The first event of the 2010 Gauteng Short Course Series took place at the Jo’burg Zoo on Sunday, 24 January. With its many paths and road, open gardens, dozens of buildings and enclosures and interesting features, this is fast-running terrain with navigation suited to all levels.
The athletes Thierry Gueorgiou (FRA), Anders Nordberg (NOR) and Michal Smola (CZE) will be recognised by the International Committee for Fair Play for their sportsmanship during the World Orienteering Championships relay in Hungary in 2009.
The 2010 Short Course Series has kicked off in Jo’burg. With events in parks, schools and even the Jo’burg Zoo, this Series is rockin’ the city. There are events most weekends from now until mid-April. Whatcha waiting for? Get punching!
Who may take part? Anyone! Orienteering can be enjoyed by men, women and children, whether old or young, fit or unfit. As you set your own pace, it is ideal recreation for individuals or groups.
A Control Description Sheet will be given to you before your start containing all the necessary information about the control sites you will need to visit on your chosen course. On beginners’ courses words are used, but internationally accepted symbols are used in the advanced courses.
Always stop and assist a fellow Orienteer clearly in distress. If the person is able to move (e.g. minor cut or sprain) – assist them to the finish area. In more serious cases (e.g. broken limb), call out for assistance from other competitors in the area.
Handrails’ are linear features, which can be identified on the map and in the terrain and used to assist in navigating from one control point to another. These include paths, tracks, fences, powerlines, streams and clear vegetation boundaries, but can also be features such as lines or cliffs, ridges, and valleys or re-entrants.
Orienteering is a fun sport with a number of rules that keep competition and participation above board. On the whole, there’s not too much to remember other than the golden rule “Control points shall be visited in the correct sequence – no random control visits are allowed without pain of disqualification”.
Before attending your first orienteering event, look through this checklist to make sure you understand how events work – from registration, to the start line and getting your results after the event.
Orienteering is not only meant for the very fit and fast runner. It is planned so as to be open to and to be enjoyed by as many people as possible, with varying degrees of physical ability and from many walks of life. To facilitate this, orienteering events normally offer several different courses, which range in physical and technical difficulty.