Orienteering in South East Queensland

12:00 Saturday 30th April 2005
"Toohey Forest / Mount Gravatt" 2005 1:10,000 5m
UBD 200 D4 8.5km SSE of Brisbane CBD
26 controls 10.5km 530m climb (5%)

My first Australian rogaine, great fun, an excellent map and an excellent event. My partner Jacquie couldn't make it because of last minute work pressures, so I ran unofficially and alone - which isn't such a bad thing!

The "rogaine-y" nature was interesting. Quite a few control sites were vaguer than one would usually find at an orienteering event: 64, 72, 73, 75, 82, 84, 87, 94, 95, 101. In each case the description was something like "gully" instead of "top of gully" or "bend in gully" or whatever. Orienteering convention generally forbids descriptions that are that imprecise.

As a result at least one control was (I felt) misplaced - harmlessly, but lower than shown: no 82 was visible from the track junction. I guess that's why we (orienteers) have the convention of definite control sites. Contrariwise, many control sites were much easier than I would usually expect: 68, 77, 78, 100 were very easy.

60s worth 10 points, 70s = 20, 80s = 30, 90s 4= 0, 100s 100 points. 3 hours for seniors, the schoolkids had 4 hours.

I found the loop choice very entertaining and challenging. Even with half an hour to choose a loop I found I was fine-tuning and majorly adjusting all the way round - and not just because I was getting tired!

The map (and event) is in two halves with a pinch-point at the motorway underpass, so I considered the two areas quite separately:

I decided to do the Toohey Forest (western part) clockwise because the southern part of it had more decision making to do - and it's best to do that at the end when you know how much time you have left. I could see that the first hill is rather rugged, and realised at the end of the road that 76 and 73 were 20 points each while 94 is 40 points - so I scrapped my initial plan to go round to the left.

An early realisation was that the event had been designed to take advantage of tracks - which could be viewed like snakes and ladders. So while 94>67>72>81 was bush-bashing, 81>65>97 took advantage of tracks to conserve height and avoid bush. (The white in Toohey Forest is rather greenish.) I almost disregarded 75, intending to go direct from 85 to the underpass, but then realised that the track all the way from 75 to the underpass meant it was well worth getting.

I chose anticlockwise for the Mount Gravatt section as soon as I saw the alternative: a cripplingly steep climb from 96 to the top - 100m climb in 250m horizontal. The approach from the SE turned out to be much less unpleasant. Snakes and ladders dictated the route 74>77>88>95; I noted another team doing it 74>88>77>95 at some cost.

I ditched the 10 pointer (62) after deciding that 96>98 was much more pleasant than 96>62>98.

Back through the underpass with ?less than an hour left and only able to muster a brisk walk, it was a matter of picking up as many high-pointers as possible while going more or less directly home.

The cluster in the SW didn't look attainable. I'd planned 93>66>82 but lost interest in the climb 93>66 when I spotted the path all the way from 93>82 - which worked very well. After 92, I was constantly checking my watch and trading off time, effort and points. By now I was being very modest in my ambitions! At first it looked like 71 only but with 20+ minutes left I know I could get 68; then I went for 78; and arrived home with 5 or 10 minutes spare.

In retrospect I could have skipped 71 and 68 (30 points) and done 92>91>?87>?61>83>?78 for 70, 110 or 140 points - but by then I had lost interest and all I wanted to do was to go home. (Mummy!)

I got 830 points (unofficial) - several teams got the full 1000 points.

I have to say I'm puzzled about why it took nearly 3 hours to do 10.5km / 500m. I think that I was competitive in the results, so I guess that the climb and the time (If you can't do the time, don't do the climb!) wore us all down. I'm used to doing 6km in 60 minutes; I suppose that benchmark only works for 6km and we all fade quickly after we hit our usual distance. ?

Thanks to Rob Simson and QOA for the map, Rob and QRA for the event, and Torre Mountaincraft for their sponsorship.

Update 1st July: the results are out. 7 teams got 1000 points, the fastest finishing with 50 minutes to spare. I was unofficial but I would have been 11th out of 41 and the 2nd Men's Veteran or winning Mixed Veteran. Not bad!

