BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//6.6.4.4//EN TZID:Europe/London X-WR-TIMEZONE:Europe/London BEGIN:VEVENT UID:0-481@lvo.org.uk DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20220319T110000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20220319T130000 DTSTAMP:20220319T183127Z URL:https://lvo.org.uk/allfixtures/ni-colour-series-1-3/ SUMMARY:NI Colour Series 1 - Gosford Forest Park DESCRIPTION:1️⃣The first NI Colour Series of the year will take place a t Gosford Forest Park in the midst of the orchard county of Armagh. Come t o Armagh for a St Patrick’s weekend and feel free to wear any green you ’ve left over.☘\n\n🌳The walled forest has been a great draw in rece nt years with the development of mountain bike trails and iconic adventure playground zones\, so as well as bikers\, be prepared to meet giants\, ca stles and mythical creatures. Expect the place to be busy. The Estate cove rs an area of 240 hectares and its various owners have all had an impact o n the place\, whether it was the Acheson's and Earl's of Gosford who built the Castle\, created the Deer Park\, used the ponds to power a corn mill\ , or planted the Arboretum which contains many record trees\; the US army who are responsible for the firing range and the remains of several gun em placements\; the German POW's who built the small round tower in the main car park\; to the Forestry Service who created several plantations\; and t o the present owners ABC Council who have added the MTB Trails and Play Zo nes. While mostly conifer\, the Forest contains some beautiful huge specim en trees\, and some lovely runnable beech and oak plantations. You may eve n find your path littered with expanses of wild garlic in some places too. \n\n🙏Volunteering: Given its convenient location and being a junior sel ection race\, we expect a healthy number of entries\, so we are looking fo r some volunteers to help with the event. We’ll need a first aider\, a c ouple of teams for both registration/download and at the start. Please thi nk of supporting in this way and let us know in the comment box below or g etting in touch with Kieran Rocks the Organiser\, entries@lvo.org.uk.\n\n 💻Online Entries are open on SIEntries. Entries close: Midnight Thurs 17 /03/2022 (St Patrick's Day)\n\n🗺🧭Mapping and Planner's Comments: Arm agh is drumlin country so don't expect your route to be flat. The forest i s mainly conifer but expect to visit some beautifully runnable beech and o ak plantations\, and many of you will get to enjoy the Arboretum. Sadly\, the forest has suffered from low maintenance over the years and several ar eas are heavily vegetated. Global warming is also playing its part: Whilst the weather hasn't been great of late\, we haven't really had a winter ag ain this year\, so the undergrowth is higher than it would normally be. Th e courses have been planned to avoid most of it\, but bramble bashers woul d be recommended particularly on the longer courses. Gosford contains many ditches - many are small\, but several are deep and steep sided. The rive r is currently easily crossed\, but this may change. Some areas of the map are quite detailed so I have provided enlargements for the shorter course s. The boulders\, pits\, and depressions shown are generally smaller\, sha llower\, than found in other areas\, however\, as long as you are in the r ight place you will spot the control. Power lines have been omitted. The m ain hazard to your run will possibly be the MTB riders. The courses have b een planned to avoid your use of their trails. If you choose to use the tr ails please bear in mind that the bikers have right of way. The MTB trails themselves tend to zig-zag a lot and so don't necessarily offer the quick est route - in many places it will be easier to run through the forest ins tead.\n\n⌚Registration and Starts: from 11am to 1pm. If you have entered online and have your dibber you can go straight to the start at the start window you have been allocated. Otherwise go to registration and ask for a dibber.\n\nRegistration / Enquiries / Download are currently planned to be in our car park.\n\nThe start will be a 5 minute walk from the car park . Call up will be at -3.\n\nFinish is adjacent to the car park.\n\nPlease remember to go to Download whether you have finished your course or not\, as that is our safety check on participants.\n\nCourses will close at 15:0 0.\n\n\n⚪🟡🟠🟢🔵🟤 Courses: There will be the full range of c ourses to suit all ages and abilities\, Newcomers are very welcome.