Report from organiser Steven Roberts...
This was our first NOY course and we thank all the positive feedback & comments. We tried to make it fun and enjoyable especially in the open & flatter areas of the map, while still living up to the name "Heart Rate Hills". We hope to have offered a few tempting route options - fast, flat track v extra hills! (Who used the opportunity for an extra hill climb??) Thanks go to our mentor Denis Lyons who helped with advice, fence removal and mine subsidence streamering. We learnt alot more about orienteering including massive respect for those who organise and set our courses.
Mapping: Denis
Course setting: Angus
Vetting: Callum & Denis
Start: Cheryle
Finish desk: Callum & Angus
Control collection: Callum, Malcolm, Denis
results | routegadget | photos
NOY6 Wallaroo - Results
Wet weather failed to dampen the enthusiasm of the over 100 participants that turned out for NOY6 at Wallaroo State Forest yesterday.
Conditions for the most part were damp but relatively OK especially later in the morning as the weather improved. Even so many had a quick swim when trying to cross a couple of the creeks in and around the low lying areas toward the finish.
Course setter Bjorn Mella's extensive orienteering experience showed in what were excellent courses that challenged the competitor on many occassions with numerous route choices. Long and Medium Red shared the same long leg for 1-2 and the variety of routes taken can be seen via routegadget snail trails already uploaded. Have a look!
Note: We were extremely dissappointed to find that our expensive "Beeping Clock" had been stolen from the remote start by mindless thieves. Perhaps we should have had somebody permanantly there but we were naive enough to consider that to be an overkill. Obviosly one of those 4wd persons decided they wanted it as they were the only others in the forest at that time.
Planner: Bjorn Mella
Gear: Geoff & Margaret Peel
Admin: Cheryle Todkill
Finish: Bjorn Mella, Denis Lyons
Control Collection: Sam Mella, Denis Lyons. Steve Todkill, Sally Anne Henderson, Rudi Lansiedel, Shane Jenkins, Tony & Louis Welbourne. Angus, Callum & Steven Roberts
results | routegadget | photos
NOY5 Pelaw Main - Results
From course planner Greig Scott
Fortunately the inland seas of 2 weeks ago had dissipated by Sunday, and although the earlier runners came back with destroyed control cards, the rain did clear to a reasonable day. The flat terrain made for some fast times, but seemed to provide the odd navigational or route choice challenge - and importantly from my point of view, the competitors I spoke to did say they had enjoyed the courses. A good share of the credit for this goes to Dennis Lyons, who gave me good advice with setting the courses (this being the first bush-o I have planned/organised) and also prepared the maps as well as helping before and on the day. It was good to see close competition within each course and a close contest between the old guard and the young guns in the long red!
My thanks to Dennis and the others who helped - Mick Kavur, Cheryle and the control collectors - the willingness of so many to help out is one of the things that makes the club such a success.
results | routegadget | photos
Minor Event - Mount Sugarloaf
From Shane Jenkins course planner......
Great weather and a great location! What more could I ask for from this my first ever attempt at organising a bush event? A great turn out? Yeah got that too. All up 84 eager orienteers turned out to see if I was going to set them a challenging and fun course. Hopefully they all went away feeling I had. The positive feedback I did receive on the day was enough that I'll throw my hat into the ring next year again when the call goes out for setters. It was also good to see that a lot of the Blue runners then backed up attempting Green and in some cases braving Short Orange. Hats off to Alex Massey who not only shadowed two people but then ran and won the long red, all this after competing in 25 km King of the Hill the day before. I look forward to checking out the routes people took and how close they were to my predicted route.
Many thanks as always to my helpers:
Controller: Geoff Peel Extra Vetter: Malcolm Roberts Gear: Mick Kavur Start: Cheryle Todkill Finish: Viola O'Conner, Sam Howe and Dennis Lyons Control Collection: Sam Howe, Dennis Lyons, David Messenger, Geoff Peel, Peter Newton, Joy Guy, Glen Burgess and Greg Scott
results | routegadget | photos
State League 9 - wrap up
State League 9 was run this weekend on the Lone Pine Road map, an area not previously used for orienteering in the Wallaroo State Forest. Mapped originally in late 2009 by Ian Dempsey and Denis Lyons, the work on the area was completed in mid 2010 and provided quite a mapping challenge.
Orienteers used to the rockier and steeper areas to the West would have been surprised with the difference in the terrain in this part of the forest. Although there is an extensive track network resulting from previous forestry work, this is a quiet area with few trail bikes, which avoids the difficulties similar areas face with unmapped trail bike tracks appearing post mapping.
The defining features of this terrain is flat, undulating bush with some rootstocks and native cherry being used to provide detail. The lack of distinctive features provided some challenging routes to controls, and while a few floundered many were excited by the challenge this offered. This event was also a qualification race for the NSW Schools Squad there were some great performances from the youngsters including wins for squad members Aiden Dawson M16A, Matthew Hill M18A, Daniel Hill M14A, Michele Dawson W18A, Nicola Blatchford W16A, and Melissa Annetts W14A.
Patrik Gunnarsson of Garingal shone in M35A winning convincingly in 72:52 as did Linda Sesta of Uringa, who had what she described as a 'perfect run' to win W40A in 64:43. WOC team member Mace Neve finished a useful weekend of racing having won the NSW Sprint on Saturday, by winning Sunday's W21A.
Bjorn Mella looked strong in M50A with a winning margin of just over 8 minutes but Red/Orange "start official", Robert Vincent ran the same 6.8 km course in a staggering 47:10 (EOD) bettering Bjorn's time by a further 6 minutes and setting what looks to be the best minute per kilometer time of the day.
Many thanks to all the Newcastle club members that helped out prior to or on the day, especially those that went out afterwards and collected controls and to Malcom Roberts for entry and SI duties. Mapper/planner Ian Dempsey and controller Geoff Todkill spent many hours in the bush getting ready for this event and I thank and congratulate them on a job well done.
Results | Splits | RouteGadget | Photos