I finally had a chance to scan the maps/photos in from the
Extreme-O event earlier in January at Northwest River Park. Let me offer a bit of commentary to accompany the images . . . but first recognize that these maps are property of the map-makers
Encompass and the
Orienteering Hampton Roads group and I'm reproducing them here with their consent (they agree with me that by posting this online it may help others to understand and, we hope, get excited about future Extreme-O events). If you want to use maps like this for an organized event of any kind, be sure to clear it with
Encompass first. Ok, now on with the fun:
The first map was given at your start time (no lead time with the map at all). It only had two controls shown on it and, apparently, at Control 2 there would be "further instructions." I totally blew up between #1 and #2; the trail on the map sort of disappeared into mud and I decided to just cut southwest from what I
thought was near the halfway point between #1 and #2. I kept my eye out for the wood bridges on my left, and I eventually found a bridge that seemed to match the mapped terrain, but in reality I had blown past the area where #2 was by a couple hundred meters. Map fragments can really stink when you're not actually on the map -- I was navigating using bridges that weren't shown on my map! I took the trail northeast from my bridges and had no problem finding #2 from the wrong direction, but it cost me 15 minutes.
At Control 2 they had you follow a 300 degree bearing for 300 meters to Control 3; it was through dense veg so the going was slow, but I did a reasonable job of pace counting and starting looking for the control after what I figured was 250 meters. Fortunately, there wasn't foliage on the trees so you could spot the Control from 50 meters away and I snagged it.
At Control 3 was another bearing to follow; this time 330 degrees for 300 meters. I think 330 is a tougher bearing to follow than 300 because 330 is getting very close to the top of the compass -- I also am considering investing in a "nice" compass since the one I've been using has a circular floating needle that isn't that precise. Anyway, recognizing this, I chose to aim-off a bit and went somewhere between 330 and 360 (due north) for 250 meters. I was able to move more quickly this way, which was an added bonus, but at the 250 meter mark I knew I'd have to start sweeping to the left (south) to correct for following my imprecise bearing. It worked out OK, and I was on track to get the control but I was assisted by another orienteer who was exiting the Control. Public service announcement:
if you don't want to give away the Control location, don't run like hell straight from the Control spot.
At Control 4 they had a "Photo-O" where they provide photographs leading to the next Control. Here is what it looked like:
Not the most precise set of instructions, but that's by design. I didn't have too much trouble finding my way although I understand certain folks who knew the park really well were able to run straight to Control 5 because of something distinct in one of the photos (I'm not sure what it was -- I'd never run or trained in the park until this exercise).
At Control 5 they had a satellite photo with the locations of Control 6 and 7:
The kicker here is no scale, so while I was able to get on the northwest trail (shown as a distinct straight line on the satellite photo), I didn't have a good sense for how to go on the trail and I overshot #6 considerably. No matter, I caught the mistake and regrouped to get #6 and #7. Along the way, I got to chat briefly with Bob Callahan at the rope bridge water crossing; he's one of the guilty parties behind the Extreme-O so I was sure to thank him.
At #7 was a "Memory-O" where you have to memorize where the next control is from a map fixed at #7 -- you can't take the map with you. Obviously, I can't scan this in since I didn't have a copy, but suffice it to say that it was a longish Memory-O of 1K or more.
At #8 was another Memory-O map to #9 that was just as long if not longer. I remember counting the number of bridges and then turning southwest -- and repeating this over and over in my head, along with the rough distance, as I progressed to the Control. Short term memory through repetition!
At #9 we got another satellite photo:
This one showed an overlook of a river for #10 and I was able to push the pace heading south, keeping eye out for the trail that would connect to the overlook. This time I had no problem with distance estimation (a river as a catching feature is pretty easy, though) and found the control quickly. #11 was on the same satellite photo and I also punched it in short order.
At #11 there was a more traditional orienteering map along with UTM coordinates for the Control locations:
This was right up my alley, since most adventure races use UTM to communicate CP locations, so I grabbed the map and found a picnic table nearby that
wouldn't lead others to the actual control (I've got to keep those devious adventure racing skills somehow, right?). I carefully plotted the points and went after the remaining controls in the order of 13, 12, 14, 15. I found each without much issue and wrapped up the Extreme-O in time for a late lunch.
Although orienteering purists might not enjoy an Extreme-O event like this, or complain about the bland terrain (have you ever seen such an empty O map?), you've got to look at the big picture.
Orienteering Hampton Roads is a brand new organization that's just starting to build a library of mapped parks, connections with land owners, and an orienteering culture. This event was a labour of love from the guys behind
Encompass, Bob and Shawn Callahan, busting their butts for a cause they feel is worthy; and trust me, running orienteering events isn't a cash cow!
Ultimately, events like this should be
fun and this one certainly was; it was a great training day for me, including several opportunities for me to practice relocation (ahem). It's not just about the lactic acid, though, as there were families and youth groups out there, all with smiles on their faces. I think total participation was over 100 from what
Encompass told me. It's great when an event can appeal to a wide audience, and bodes well for the future.
Mark your calendars with these Orienteering events later this Spring, and
register here . . .
Feb 25 - New Quarter
Park
Williamsburg, VA
April 21-York River
State Park
Williamsburg, VA