The SW Galoppen series

I hope that you enjoyed your run on Sunday at the SARUM Gallopen. The event had a huge turnout and it made me wonder why WIM don't really figure in the Gallopen League in the SW. As our family grew up Barbara, Richard, Alison and I all found it to be a great way to gain competition experience and visit a whole variety of beautiful and challenging areas in the SW. It was a great day out for us all and we made many new friends.

The name Galoppen comes from Sweden, but the competition takes the form of a league where every club in the SW puts on one level C event per year that is designated as a part of the league. There are 9 events in the year starting in September. We held our event in September at Ibsley and the results of each event are collated into a league table with a whole series of classes. Details of the 2014/2015 league results are in the November edition of SINS and there are incentives for male, female, junior and senior runners in each of the colour coded courses culminating in a presentation to the winners at the SWOA AGM. Sadly this year WIM doesn't figure in the winners!

You don't have to do all of the events to be competitive because its a long trip for clubs like WIM to get to Cornwall, so although there is some travelling, if you want to get experience, run on contrasting terrain and meet more SW members, the Galoppen league is a great way get to see new places and build up your competition skills.

Previously WIM used to figure well up the age groups in the league but in recent years very few of us have taken part.

So far in the 2015-2016 series WIM have held their Galoppen at Ibsley, Kerno held their event on the sand dunes of Hale Towans nr St Ives, the Devon event was held at Haytor on the spectacular SE side of Dartmoor and the SARUM one took place on Sunday Nov 15th. Future dates are:

BOK Nov.29th  New Beechenhurst – Forest of Dean  (A long trip but well worth it - the terrain is like the New Forest with hills!)

NWO Jan 24th  West Woods – near Marlborough (About 40 miles away. Mostly gloriously runnable chalk beech woods with hills and valleys)

QO Feb 28th St Audries     - At the north end of the Quantock Hills not far from Minehead on the Somerset coast. Steep,rounded and well wooded it's a real challenge but fun!

WSX April 3rd                                    TBA

NGOC April 10th                   Danby Lodge Another trip to the Forest of Dean but hopefully in glorious spring sunshine. If you haven't been to the Forest of Dean it's well worth the 100 mile trip.

Courses in the Galoppen League are: Brown, Blue, Green, Short Green, Light Green, Orange, and Yellow.
All the details and scoring system for the Galoppen are on the SWOA website
www.sworienteeringassociation.co.uk.

Why not combine some exciting competition with exploring some beautiful parts of the SW of England. SWOA has some great terrain and it changed our life for the better. Maybe it could do the same for you!!!        

John Warren

Photos from the SW Galoppen event hosted by Sarum at Foxbury