Selling O' to teenagers

[Oldman]

Darley said "Much better to hare about jumping over things, getting mucky, shredding myself on Barbed wire fences etc and basically having a good time. Have fun first, get better later."

Excellent! I think this is exactly the way to describe O to beginners (other than families and young children, but even there, getting muddy is welcomed by many).

The first time I did O twenty years ago, I ran a red course and thought having done research that you should run straight whenever possible. I did, and it became an assualt course through ditches and streams and all manner of tough terrain. I finished and was elated until I saw the better times! But I kept coming back!

[CHS]

Its great to hear from you Darley, nopesport is rather top heavy with established orienteers and its tricky for us to think about the sport from a newcomers perspective. How did you get into orienteering?

[HOCOLITE]

Get Muddy Yes I recently visited a primary school with a 'Wild Garden' there were stingers and brambles and the teacher told me that the kids go there every Thursday morning (playgroup as well), the school has waterproofs so the weather doesn't matter. Surprisingly the kids that came to O club were dead enthusiastic Trouble is the club was only available to Yr 5/6.

[Oldman]

Some further ideas:
- Flag racing
- Racing out of control
- Running out of control
- Map racing
- Assault racing

[HOCOLITE]

I like 'racing out of control'

[Jon Brooke]

I still think 'cunning running' is a pretty good way of selling it.

JB

[mharky]

rhyme is a bit Chaucer... we're in the age of adjectives now...

[Mr timE]

Becks, you can use one of my EMIT slogans if you like, it is "Running with your brain on", which sums it up nicely.

[Carnage Head]

Sport orienteering?

DK

This worked at my school, at least more than I thought it might. Plus it retains the name of 'the internationally established sport'.

[stodge]

I like "sport orienteering" -
Our image problem is that most people not in the know think that Orienteering is hours of wet miserable hill walking....

We also use the slogan 'adventure sport on your doorstep'
Although we do have the whole of cannock chase very close by.

[tim sleepless]

Forest Cross
Forest racing
Navigation racing
Navigation cross
Terrain-cross
Terrain racing

some similar combination of sexy sounding tough words....

alternatively "Sweatynerdybeardymenwearinglycra" might just do the trick

[Becks]

I've gone for "running wild" with the word orienteering in the blurb just below. Fingers crossed hey?

[harry]

but Most teenagers aren't keen on the idea of running.
big problem.. was dilemma for recruiting newbies at freshers fair at leeds too. you want to get across it is a running competitive sport but that actually puts off most of the people who would actually join. so in the end you say no no you don't have to run and triumph and take full minibusses to events full of new freshers but then after you've done the brown you have to wait ages for them to finish walking round the orange. the XC folk generally weren't interested or came once or twice for novelty and hated it cos they couldn't actually run and navigate.

maybe if they are a bit younger they won't be put off by the word running but in my experience the keen people are the ones who can only walk round, so they join and get involved and then much later decide yes i like this sport and want to do better and eventually start running and getting fitter.

people are always trying to recruit runners into orienteering but this hardly ever works, one of a few great exceptions to the rule was Scotia.

[harry]

and Ray Ward but it's taken him about 10 years to start enjoying orienteering!

[PorkyFatBoy]

alternatively "Sweatynerdybeardymenwearinglycra" might just do the trick

You forgot the fat.

It's "fatsweatynerdybeardrmenwearinglycra".