Toohey Forest Too

12:00 Thursday 28th April 2005
"Amazons" (Windermere Estate) 1:10,000 5m
UBD 178 C20 10km SW of Brisbane CBD
"Long" 4.15km 11 controls not much climb

Nev was appalled to find one of his control sites dug up on the morning of the event, leading to hasty re-arrangement of the course and the addition of a Lantana-ridden control on the ridge at the end.

I came third in 38 minutes - 9.2mpk, which isn't very fast. I couldn't find the control at 1 (oddly sited) and 4 (stolen) and struggled at 10 (bad circle positioning.) Tim was chasing control thieves all over the map - why weren't they at school?

Thanks to Nev Cobbold for the event, me and Ugly Gully for the map.

Thursday 21st April 2005
"Stockyard South" (Brisbane Koala Bushlands) 2004 1:10,000 5m
UBD 223 D1 19km SE of Brisbane CBD
"Long" 4.1km 130m climb (3.2%)

An excellent course. I spent a fair amount of time in the circle, especially looking for point features on broad vague spurs (3, 4, 5, 6, 7) and 2 was a bit vague too. My only sin was omitting to aim off more aggressively at 9 leading to some loss of confidence.

I was (I think) 2nd in 42 minutes (10mpk), 7 minutes behind the winner.

Thanks to Fiona Calabro for the event, Rob Simson and QOA for the map.

12:00 Thursday 14th April 2005
"Anzac Park" 1998 1:7,500 5m
UBD 158 M16 WSW of Brisbane CBD
"Long" 4.2km 210m climb (5%)

Young Kurt Neumann beat me by a couple of minutes despite my having a good run. My only navigational error was running up the gully to the north from 2 but I dithered in the circle at 3, 11, 13, 16 due to slight map (or runner) vagueness at each site.

Thanks to Clive, Heidi and QOA for the map, the Spriggs and Ray for the event.

Sunday 10th April 2005
"Esk State Forest" 1998 1:15,000 5m
Ipswich Hwy - Warrego Hwy - Brisbane Vly Hwy - Esk - Crow's Nest Rd
~100km W of Brisbane CBD
"Red 2" 7km 365m climb (5.2%)

93 minutes. Sounds terrible, doesn't it? But I came 2nd. A very enjoyable run in a lovely area - one of the few pine plantations around here.

Syart>1 - left; 1>2 left via the road; 2>3 left through saddle; 3>4 left along the track and through the saddle; 6>7 started East; 8>9 went low; 10>11 along the road.

Thanks to UG, Jon and Thor for the event, Max Read and QOA for the map.

12:00 Thursday 7th April 2005
"Samford Forest" 2004 1:10,000 5m
UBD 106 R14 16km NW of Brisbane CBD
"Long" 3.9km 275m climb (7%)

I organised this event.

I did my best to minimise the climb, using the least steep part of the map, but was forced to put the event centre on the road leading to an inevitable steep climb to the finish. My concerns that the courses were too rugged were allayed by Ian Anderson completing the Long in 34 minutes followed 10 minutes later by a couple of relatively inexperienced but fit runners.

Meanwhile the Short was won by Ray, in his 70s and recuperating from an op by walking the course!

Thanks to Russell Hoelzl and QOA for the map.

12:00 Thursday 31st March 2005
"Bank Street Reserve" 1:5,000 5m
UBD 139 B16 5km NW of Brisbane CBD
"Long" 16 controls 3.65km 150m climb (4.1%)

An excellent course with interesting route choice at 6>7 (high and left) 8>9 (left again, doglegging back the way I came.)

The map appears to be a little iffy around nos 1 / 16 which are both closer to no 12 than the map would suggest. Running 1>2 both I and others hit the bent N-S track to the west.

My time was 38 minutes, I think beaten only by Julia Davies (national JWOC rep) in 36.

Thanks to Chris & Robin Spriggs for the event, Jon Sutcliffe and Hillbrook Anglican School for the map.