Hey all
Just wondering who's all going to uni this year and what uni you're going to?
Anyone already at uni wantin to say why its the best 1 to go to?
Kyle
Freshers 2004
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samsonite - class clown
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Ahh, hust thought of something.
How about a thread sharing ideas to get Freshers to start orienteering?
Freshers fayre is a while away, but it is good to be prepared. Look at this in 2/3months time me thinks.
REMEMBER THIS
How about a thread sharing ideas to get Freshers to start orienteering?
Freshers fayre is a while away, but it is good to be prepared. Look at this in 2/3months time me thinks.
REMEMBER THIS
Now, I know you're a feminist, and I think that's adorable, but this is grown-up time and I'm the man.
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Braddie - light green
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Braddie wrote:Ahh, hust thought of something.
How about a thread sharing ideas to get Freshers to start orienteering?
Freshers fayre is a while away, but it is good to be prepared. Look at this in 2/3months time me thinks.
REMEMBER THIS
excellent idea, this is something i've always struggled with at St Andrews. It should also cover ideas for keeping their interest after they start too, a problem with both St Andrews (and Edinbugh I beleive) have had this year.
Andrew Dalgleish (INT)
Views expressed on Nopesport are my own.
Views expressed on Nopesport are my own.
- andy
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Edinburgh have the orienteering strength from the regular orienteers, those who were into the sport before going to Uni. What they don't have are freshers who are new to the sport/have little experience coming into the sport, which is something we should try to encourage at sports fayres/freshers week.
Andrew Dalgleish (INT)
Views expressed on Nopesport are my own.
Views expressed on Nopesport are my own.
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Apart from those Orienteers at either:
Edinburgh/Sheffield (who get people just wanting to Orienteer pretty much)
Oxford/Cambridge (People who are academical superstars)
Everyone else has to try a lot harder to get people orienteering as we have to get freshers in every year - if we don't the club goes - those top four (no offence) get it slightly easier than the rest of us.
We have 33 members at warwick (give or take) with 6 or so having done the sport before (in some capacity) everyone else we have had to attract.
From my experience, although cliched, people really don't know what the sport is about. We had a campus challenge on thursday, we found it hard even getting 10 people to try the sport.
Edinburgh/Sheffield (who get people just wanting to Orienteer pretty much)
Oxford/Cambridge (People who are academical superstars)
Everyone else has to try a lot harder to get people orienteering as we have to get freshers in every year - if we don't the club goes - those top four (no offence) get it slightly easier than the rest of us.
We have 33 members at warwick (give or take) with 6 or so having done the sport before (in some capacity) everyone else we have had to attract.
From my experience, although cliched, people really don't know what the sport is about. We had a campus challenge on thursday, we found it hard even getting 10 people to try the sport.
Now, I know you're a feminist, and I think that's adorable, but this is grown-up time and I'm the man.
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Braddie - light green
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At aberdeen this year, i went along to freshers fair with loads of posters to put up arround the place, some pics I got from an event on sluie last year of mark sanderson flying across a wall in a forest enlarged and loads of gimmicks (sweets i knicked off a stand a nightclub had put up, and jonnies removed from the studens assocation welfair stand) etc, then just sat back, normally we get perhaps 6 people interested, we got 75 names, 24 of whom came along to a come and try it in a local forrest we put on, one of whom then came along one sunday morning, and none of whom ever showed up again. what are we doing wrong?!
Argue for your limitations, and sure enough they are yours.
