Event: SSS Event 3
Location: Raymond Terrace
Map: Irrawang (Street)
Planner/Organiser: Greg Bacon
Weather: Warm, overcast and hazy with a hint of smoke smell
Entrants: 82
Rego/Start: Peter Cox
Finish: Greg Bacon, David Messenger, Mick Kavur, Carolyn Rigby, Russell Rigby.
We must be getting close to having no decent mappable street event areas left to map in the greater Newcastle area, but Greg Bacon has eked out another for us – Irrawang, and what a delight it is. Flattish, compact, with pleasant parklands and many walkways and get throughs that all add up to a great variety of route choices.
The previous day had been extremely hot with fires close by so I was wondering if there was going to be a first time occurrence with a street event needing to be cancelled. Luckily the weather and fire had lost heat overnight and although it was a bit smokey to the south, the air in the immediate area was OK and very breathable.
Numbers were slightly down on the previous two events but quite healthy when you consider this is at the extreme north range of the event series locations.
Steven Todkill once again proved he’ll be hard to beat getting all but one control, 2A, on the extreme South East part of the course. Alex Massey wasn’t that far behind him scoring the same points but requiring 20 seconds more and could be a real contender this year. Glenn Burges and Arthur Kingsland placed 3rd and fourth respectively, keeping the ‘veteran’ hopes alive. Josh Blatchford’s injury woes continue and he participated as a wayfarer, with no thought of winning at this stage.
In the women’s section Karen Blatchford had a 2 point buffer over Carolyn Matthews and Nicole Haigh.
Thanks to Greg Bacon for doing such a good job with producing another useable mapped area for the club and a fine event. He enjoyed the experience and hoped all the participants did as well. Greg on our behalf would like to thank his helpers on the day; Peter Cox at the start, David Messenger, Mick Kavour, Russell and Carolyn at the finish.