Potteries Orienteering Club

CCMS

(P)

Christchurch Middle School, Stone

NSc

(P)

Newchapel Scouts

(P) identifies groups which are affiliated to POTOC.

It was with trepidation that I set about planning this event as it was the first I had done on my own. After planning the courses on paper I visited the area 2 weeks prior to the event to find all the crossing points except the bridge under deep water, even the stepping stones were under 6 inches of water! This led me to replan the courses and only use the bridge as a crossing point as I didn’t know how much more precipitation we would have prior to the event. I had to plan on the side of safety as I did not want juniors and novice competitors trying to cross a river in dangerous conditions. In the end the water level did drop but unfortunately it was too late to redo the courses as the maps had been printed.

On the day we had quite a number of competitors, both individuals and quite a number of family groups which was pleasing to see. It was also nice to see people from other clubs, DEE, WRE, WCH, DVO and also a competitor from a Scottish Club attending a training event. Everyone seemed to enjoy the courses which were not too long but had a few challenges in and made people think at times. I also tried to make best use of the landscape and not have people climbing up or down too many hills. Hopefully a number of these people will return to future events.

I would like to thank Brenda for her organisation of the event, Henry and Gordon for helping to put out and also John H, Brian, Geoff and Brenda for helping to collect. Also thanks James and John P for download and Geoff and Gordon for helping with registration. Also Thanks to Chasewater Outdoor Education Centre for the printing of the maps.

At the end of the day when collecting controls I had time to reflect that it was great to see a large number of people enjoying my efforts. I often attend events run by ours and other clubs and appreciate the effort people put in to running those events and it has been nice to be able to give something back to the sport. Who knows what I might volunteer for next year!

Gareth Lloyd