- Iain
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EUOC's experience this year has been very similar. At the start of the academic year it was known that many exceptional orienteers were to join the club, but as a club we did not wish to appear elitist, and so a great effort was made to attract new recruits to the sport. As Brooner has already mentioned, an Alc-O was planned for fresher's week, which was attended by 30-40 people, many of whom were completely new to the sport. Proceeding weeks were followed up with a series of "taster events" on properly mapped areas within the city limits. These events were also well attended, to the extent that concerns about transporting such large numbers of people to major events (e.g. BUSA, JK...) were raised. Such numbers soon dwindled as memories of lavish promotions at the fresher's fair waned, to the extent that (I think I am correct in saying), we had no completely new members to the sport competing for us at BUSA. In fact I am proably the nearest thing EUOC has to a new orienteer, having had six years away from the sport (although I was rubbish then, and I'm still rubbish now ). In this respect I, for one of many I am sure(?!), was well impressed with the turnout from Warwick University, who I believe had next to nothing of club a couple of years ago, yet must have had almost as many competitors as Edinburgh at BUSA this year. I know they didn't have so far to travel, but I am sure there are still lessons to be learnt there. I think our experience has been that it's difficult to keep fresher's interested a brand new sport (be it O, or any number of other things on offer) when there are so many other pressures at this time of life, e.g moving away from home, making new friends, etc. So, well done Warwick, but I think it'll always be a struggle for all of us, until more kids are exposed to "proper" orienteering, whilst at school. Give me a couple of years, and I'll be hoping to do my bit to resurrect the fortunes of NEJS!
Ps that was a bit long wasn't it? Maybe one for the discussion board somewhere...
Ps that was a bit long wasn't it? Maybe one for the discussion board somewhere...
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Pinches - orange
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i think the problem with our advertising was that it was focused around wowo its steve-o! actually we had a great chance this year as we had an orienteering photo (of wowo running at speed through the trees - a really fantastic photo) on the front cover of the sports union handbook which gets sent to every single fresher. But alas, steve didn't work his wonders in person and the meet the handbook coverstar session went down like a lead balloon.
“Success is 99% failure� -- Soichiro Honda
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brooner - [nope] cartel
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It's really difficult one. Every year OUOC get one or two new guys who stick and go on to become "proper" orienteers - Chris Millard who did pretty well in the bloke's BUSA was snatched from Cross country and Kat Asker is on eof our up and coming girlie stars. but it's only ever one or two - and I think we do quite well to retain that many. I think it's just an inherent problem in that if people can find a climbing wall in town they'd rather do that then spend a whole Sunday travelling to a forest. Nuts as far as I'm concerned, but it all comes down to ease with students I reckon.
Will? We've got proper fire now!
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Becks - god
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its the same old story, people coming to uni, away from home for the 1st time really, and they walk into the sports fair. at edinburgh, at the last count there were about 50+ clubs to choose from, going from the angling club!! to skydiving.
now i know that if i was a total newcomer, and i saw a picture of someone jumping out of a plane, or flying down the ski slopes or running in a forest, it wouldn't be too hard to choose from initally.
the ski slub is the biggest at uni with well over 1000 members, the sky dive club gets good inital interest but costs put a lot of people off. but once they leave the fair, that may be the last chance they get to see orienteering.
BOF or similar (nope sport) need to make a promo video. this shouldn't be too hard to do, but it should be full on hardcore racing. showing people at top speed with cool kit, and in nice sunlit forests. it should also show post race images, cheering at the world champs, and partying at big races. this way everyone gets to see the whole spectrum, it also helps that you don't have to explain too much about what the sport is about, you could just say, 'watch this'.
otherwise, orienteering is going to continue in the way it has for years, unable to compete with the la di da clubs.
now i know that if i was a total newcomer, and i saw a picture of someone jumping out of a plane, or flying down the ski slopes or running in a forest, it wouldn't be too hard to choose from initally.
the ski slub is the biggest at uni with well over 1000 members, the sky dive club gets good inital interest but costs put a lot of people off. but once they leave the fair, that may be the last chance they get to see orienteering.
BOF or similar (nope sport) need to make a promo video. this shouldn't be too hard to do, but it should be full on hardcore racing. showing people at top speed with cool kit, and in nice sunlit forests. it should also show post race images, cheering at the world champs, and partying at big races. this way everyone gets to see the whole spectrum, it also helps that you don't have to explain too much about what the sport is about, you could just say, 'watch this'.
otherwise, orienteering is going to continue in the way it has for years, unable to compete with the la di da clubs.
'Grab it by the balls'
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the duncan - diehard
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