Irish Orienteering Association Planning and Controlling Workshop Colour Courses Dave Peel Harold White

Programme Discussion on planning colour courses Planning for Elites Planning TD4 and TD5 courses Planning sprint, middle distance, and long distance Planning exercise Discussion on planning championship courses Discussion of planned courses

Objectives To develop planning skills To understand the principles of course planning for colour and championship events To review the present IOA competition Guidelines for both

Grades of physical difficulty (PD) Physical DifficultyClimb involvedType of terrain 1Minimum of climbingPaths 2Some climbingPaths, and forest with no undergrowth 3Moderate climbAvoiding green areas, steep descents, and treacherous areas 4Climbing as necessary but avoiding steep ascents and descents Avoiding long legs in green areas 5Climbing as necessaryChosen so that a fit orienteer can run most of the time

Suggested revision and amalgamation of Guidelines G2.1.2 and G2.1.3 on technical standards for course planning Technical Difficulty Grade 1 ControlsClose together At every decision point Sited in the direction of the next control Control SitesPaths and tracks. Placed at junctions, crossings, and bends Leg LengthsSimilar length O Techniques requiredUnderstand map colours and commonly used symbols Able to orientate map Able to make decisions at ‘Decision’ points Routes and route choiceAlong paths and tracks No route choice Re-locationShould not be required

Suggested revision and amalgamation of Guidelines G2.1.2 and G2.1.3 on technical standards for course planning Technical Difficulty Grade 2 ControlsFairly close together At most two decision points per leg Control SitesOn the line feature along which the competitor is travelling Can be placed on prominent raised point features on or close to line features Leg LengthsNot to vary greatly O Techniques requiredAble to make decisions at a ‘Decision’ point without the assistance of a control Routes and route choiceAll along obvious line features No route choice Re-locationShould not be required, but can be done by re-tracing the route along line features

Suggested revision and amalgamation of Guidelines G2.1.2 and G2.1.3 on technical standards for course planning Technical Difficulty Grade 3 ControlsFrequent controls on short courses Less so on longer ones Control SitesAny line feature, prominent point or contour feature that can be easily found from an attack point on a line feature Leg LengthsOf different length O Techniques requiredBasic use of compass to allow short cuts between line features Able to navigate short legs on rough compass bearings to a control point, at or in front of a line feature Able to make simple route choice decisions Routes and route choiceSimple route choices Along line features to an obvious attack point Re-locationShould be a collecting feature close behind all controls that are not on a line feature

Suggested revision and amalgamation of Guidelines G2.1.2 and G2.1.3 on technical standards for course planning Technical Difficulty Grade 4 ControlsAs few as necessary for good planning Control SitesAny feature but should not require complex map reading Leg LengthsOf different length O Techniques requiredAble to navigate long legs on a rough compass bearing to a collecting feature Able to use an accurate compass bearing on short legs Able to navigate over short distances using simple contour features Routes and route choiceSignificant route choices encouraging contouring Re-locationCollecting features behind all controls Errors should not involve significant time loss

Suggested revision and amalgamation of Guidelines G2.1.2 and G2.1.3 on technical standards for course planning Technical Difficulty Grade 5 ControlsAs few as necessary for good planning Control SitesAny feature particularly those demanding careful map reading No hidden or isolated controls Leg LengthsOf different lengths Long route choice followed by short intricate legs O Techniques requiredAble to navigate for long distances using only major contour features Able to read and interpret complex contours Able to recognise indistinct features Able to fully concentrate over all of the course Routes and route choiceSignificant route choices Re-locationControl sites far from obvious relocating feature Errors should be costly in time

Proposed colour course criteria CourseTechnical difficulty (1-5) Physical difficulty (1-5) Time for most competitors (mins) Indicative adjusted course lengths (km) White1115 – Yellow2220 – – 2.5 Orange3325 – – 3.5 Red2445 – – 7.5 Light green4435 – Green5545 – – 5.5 Blue5555 – – 7.5 Brown5565 – – 10.0 Black

A comparison of the proposed time for most competitors with the average winners time from 11 colour events in 2009 CourseProposed time for most competitors (mins) (Previous) Average winners times (mins) White15 – 35 (15-35)Na Yellow20 – 45 (25-45)26.8 Orange25 – 50 (35-60)31.3 Red45 – 75 (45-75)35.0 Light green35 – 65 (55-90)42.6 Green45 – 75 (65-105)52.0 Blue55 – 90 (65-105)58.3 Brown65 – 105 (75-120)64.3 Black75 – 120 (75-120)Na

Percentage of competitors with times within the recommended time range for each class from eleven colour events in 2009 EventAverage% Clarabeg63.5 Bull Island47.8 Kilmore Quay54.4 Mall Hill65.4 Clarabeg71.4 Tramore73.3 Marlogue68.0 Scarr62.7 Banna52.0 Mondeligo63.3 Glendassan56.9 AVERAGE61.7 CourseAverage% Yellow57.1 Orange57.3 Red70.0 Light green43.2 Green59.4 Blue80.1 Brown66.1 Average61.7