FVO Night Race - Plean Country Park

Map above produced by Stirling Countryside Ranger Service.

Tonights courses was planned by Steve Barrett of Stirling Surveys. I ran the Long course which was 5.0k with 150m of climb and 21 controls. The race was won by Mark Nixon from Will Hensman, whilst I finished in 7th place with a time of 39:20.

Results.

EckO Autumn Series - Kilmory Castle and Dun Mor

Loch Eck Orienteers is the orienteering club for Argyll, which was a beautiful place to visit today - a clear autumnal day with the leaf colours at their very best and the tops of the hills dusted with snow. Their Autumn Series event offered a choice of 4 courses, ranging from Yellow to Blue. I ran the Blue course which was 6.4k with 17 controls.

Results.

FVO Night Event - Dumyat

Dumyat (with the Wallace Monument in the foreground) by day.

This was FVO's first Night Event of the winter and took place on Dumyat - a hill at the west end of the Ochil Hills. Fraser Purves planned a Long course which was 6.1k with 23 controls. A mass start with gaffling, meant there was lots of head to head racing, with runners from the 2 different gaffles coming together at 17, making for an exciting finish. Roger Goddard and Will Hensman were the first runners home, with me third, just in front of Steve Nicholson.

Results.

Tinto Twin - Inshriach

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2010
Tinto Twin Night Event - Inshriach





This years Tinto Twin, organised by Tinto Orienteering Club, took place at Inshriach Forest in Speyside. In the Night Event, I ran Course 2 which was 5.4k with 100m of climb and 15 controls.

Results.
WinSplits.
RouteGadget.




SUNDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2010
Tinto Twin Day Event - Inshriach



This years Tinto Twin Day Event was the last race of this years Scottish Orienteering League. I ran the Short Brown (M50L) course which was 7.7k with 95m of climb and 14 controls.

Results.
WinSplits.
Overall results.
RouteGadget.

SYO Compass Sport Trophy Final - Burbage and Hathersage Moors

South Yorkshire Orienteers organised this years Compass Sport Cup and Trophy Finals for the UK's top big/small clubs respectively. I was running in the Trophy for Forth Valley Orienteers and ran the Blue Mens course which was 7.2k with 255m of climb and 15 controls.

Team results.
Results.
Splits.
RouteGadget.

ESOC SOL 6 - Tentsmuir

ESOC organised today's Scottish Orienteering League race at Tentsmuir, on the south side of the Tay Estuary. I ran the Short Brown/M50L course which was 7.9k with 70m of climb and 23 controls.

Results.
WinSplits.
RouteGadget.

ESOC Urban Race - St Andrews

St Andrews on the Fife coast, is better known as the home of golf than as an orienteering venue; but away from the fairways, its streets provided an excellent and difficult, orienteering challenge - thanks to a great map and planning by Clive Masson. I ran the Urban Long course which was 6.3k with 45m of climb and 28 controls, and which was won by Ola Martner of EUOC in 39.34.

Results.
WinSplits.
RouteGadget.

Map - parts 1 and 3 of course.



Map - part 2 of course.

BASOC District Event - Loch Vaa

Loch Vaa was first used for the World Relay Championships in 1999 and is one of my favourite orienteering areas - even on a dreich day like today! Planner Andy Hyslop produced a fun flier for the event (above) and set a challenging Brown course which was 10.1k with 12 controls - all of which were in re-entrants!

Results.

FVO Evening Event - Queen Victoria School

This is the first time that the grounds of Queen Victoria School, on the edge of my home town of Dunblane, have been used for orienteering. Trevor Hoey planned a Long course which was 2.5k with 20 controls and which was won by Will Hensman in 13.05.

Results.

INT SoSOL and Compass Sport Cup - Devilla Forest

Interlopers organised today's event which was a South of Scotland Orienteering League (SoSOL) event and the Scottish round of the Compass Sport Cup. I ran the Blue 2 course which was 6.3k with 90m of climb and 19 controls.

Results.
WinSplits.
RouteGadget.

PWT - Perth City Centre

Graham Gristwood approaching the last control and second place.

The sun shone for the Park World Tour race in Perth City Centre. I ran the Men's Open Final course which was 2.1k with 25m of climb and 25 controls, and which was the same as the Elite Final which was won by Oystein Kvaal Osterbo of Norway in 14:22. Helena Jansson of Sweden won the Women's Elite Final which was 2.0k with 25m of climb and 24 controls in 15:20

Elite Final Results.
Elite Final Splits.
Open Final Results.
Open Final Splits.
RouteGadget.





Women's podium.

MAROC SOL 5 - Birsemore Hill

MAROC have some great areas and one of their best is Birsemore Hill - the venue for todays race, the fifth of this years Scottish Orienteering League races. I ran the M50L (Short Brown) course which was 6.8k with 215m of climb and 21 controls.

Results.
Splits.
RouteGadget.

GRAMP 11 person relay - Crathes

This years 11 person relay was organised by Grampian Orienteers and took place at the National Trust for Scotland's Crathes Estate, to the west of Aberdeen. I ran first leg (Short Green which was 3.3k with 105m of climb and 13 controls) and handed over to 3 team mates, who handed over to 3 more runners who, in turn, handed over to 3 more runners, before a single, last leg runner went out. Winners, and defending champions, were FVO.

Overall team results.
Results.
Splits.

FVO Evening Event - Doune

Doune Castle and the River Teith.

Doune is a new orienteering area for Forth Valley Orienteers who also have a new website. Steve Barrett of Stirling Surveys made the map and Brad and Beccy planned the excellent courses. I ran the Long course which was 5.4k with 18 controls and which was won by Will Hensman in 36 minutes, closely followed by Roger Goddard.

Results.

Lakes 5 Day 1 - Swindale North

Lakes 5 is based on Coniston in the English Lake District.

The first event was at Swindale North and was entirely on open fell. I ran M50L which was 7.2k with 180m of climb and 13 controls, and which was won by John Tullie in 46.44.

Results.
WinSplits.
RouteGadget.

Purple Thistle - Balmacara

Purple Thistle events adopt a 'barebones' approach and provide quality orienteering in great areas. This years event was held at Balmacara in the West Highlands and gave very tough and technical orienteering and, given the great weather, fantastic views of the Isle of Skye and surrounding hills and lochs.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2010

Day 1 - Balmacara East

I ran the Mighty Thistle which was 11.7k with 21 controls. The course more than lived up to its name - with most runners out for more than 2 hours!

Results.
WinSplits.
RouteGadget.



SUNDAY, AUGUST 15, 2010

Day 2 - Balmacara West

I ran the Mighty Thistle which was 10.9k with 28 controls.

Results.
WinSplits.
RouteGadget.