| Course | ||
|---|---|---|
| Brown | Results | Splits |
| Blue | Results | Splits |
| Green | Results | Splits |
| Short Green | Results | Splits |
| Light Green | Results | Splits |
| Orange | Results | Splits |
| Yellow | Results | Splits |
| White | Results | Splits |
Although Simon was not able to be at the Midland Night Championships or the East Midlands League Event in person he had to have been there in spirit having undertaken the duties of Controller until just before the weekend when I took over on his behalf. The amount of work that both Simon and Graham had put in was evident not only when I checked all of the competition maps for both events, but also when I checked the control sites on Saturday afternoon and on Sunday morning. For those who were not aware, the 35 ‘Night Controls’ were, in the main, unique from the 51 ‘Day Controls’, thus making the work of planning and controlling so much more substantial. On both Saturday and Sunday Graham was literally a tower of strength and worked tirelessly to ensure that all was set up for challenging courses both at night-time and in the daylight.
The ‘Night Championships’ courses received many compliments though some competitors thought that the longer courses were a little too long for the variety of terrain, and that the visibility of some of the controls was not helped by a combination of the height of the surrounding undergrowth and the stakes perhaps going a little further into the waterlogged ground than would have happened if the ground had been firmer and drier. Under foot conditions were also mentioned by some as being “pretty hard going”. The organisation of the event by Iain and his team was also complimented, including the lighting in the Assembly Area, as was the efficiency of the presentation of the ‘Buffs’ to the Champions in the respective age classes. One unexpected highlight of the evening for many of those attending was the opportunity to see the Conkers Firework Display in all its glory during the evening south of the Assembly Area though those still in the woods could well have been distracted by the noises in the night sky!
The East Midlands League Event attracted fewer competitors than expected but the courses were complimented upon by many as being a fair test of orienteering ability and navigation, especially with the changes in the terrain and the need for good compass work and pace counting, in particular in the area described in words such as the “the runnable wooded bit with the green blobs” and “the part with the mapped thickets, trees and undergrowth”. As at the Night Event the very wet underfoot conditions were commented upon, to such an extent that one appropriate comment from a competitor at both Events was that it should have been labelled the ‘Swamp-O Weekend’!
The availability of parking and the indoor facilities of Conkers was much appreciated as was the organisation of Chris and his team, though one competitor, tongue-in-cheek, said that it was a shame that the miniature railway hadn’t been available to be used to transport the competitors between Conkers and the Start!
Overall this was an excellent weekend of orienteering for both the competitors and the organising Club. Well Done!
Ernie Williams