Crisis? what crisis?

[Fratello de Pingu]

We just don't have enough folk taking part. We need to double our membership

if BOF needs to doubble the membership then British Canoe Union needs to get asbout ten times as many members!!!

Orienteering will continue even if BOf mebership falls

[Oldman]

RJ said "No we're not, there is a crisis, and we need to address it rigorously, energetically and purposefully."

What suggestions do you have?

[Mrs H.]

Well for my part check out my website below - it's a very specifically targetted intensive campaign - I'm after Malvern families - and as you can see from the results and the photos in Gallery 2 - I'm getting them - I have big plans for continuing the momentum - I'll keep you posted

[Oldman]

Although you didn't list your web site, I found it at mado.org.uk and it's both a good web site and an interesting initiative.

Keep up the good work - I'm sorry I can't come and join in myself.

Presumably, you hope that some of those you're targetting will go on to join HOC and may be even BOF?

[Mrs H.]

I meant for you to press the www next to profile and pm at the bottom of my post - it takes you straight through to the website. Yes I hope to sign them up to HOC - as for BOF - well that's up to them isn't it. I have hardly started with the hard sell yet but I already have 3 families and 2 individuals signed up - I am expecting more in the next fortnight - whther I'd have been able to sign them up if I'd been charging more than £10 (ie compulsory BOF membership) well that's a whole different question. I suspect that only half of the people we sign up will ever venture out of the area - but the rest will happily come along once a month to very local informals - and that's what i plan to give them - this is the broad base of the pyramid we have to make to build higher. Do I know you?

[RJ]

RJ said "No we're not, there is a crisis, and we need to address it rigorously, energetically and purposefully."

What suggestions do you have?

Back to basics! We have a superb event structure within the sport that is perfect to support the introduction of new members. But the membership as it stands is mature in all meanings of the word. Current members want quality orienteering of a high technical standard.

The current membership pyramid is top heavy; the bulk of us are in the top of it, with very few novices and inexperienced populating the bottom. We need to address that urgently if we are going to survive as a sport.

Attracting new people to the sport relies on initiatives like Mrs H's with MADO. Her model is a good one, and should be copied all over the place. But there are other models, with some clubs making great progress with schools' work. Sharing of information, and publicising what clubs do is a place to start.

However, it is a long term project and involves us in events that may not meet our own personal needs. Events with White, Yellow and Orange courses (and proper ones at that, on appropriate areas) are required.

We need to double our membership, and we could quite easily do that! There is a tremendous ground swell in interest in taking exercise with the various government initiatives. Continuous and varied advertising and promotion of orienteering will eventually get through. And it isn't just up to BOF, it is up to individual clubs. BOF can provide the tools and co-ordinate the ideas but the clubs are the place to make the contact because they are the ones who will provide the experience to the interested people.

Some clubs are increasing their membership numbers. What are they doing right? Spread the word.

[Guest]

RJ said "No we're not, there is a crisis, and we need to address it rigorously, energetically and purposefully."

What suggestions do you have?

Back to basics! We have a superb event structure within the sport that is perfect to support the introduction of new members. But the membership as it stands is mature in all meanings of the word. Current members want quality orienteering of a high technical standard.

The current membership pyramid is top heavy; the bulk of us are in the top of it, with very few novices and inexperienced populating the bottom. We need to address that urgently if we are going to survive as a sport.

Attracting new people to the sport relies on initiatives like Mrs H's with MADO. Her model is a good one, and should be copied all over the place. But there are other models, with some clubs making great progress with schools' work. Sharing of information, and publicising what clubs do is a place to start.

However, it is a long term project and involves us in events that may not meet our own personal needs. Events with White, Yellow and Orange courses (and proper ones at that, on appropriate areas) are required.

Agree with RJ. It's just a shame that a number of members are so selfish. They only want something to suit themselves-look at that TVOC chap in compass sport, just because he runs long courses he can't see why it is necessary to have short courses and even worse have RANKING POINTS in them. Most people move into mainstream O through short courses some stay in them, often as they are those who give their time to O in many ways so don't necessarily have the time to train etc for long courses.

