Parking/registration: in Haddo CP visitor car park – please pay for parking at machines
w3w: logic.flopping.hedgehog
NJ 867344
Follow B999 from Pitmedden north towards Tarves and watch out for brown tourist sign to Haddo House on turning to right 500m before Tarves. Once through the main gates of the estate obey the speed limit or suffer consequences of surprisingly stiff little speed bumps on the approach road.
Starts/Reg 17:30 – 19:00 (Rachel says reg prob be open ~17:00)
Courses close (i.e. be back at Registration) 20:00
Seniors £7, Students/Juniors £3 contactless payment or cash
Fast and runnable parkland and woods in the main, the Long course will visit the far eastern section of the map which is rougher pasture. If there has been prolonged rain then likely to encounter areas of standing water and/or muddy stretches churned up by public footfall so spikes/dobs advised. The open areas have loads of young saplings planted over the last couple of years but only the larger, more mature trees are marked on the map with single tree symbols or, if several of them clustered, as white runnable forest.
Courses:
Medium 3.5 km 40m 21 controls
Long 5.2 km 75m 20 controls
Both courses will be on two-sided maps, 1:4000, using the new(ish) IOF control description symbol for map flip.
There is a now a need to carry the following mandatory equipment:
· Spare (head) torch – fully charged. A spare battery is not acceptable;
· Whistle;
· Mobile phone, with plenty of charge; and
· Water/windproof jacket or spare layer – this can be worn if preferred. This is to negate competitors only wearing an O-top and/or thermal top.
N.B. We endeavour to make both courses as TD5/Green (i.e. technically hard) as possible depending on the area. For this reason runners must be confident of doing a Green standard course or ask someone who is that standard to run with them.
Night O Safety
With orienteering at night comes some added enjoyment (for most) but also some additional hazards, we all need to be aware of and mitigate against as best we can. What if our headtorch fails? What happens if we injure ourself? What if, what if?
Hopefully, we’re not teaching anyone to suck eggs here but it is worth reminding ourselves that if something does happen and we are not prepared, then others may be inconvenienced or worse, because of this. So, a few items that we should all seriously consider carrying with us on our run – some should not really be for discussion!
– Primary headtorch (obvious!)
– Compass (obvious!)
– Spare headtorch or equivalent light source (essential)*
– Whistle (essential)
– Mobile phone – the organiser/planner’s number is on the map for a reason!
* NOTE: Spare battery for your main headtorch, is not a replacement for a separate spare torch, as it could be more than your battery that has runout/failed.
It is colder at night, so consider what you wear. What if you did injury yourself or maybe just weren’t up to feeling running at your usual speed – you will become cold very quickly if you are not running or going at your usual speed. We do night O through the winter, so keep that in mind and maybe take a bumbag with extra clothing.
If you are new to night orienteering be aware it may take you longer than ‘normal’ – much longer for some. Also, if you are not at TD5 level, you really should be doing this in the daylight before taking on night orienteering as the Deeside Night Cup (long) and the mini-cup (short) is planned with NO dispensation for it being dark. Maybe you are at TD5 level but never night O’d before – speak to someone about a shadowed run. Use the club member email to put a message round that you’d appreciate some mentoring and which DNC events you plan to attend and someone will respond.
Safety – A risk assessment will have been carried out by the organiser, but participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety during the event. We’ll be sharing parks/streets/woods with others so be courteous to other users and watch out for bikes/dogs/horseriders.
Health – Full leg and torso cover is required in wooded areas due to ticks.
Privacy – when entering our events your name may appear in the results section of this website or in newspaper reports. Grampian Orienteers data privacy policy
Photography – In line with the policies of British Orienteering, the organisers of this event request that any person wishing to take photos or video showing children should register their details with event volunteers before taking any such photos or videos. The event organisers reserve the right to ask people to refrain from taking photos or video and may, if such warnings are ignored, refer the matter to the police.
GRAMPIAN ORIENTEERS 