Potteries Orienteering Club

SGS

Stafford Grammar School

SSOC

(P)

Sandbach School Orienteering Club

StW

S^t Werburghs

NSc

(P)

Newchapel Scouts

(P) identifies groups which are affiliated to POTOC.

Many thanks to John Heaton and Henry for support beforehand. Also Henry, Brenda and Jonathon Milward who came early (+ Adrian). Mavis for being Organiser and Henry and Gareth for helping to collect in.

It was cool but dry and sunny. We had a lot of entries including WCH and WRE members. This unfortunately meant we ran out of Hard course maps, so I sat putting controls on blank maps. More apologies for the two maps with errors. It would have been quicker if we supply a master map for competitors to copy (as in the past). Their fate is then in their own hands. There were many kind adult runners who stopped to help the misplaced youngsters, and Jonathon going out and searching. Very many thanks to all of them.

This was my first course planning not in a park where paths are fairly constant. Whilst planning, it became obvious that many small paths were overgrown or non-existent, and some wooded areas had been cut down (still felling areas in January, areas were very obvious). I adjusted one or two paths affecting the Easy/Moderate but the whole area really needed re-mapping and must be done before the next event there.

Anyone who has been there before knows how brambly it is and that the wisest option is to stick to the paths as much as possible. It is usually a longer route but often quicker. I deliberately kept Easy and Moderate in the area between upper and lower main tracks, but, as with the hard I had not realised that OCAD was measuring the courses at 1:15000 scale and not the 1:10000 I had input, so all the courses were longer than I thought. Easy 2·5km, Moderate 3·3km, Hard(S) 5·4km and Hard(L) 7·5km. My sincere apologies to everyone. I will always do a manual check in future!

Control 130 on Hard was not good – lesson learnt: when not sure make the banner visible. If I do this again I will have my control sites physically checked beforehand.

Thank you all for coming and I hope you will support my next course. Please let me have constructive criticism. I need to learn! I suggest that it is the planner who meets competitors to discuss suitability of courses.

Marian Denham

It was lovely to see so many people on a cold, but dry day. We are sorry we ran out of maps. We were unable to recycle, as the courses were long (as OCAD 9 measured the lengths for a 1:15000 map, when the map was a 1:10000) and people were not back from their run. A suggestion for the future:– we used to mark our own maps at the start. We could have a master map for each course, so, when we run out of maps (not before) competitors could mark their own course on a blank map. This would be a lot quicker and easier. There are no set start times at a “come and try it”, so it could work very well.

We could do nothing about the Forestry Commissions recent work making deep wet tyre tracks and new paths. We could do nothing about the brambles. Many areas in the country, managed by F.C., now have , this problem, due to felling trees and then the brambles come in with a vengeance.

Thanks to all of the helpers and some competitors who helped beginners on course. We got home at 5p.m.! You must down load a.s.a.p. after finishing, even if you retire. We cannot collect in until everyone is safely back. We always send out search parties. Please join us again for future events.

Brenda Morgan