I have recently helped at MADO. I have not run, but have put some controls out, helped on registration and in 'the customer services dept' but I have had the satisfaction of seeing beginners have enjoyment from orienteering, and seen some progress through the courses. However I can guarantee they'd nearly all be put off by long highly competitive badge courses. Some will get their others will give up but at least they've experienced O, and will hopefully have good memories to pass on to others.


Hocolite

[FatBoy]

I feel that both Hocolite and man from TVOC are BOTH right.

Yes beginners progressing are put off by over long (for them) badge (sorry regional) courses.

Yes also renaming B to S and giving away rankings and gold badges has undermined the A/L course. Anybody wishing to run "S" at a badge event must be willing to consider themselves a "B" class orienteer - I certainly did when I wasn't fit enough to run L. Remember the difference between being a good orienteer and being a good navigator.

The answer? Something AWK has been trumpeting for quite some time - get rid of our mostly pointless small regional events where both beginner is put off and pointless rankings are handed out on B courses and replace them with more (higher quality?) colour coded events. Maybe offer a few more colours than normal and everbody's happy?

[Guest]

The answer? Something AWK has been trumpeting for quite some time - get rid of our mostly pointless small regional events where both beginner is put off and pointless rankings are handed out on B courses and replace them with more (higher quality?) colour coded events. Maybe offer a few more colours than normal and everbody's happy?

Being selfish myself now This would be great if they would run a Ladies Green. I.E same technical difficulty but less physical and perhaps a little shorter. This would also reduce the numbers on the very busy green. I know that clubs now give a W standard and a M standard.

Hocolite

[FatBoy]

Yes that course is needed - wouldn't nec. call it a "Ladies" green - needed for those older men too.

Being selfish myself I would want a black course - even if it is 4 laps of some areas. A brown is enough for me week in week out but I do need longer races to keep match fit enough for 21L's at JK etc.

I think also a red is a must and perhaps what some clubs call purple - an even longer red. Even if nobody runs these courses at some events they are helpful not to put off fit people wanting to get into orienteering. They could get their excercise on the easy red course then walk the "ladies green" for technique practise.

I think the other thing you do is keep a (regional?) league of these higher quality colour coded events. Many regions do this already I know. These are good for your average regional orienteer who doesn't want to travel to have their equivalent of the national rankings, and it's good for beginners motivation to come back to compare. The series of events should be marketed as such.

[awk]

Being selfish myself now This would be great if they would run a Ladies Green. I.E same technical difficulty but less physical and perhaps a little shorter. This would also reduce the numbers on the very busy green. I know that clubs now give a W standard and a M standard. Hocolite

This is long overdue, particularly in those areas where the Green and over courses are genuinely TD5: it strikes me as really odd that the shortest TD5 at quite a lot of events is almost 5km! "Perhaps a little shorter" is a real understatement!

It's also something that I tried to get through a few years ago, at the same time as JM/JW classes came in, but was told no. I never quite worked out why.

[Guest]

How about this for an idea.

Take a good quality colour coded event. Add a Ladies Green course, plus a Black, a red and a long red (purple).

Now put a league on top of it with age classes allocated to the courses and we have the makings of a really good competition.

Or have we just re-invented the Badge Event?

[FatBoy]

Or have we just re-invented the Badge Event?

You can call it what you like, but the concept that matters is you run the course appropriate to your ability both technically and physically, not one decided by your age and sex. It also allows for better training because you can choose based on what your training requirements are.

The experiments done last year of allowing people to choose which course they run at regional events was a step in the right direction but IMO failed because the courses were still labelled with their age class equivalents.

[HOCOLITE]

In the experimental race I attended I ran my age class badge course for two reasons it suits me by length and technical challenge and of course there were the ranking points It is a short course but I appreciate the ranking points as I can see if I'm improving against others. I know there are flaws in the system nothing is perfect but it helps the confidence if you improve, and it gives you something to aim for if you are not likely to be winning courses and trophies. From the ranking I can clearly see which areas suit my style, of O. Yes I probably have an idea but they give some credibility to it.

[awk]

Yes I probably have an idea but they give some credibility to it.

Even more credible is racing people and seeing who you beat, especially if you run in a small class where the ranking system uses a fudge factor to do the calculations. A bit like the old astronomers who threw in a fudge factor to support their belief that the sun and stars revolved around the earth.