Autumn Trophy 2 – Donard Forest

Venue Greenhill YMCA – Donard Park
Date Sat, 12th Dec 20
Starts 11:00 to 13:00
iCal file iCal

Event Description

POSTPONED to 12th December

See BOF calendar     https://www.britishorienteering.org.uk/index.php?pg=event&event=78896

After the high hills and open terrain of Divis Mountain we’re back down to sea level and the shelter of the forest with the next Autumn Trophy event in Donard Forest Park on Saturday 12th December.

Again the team have been working very hard to make this event possible within current restrictions, so please read the information below carefully as it contains several important details which differ from previous orienteering events.

Registration, Start Times and Closing Time

• Registration FOR ALL will be at the MOO (Mobile Orienteering Office) in the carpark in Greenhill YMCA
• Start times will be pre-allocated, from 11:00 to 13:00.
• ALLOW TIME TO WALK TO THE START – 0.5km and 75m climb from Greenhill. 10-15 minutes walk.
• Courses close at 15:00, at which time controls will be lifted.

Entry fees:

Pre-entry ONLY via SI Entries. See below for link

Entries open on Wednesday 18th November and numbers are limited to 80.

Please read through and agree to this information and guidance before clicking on the Entries link at the bottom of the page.

• Senior (year of birth 1999 or before):  Members £7  (non-members £9)
• Junior / Student: Members £3  (non-members £4)
• Family (maximum charge**): Members £17 (non-members £22)
• SIAC Hire: £1.50

* * If you are entering a family and it comes to more than £17 (if members or £22 if non-members) then please contact the organiser after you have paid for the individual Senior, or Junior/Student entries and we will arrange refund of the difference.

Timing will be SI Air only; Register your own SIAC or hire one for £1.50. Lost SIACs will be charged at £30.

Courses – Planner: Stephanie Pruzina.

• Green 4.2km, 155m climb
• Orange  2.6km, 90m climb
• Yellow 2.2km, 80m climb

Coronavirus Safety Measures

A number of measures have been put in place to provide for 2m Social Distancing and ensure your safety throughout this event. Please pay attention to them.

• Start Times are pre-allocated so that we can minimise the number of people at the various stages of the event. Please time your arrival to that you can register and get to the start just in time.
• During the event please use the hand sanitisers provided
• Do not touch the SI Control boxes except where an actual punch/dib is required.
• During the race please be aware of who is around you and try to maintain distance especially when approaching Controls.
• Please maintain your distance during any post-event socialising.

IMPORTANT –  You MUST NOT attend the event if:

• You are Shielding or have a condition that makes you Extremely Medically Vulnerable
• You are unwell with a cough, fever or other Covid-19 symptoms
• You have been in close contact with anyone who is suspected of or confirmed as having Covid-19 in the 14 days before this event
  
• You are supposed to be Self Isolating or are undergoing testing for suspected Coronavirus
• You have been out of the UK or Ireland within the last 14 days **EXCEPT from exempted countries – See the NI Direct website for the current rules and advice.

Map

Donard Forest Park, Scale 1:10000

Terrain

Forest on hillside. Vegitation variable.

Planner’s Notes

As you are aware, Donard Forest lies on the lower slopes of NI’s highest mountain and as a result the terrain is steep in places. To appease the contour-averse, all courses are starting higher than they finish. This does not mean they are downhill all the way! The Glen River divides the forest with some reasonably runnable deciduous areas to the SE of the river. To the NW of the river there is dense vegetation and a significant amount of felling so to access the interesting slopes of Drinahillly there is an unavoidable section of path running.

YELLOW COURSE. This is an adventure for our junior orienteers. They will need to duck under and scramble around some fallen trees, and they need to keep a close eye on where their line feature is going. IT IS NOT SUITABLE FOR BUGGIES and may be very muddy in places. There are a couple of places where tapes will be hung to make the line feature a little clearer. In general, on a yellow course the participant should be able to orientate the map, follow line features and make up to 2 decisions between controls. 2.2km, 80m climb

ORANGE COURSE. The orange course can be navigated using line features, but there is also the opportunity to cut some corners and to make route choice decisions. Sometimes cutting a corner will give the quickest route & sometimes if the terrain is rough it might be better to go by the path. It is useful to be able to set the map with a compass. 2.6km, 90m climb

GREEN COURSE. What do I say? Wet, muddy, slippery in places, and unfortunately that choice between path and forest, contouring or climbing. 4.2km, 155m climb

I am still trying to confirm access to Greenhill YMCA. If this is not possible course lengths and climb may change slightly.

 

 

Directions and Parking

• Car parking is free at Greenhill YMCA. Access via Shan Slieve Drive
  
• Please time your arrival to limit congregating in the car park- i.e. arrive in time for your pre-allocated start time but not excessively early.
• The Finish will be close to Registration.

Safety Notes

ALL competitors MUST download their times at registration even if they don’t finish the course.  If you fail to download someone will be out looking for you unnecessarily.

The car park will be busy, please take care and supervise children. Be aware that forestry vehicles and machinery may also be encountered on roads and in competition area.

There are mountain bikers within the competition area. Please be very careful crossing their trails and you should avoid running along them.

THE GLEN RIVER IS ONLY TO BE CROSSED VIA A BRIDGE and courses have been planned to make this the best route.

Whistles: recommended.  Cagoules: weather dependant.

Newcomers

You are welcome to join us even if you are not a member of the club. Club members will be available to offer advice and assistance, just ask at registration.

Social/Facilities

There are toilets in Donard carpark and plenty of cafes in town.

Remember to respect current Social Distancing rules and space yourselves appropriately while you relax and catch up.

Volunteers!

We need volunteers on the day to help at Registration, Starts, Download and Control Collection. Please get in touch with the Organiser  if you can offer help. It will be much appreciated and you will of course still get a run!

Location

Greenhill YMCA – Donard Park
Donard Park
Newcastle
BT33 0GR

Volunteers

To volunteer at this event please email volunteer@lvo.org.uk. You can find information on each role here as well as the current list of volunteers.