Saturday 22 November 2014
Photographs by Chris Branford and Mary Kite
Organiser's Report:
The first ever event at Golden Cap was a great success with over twice as many entries as expected. Wimborne Orienteers is very grateful to all the volunteer helpers who took the time and effort to make it such a superb day.
It did put unexpected pressure on a few people, not least those overseeing parking. I hadn't foreseen the turning issues (country voke be used to zeven point turns in 'orrible places) so John Warren found himself doing an heroic two-man job! Thanks also to Di Tilsley and Sarah Horsler who pitched in to help manage the steady stream of cars arriving.
43 competitors ran Green, using all our printed maps and spare photocopies! Many people were intrigued because it was a new area - they'd heard of Golden Cap though not necessarily visited, and wanted to see it what it was like. Comments on both the orienteering and the terrain were universally positive. Several competitors claimed to have walked part of their course since they were enjoying the views so much - or maybe they were just having a bad run!
We had over 100 attendees of whom approximately 95, including couples & families, took part in the day & night events. Most came from WIM and WSX but we had a few from QO and SARUM and a large contingent from Devon. There were also several newcomers - some were enthused enough to run two courses!
Sarah Kennedy (National Trust) made a considerable personal contribution to the event. Her preparation was meticulous and on the day she was a tower of strength. She unlocked gates, removed difficult slip rails, and was onsite to monitor, help, meet and greet the adults and children. When Green course maps were nearly exhausted, she ran off more photocopies at the Filcombe office. She even turned up at the end of the Night event to check all was well. That level of support is extraordinary and greatly appreciated.
A special mention for David Bland who planned imaginative and testing courses enjoyed by all. He had two major constraints:
(a) getting decent course lengths without excessive climb (I'm sure you noticed the contours...)
(b) taking Light Green and Green into the technically challenging area of St Gabriel's & Filcombe woods without crossing the impassable fence bounding it on the south side.
His planning solutions worked extremely well, though we can't pretend the final climbs from control 177 weren't physically taxing. Well done if you actually ran! On the downhill slope, several White and Yellow course juniors were very excited to discover we'd provided a 'mud slide' at the end. On the map it's shown as a steep path, but this is November...
As mapper, thank you to those who pointed out possible map corrections or improvements. Bill Brown found an unmarked depression which I (a) denied the existence of (b) located on Lidar when I rechecked carefully. Damn. Otherwise, apart from some vegetation patches all seemed good.
Finally thank you to Chris Branford for running the Night Score event. Mary and I watched the bright LEDs racing over Langdon Hill as we waited at the bottom of the approach road for Direct Line rescue. Battery fortunately, so it was fish & chips by 8:00 pm!
Mike Kite
The Green course - 3.7 km with 210m climb
Mapping data licenced from the Ordnance Survey with the permission of the Controller of HMSO. Crown Copyright 2009. All rights reserved. Licence no. 100015287.
Wimborne Orienteers thank The National Trust for permission to hold this event and for their active support in the use of the Golden Cap estate.
Background photo: Golden Cap from SW end of Langdon Hill, taken by Mary Kite