\n\n W hite - 1.9km - 19 controls\, 1:5000 map\n Yellow - 2.4km - 18 controls\, 1:5000 map\n Orange - 3.3km\, 35m climb - 13 controls\, 1:7500 map\n Lig ht Green - 4km\, 65m climb -13 controls\, 1:7500 map\n Short Green - 3.2k m\, 40m climb - 11 controls\, 1:7500 map\n Green - 4.4km\, 75m climb - 17 controls\, 1:7500 map\n Blue - 6.5km\, 100m climb - 21 controls\, 1:1000 0 map with exchange\n Brown - 8.9km\, 135m climb - 27 controls\, 1:10000 map with exchange\n\nCourses are mixed punching and SI Air is enabled on a ll controls except the Start and Finish.\n\n\n\n\n🚗Parking: There will be a £5 charge per car\, payable at the gate hut on entry\, unless you ha ve an ABC Forest pass. So why not car share!?! Covid-19 hasn't gone away\, but if you're fully vaccinated and feel comfortable enough\, it is more e nvironmentally friendly\; it will save you money in fuel\, and is far more sociable. Gosford is a busy place at weekends. We will have our own car p ark next to the Deer Park - please follow the signs and listen to the mars hals. As you've paid your fee why not enjoy the rest of what Gosford has t o offer after your run\, assuming you still have the energy. I recommend a warm down toddle through the Arboretum\, but you could also bring your bi ke.\n\n\n🚽Facilities : Public toilet facilities are available beside th e main carpark where you can find hot drinks and good food while recoverin g from your run. You can find details on the park here\, with some caravan and camping spots available to book for the weekend. \n\n\n🐕‍🦺Dog s are welcome but please keep them on a lead around the main car park\, pl ayground and adventure trail areas.\n\n💚Safety: First Aid will also be situated at registration. Please dress appropriately - full body cover in forests is always recommended due to risk of cuts. A whistle should be wor n by all competitors (the alert is 6 loud blasts per minute\, continue unt il found). If weather is not so nice a waterproof jacket may also be manda tory. Checks will be made at start to ensure you are safe to go out on the course\, so bring all what's required.\n\n\nPlease continue to follow the government and club/event safety guidance around Covid\, to ensure we do our best to keep each other safe and well.\nA number of measures have been put in place to reduce the risk of Covid transmission and ensure your saf ety throughout this activity. These measures are aligned with current NI G overnment regulations and guidance and the British Orienteering Participan t Code of Conduct which all participants are expected to adhere to.\nThe m ain aspects for this event we would like you to pay attention to are:\nAt Registration\, Start and Download please maintain social distancing - wear ing a face covering is also advised\nDuring the event please use the hand sanitisers provided to maintain hygiene\nDo not touch the SI Control boxes except with the SI Card\nDuring the race please be aware of who is around you and try to maintain distance especially when approaching Controls.\nA s we are using public parks please be mindful of other park users and give them space.\nPlease minimise pre and post-activity socialising and mainta in your distance.\nYou are advised not to car-share with anyone outside yo ur household at this time.\nIMPORTANT You MUST NOT attend the activity if: \nYou are unwell with a cough\, fever or have had other Covid symptoms or tested positive for Covid-19 within the last 10 days and are not fully vac cinated. N.B. If you have negative LFD tests after the 5th Day and you are fully vaccinated you may attend.\nYou have been in close contact with any one who is suspected of or confirmed as having Covid-19 in the 10 days and you are not fully vaccinated - see NI Direct information on Close Contact s. N.B. If you are fully vaccinated you must have a negative LFD test befo re attending.\nYou are supposed to be Self Isolating.\nIf you have a condi tion that makes you Clinically Vulnerable\, please follow current governme nt and medical advice before registering.\nIf you need to withdraw your en try due to Coronavirus restrictions we will refund your entry fee on reque st less £3 for unrecoverable costs.\nIn the event that regulations change and we have to cancel the event we will refund entry fees.\n\n\n\n CATEGORIES:NI Colour Series LOCATION:Gosford Forest\, Gosford Forest\, Markethill\, BT60 1GD\, Norther n Ireland GEO:54.30365450000001;-6.522917600000028 X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=Gosford Forest\, Markethill \, BT60 1GD\, Northern Ireland;X-APPLE-RADIUS=100;X-TITLE=Gosford Forest: geo:54.30365450000001,-6.522917600000028 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:Europe/London X-LIC-LOCATION:Europe/London BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20211031T010000 TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0000 TZNAME:GMT END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE END:VCALENDAR