports you submit and by sharing what’s going on in your neighborhood, are met when you meet your goals.

Let’s give Santa some good support this year.

Stay tuned for a lot more announcements. You should be checking in to SantaTrackers.net everyday if you can.

Thanks!

Tracker Elf Conference Survey

/7 Comments/in , , , , , , /by

A tracker elf conference is held every December. This has been the tradition of the past five years. Key elves from Flight Command and even Santa himself take the time to discuss tracking Santa for Santa and what is needed in that particular year.

The Elf Supervisors are thinking of doing the Tracker Elf Conference a little differently this year. They are asking, in advance of scheduling this event, for your questions, comments and needs BEFORE the Conference.

How and when the Tracker Elf Conference will be held is yet to be announced. But we can proceed in getting your input right away.

We are asking all elves to provide the following information so we can make the Tracker Elf Conference more useful for you. You can fill this form out as many times as you like so that all of your questions can be considered:

Elf Supervisors are considering a new format for the Tracker Elf Conference this year. Your feedback on this question is very important

New Chats Posted for Santa Update

/4 Comments/in , /by

North Pole Chat at SantaUpdate.com this month will feature two very special events.

The first, occurring this Sunday, November 13th at 7pm EST in North Pole Chat features Elf Crash Murphy:

Chat with Elf Crash

Crash will be taking questions about the Thanksgiving Day Elf Parade. Tracker Elves might want to attend this chat with Elf Crash because they are, like last year, invited to participate in the Elf Parade. Crash will talk about how to do that.

Then, in a very special event that we’re sure will be very well attended, Santa Claus will chat on November 27th:

Chat with Santa

The chat with Santa in North Pole Chat will be popular. We strongly encourage submitting your questions in advance. More details of this event will be provided as we get closer to that date.

We hope you can join us for these events at SantaUpdate.com.

We will soon be posting chats exclusive to tracker elves here in Elf Chat at SantaTrackers.net.

Elf Winslow