Spring Saturday Orienteering Series. Week 4 – May 18
THOMASS* event with SPORTident timing
This is an event with a handicap formula, which, if we are lucky, means everyone will get back more or less at the some time (and perhaps Peter MacKenzie will NOT be first back!)
It’s in two parts with a mass start: everyone does all the point-to-point to point section. Part way round the point-to-point course, participants can deviate from the course to pick up the appropriate number of extra controls, and then finish the point to point section.
Handicap Formula – this shows the number of extra controls that must be punched:
0 – Women 12 or younger, Men 12 or younger, Women 65 or older
1 – Women 14 or younger, Men 14 or younger, Women 55 or older, Men 75 or older
2 – Women 16 or younger, Men 16 or younger, Women 45 or older, Men 65 or older
3 – Women 19 or younger, Women 35 or older, Men 55 or older
4 – Women 20 to 34, Men 45 or older
5 – Men 19 or younger, Men 20 to 34, Men 35 or older
*THOMASS stands for Toronto, Hamilton, Oakville, Mississisauga Alternative Snow Series, where the idea was developed so that no-one was left waiting in the cold.
This series is for club members only and is designed for all ages, speeds and levels of experience.
Spring Saturday Orienteering Series. Week 3 – May 11
Leapfrog Orienteering
This is a point-to-point course with a mass start. At some specified controls there will be some clothes pegs attached to the control flag. If they are there, you MUST take one and continue to the next control. If you get to that specified control and the clothes pegs are all gone, you can skip the next control. (So the participants who are slower get a chance to catch up a bit)
This series is for club members only and is designed for all ages, speeds and levels of experience.
Spring Saturday Orienteering Series. Week 2 – May 4
Pony Express Orienteering
In the 1860s in the US, mail was transported across the continent by a relay of horse-mounted riders, riding as fast as they could to the next ‘station’.
In the orienteering version, the mail is a punch card and orienteers are the ‘riders’. The punch card has to go to each station (control) but the riders don’t have to go to all the controls. It’s most fun with teams of two.
Take a look at the sample map below (NOT the real course). A team of two set off from the start. One of them goes to punch control #1. The other goes along the trail. They meet and both go to control #2.
Perhaps this team has one experienced orienteer and one less experienced.
Or perhaps one is fast and the other a walker.
Or perhaps they are both quite good and think if they take turns doing the short cut they can do it faster than anyone going solo.
How many options can see for the next few controls?
Teams will have some extra time to discuss their strategy. Solo ‘riders’ start last!
Don’t have a club membership? Get one here: https://zone4.ca/register.asp?id=18965