croeso 2024

[Davy]

The venues for 2024 are now listed on the www.croeso.uk website but the names mean nothing to me. (I live at 56 degrees north.) There are no OS grid references or travel directions listed nor any enquires email address that I can find. Can anybody give me a clue where these places are ?
Cheers.

[SeanC]

Merthyr Mawr - Bridgend. Sand dunes
Cribarth - Brecon Beacons National Park
Carrech Goch - Don't know.
Pen Rhiw Wen - Don't know
Crychan Forest - Llandovery, just north of Brecon Beacons National Park
Merthyr Common - Welsh Valleys, just south of Brecon Beacons National Park - between Merthyr Tydfil and Caerphilly.

I'm sure these will all be on SBOC and SWOC routegadget to see the terrain.

[ryeland of doom]

Pen Rhiw Wen - Westernmost 600m hill on the Black Mountain. (On SBOC route gadget)
https://www.sboc.routegadget.co.uk/rg2/#46
https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2948218

Carreg Goch could be the exciting bit of Ogof Ffynnon Ddu like grit and limestone area across the way, above Dan yr Ogof on the Black Mountain. An area which has defied years of attempts at getting permision and was very nearly a BOC venue around 1990. Hope so! Correspondence with a SBOC member suggested that they had hoped to use it next year

https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/3210312

[Dewi]

Merthyr Mawr also on SBOC RG - Bridgend
https://www.sboc.routegadget.co.uk/rg2/#53

Carreg Goch is above Dan yr Ogof caves
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.8367266,-3.7052081,2652m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu

Cribarth are the lower slopes to the SW (above the Abercraf), known locally as the sleeping giant.

Both are new maps never used for O previously we've been trying for years to get access (I first looked at the area in 2010 for JK2014)

Pen Rhiw Wen - partial map on SBOC routegadget page, RG does not show the map to the West and this is to be extended (and possibly to the East?)
https://www.sboc.routegadget.co.uk/rg2/#46
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.8441796,-3.823668,2652m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu

If you use the google links you can see the areas of Carreg Goch and Pen Rhiw Wen are one big area - its a grand days walk to cross from west to east.

Merthyr Common
https://www.swoc.routegadget.co.uk/rg2/#78

Crychan Forest I think was used as one of the days at the first Croeso (1996?)

So mix of sand dunes, forest and open (with big sink holes)

[Dewi]

Why Cribarth is also known as the sleeping giant

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cribarth

There are some better photos online - but if you squint you can see the giant....

[Davy]

Thanks a lot, that's a big help.

[redpossum]

Crychan Forest I think was used as one of the days at the first Croeso (1996?)

Crychan Forest South was used for the last day at the first Croeso in 1988. It was steep and the map was very green but that was 35 years ago so it should be better now (he says optimistically!).

[Karen]

Very inviting website, but could you check the dates on the day info?
Should it be Sunday 21st etc.
There has to be a rest day....

[HarryO]

I find it strange that whilst the Scottish 6 Day has reduced to 5 forest events, Croeso are increasing to 6 events. I welcomed the S6D decision; one of their reasons being the emergence of Friday to Friday accommodation (usually us - seems we are always too late booking accommodation). Other reasons included the lack of quality areas, issues with parking and stretched resources.

[Homer]

Hasn't Croeso always been 6 days? I thought so.

Either way I'm impressed that WOA is putting on more races than SOA can manage, despite a much smaller membership to draw on for potential helpers.

You don't have to enter all 6 days if you can't find a Travelodge (or similar) for the Friday night should you be staying in Friday to Friday accommodation. It is 4 from 6 (or 5) to count...

[Snail]

The current details for days 2 & 3 are very precise in saying there will be 6 buses, plus a 'dog bus', for the transfer to assembly. So about 330 people per hour. If there are anything like the entry numbers from 2016 (around 2000?) that suggests around a minimum 6-hour start interval. And some people won't be able to get a bus back from assembly until 20:00! Potential for queues of many hours each way, in either rain or very hot weather, and hundreds missing scheduled starts. .

I realise estimating entry numbers might be difficult, with WOC potentially either increasing or decreasing numbers significantly, but unless there is some significant flexibility indicated on bus numbers, I am inclined to give these days a miss.

[Dewi]

Initial bussing numbers were calculated on an entry of 1200 competitors.

6 buses x 60 competitors + 30 in dog bus - 390 per shift
3 shifts x 390 = 1170

Buses will be increased if competitors numbers increase over the estimated 1200.

Organiser is on it!

[Davy]

Thanks for the alert about busses. That's the first that I have heard about beong bussed from a remote carpark. Having had another look at the website I see that day 5 seems to have moved.

Also, a while back there was a suggestion of an event campsite at the College in Brecon but I can't see it mentioned now. Has that been dropped ?

Cheers

[Dewi]

For those coming to Croeso in the summer 2 more days are to be added to Fabian 4 in the next few days.

Model Event on Sat 20th July at Mynydd Llangatwg
Urban Sprint on Weds 24th July in Brecon Town

These are not 'counting days' but you are more that welcome to enter all 8 days, if your legs allow

Details are on the Croeso website https://croeso.uk/

[Dewi]

The Model event and Urban Sprint are now available for entry on Fabian 4, they are listed as separate events from the main competition days. It does not matter which event you select as you can enter both events from each of the event links by simply ticking event 1 and/or 2 as you follow the entry process.

An email will go out later to all who have entered informing them of this, the main website will have some updates to reflect the availability of the 'add on' days for your enjoyment.