| Date | Start | Place | OS Grid ref | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Feb 2023 | 11 a.m. | Callendar Park, Falkirk | NS 894 795 | SOSOL |
Results
Further Information
We are partnering with Stirling University Orienteering Club to bring you the first race in the 2023 South of Scotland Orienteering League. Enter here
Controller's Note
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There are still quite a lot of brambles in the area. Full body cover is recommended.
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A number of the "dry" ditches now have water in them
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The map was made four years ago, and there are a number of extra, unmapped, root-stocks following the storms of 2021. All controls located on root-stocks are marked on the map as such.
Controller's Comments
This was a day of firsts; first event organised by Stirling University Orienteering Club in about 40 years; first time planning for Lizzie; first time organising anything above a small local event for Holly; and first time as controller for me. And I think it all went quite well!
The students are to be credited with putting on a memorable event. For a club with a small experience profile, this was the first time many of the helpers had been involved in staging an event of any magnitude, and they coped admirably with the tasks set them, and always with a smile and a positive attitude. They had significant help from Holly's parents, Cath and Stodge, who took charge of the start and download, and provided major help to the event despite having never seen the area before.
The event was originally scheduled for Barrwood, and had to be changed late in the day due to loss of access, and Lizzie had to re-plan eight courses at quite short notice, as well as her academic commitments. The mild winter in 2022 meant that there was still quite a bit of brambles and fernage in the area, but the courses were designed to work around this to a major extent. The clever use of a loop on the TD5 courses meant that competitors were able to run in some of the nicest bits of the woodland for much of their course
It was only when we arrived on Saturday to set out the controls that it was evident there was another big event in the park on the same day, so thanks to R&R Events, who were staging an Ultra Trail race for accommodating our runners cutting across their routes. One constraint of the trail race was that the start had to be moved slightly southwards, and it's clear that several competitors, on the Orange course in particular, took a sub-optimal route out of the start.
Finish times are around expectations for the course and distance, although the Short Green course may have been slightly too tough, evidenced by half of the non-completions being on this one course.
