how to get a quicker start?

[InvisibilityEquipped]

I've been doing orienteering for about 6 months now but haven't attended many events overall. A problem I've been having since the beginning and doesn't seem to be getting any better is that when I first start a course I take forever to orient my map and work out where I am and where I have to go.

I'm not even sure of the convention of when you're allowed to look at your map. When I get handed a map with controls marked on it I'm generally ushered quickly to the start area and go straight away, one time I tried to look at my map as I was walking to the start area and was reprimanded by another orienteer who told me you're not allowed to look at it before you punch into the start control. For maps I've had to mark myself I've sometimes tried to have a sneaky look around me and orient my map before I leave the marking table... so I don't feel so embarrassed at the start 'cause I can move off quicker.

I just feel so dumb punching into the start control then standing there for 10 minutes turning my map every which way, looking all around me, choosing a route and then finally setting off. No one else does this.

So... am I really not allowed to look at my map before starting? And, how can I get my bearings more quickly so I can start running the course straight away?

[NFKleanne]

I'm not quick, but before I start, I use my compass so I know which way is North, then when I get my map I turn it so its is orientated. Then I lookl for the start triangle - if I cannot find it - I locate a low numbered control then work back till I find it. I's sure other more experienced people will have more useful tips than this!

[NFKleanne]

Also its better to loiter at the start, and make sure you know where you are going, rather than run around in circles in the forest trying to relocate!

[King Penguin]

At events where a blank map is available in the -2 (or similar) box in the start lanes, rather than just looking at it generally, focus on working out where you are on it. You should already know which way north is from your compass (as advised by NFKLeanne) and hopefully something significant like fields / forest edge / road / stream / significant path junctions will help. If the start is remote from assembly you need to have been paying attention to major features / directions / turns on the way to the start to help in this, and not just walking or chatting without looking around you. By the time you move to the next box hopefully you will know start is in bottom left / near north edge / in the middle / just W of big dark green thicket etc.
If you still have spare time to look at the map, concentrate on the main topography e.g. main ridge NE-SW, steep down to N, gentle down to E etc. rather than the minutiae. Some people reckon they can work out almost the whole of their course sometimes in 1 min from the blank map and the control descriptions, but that's going too far. You might have an educated guess where 1 is, but don't just assume it can only be there and leg it - that way lies disaster.
As NFK said, far better to spend some time just after punching the start working out where you are and what to do rather than legging it fast in completely the wrong direction. Remember the tortoise and the hare.....

[Nottinghamshire outlaw]

I am horrified that InvisibilityEquipped has met with some pretty unhelpful folk in starting out in the sport. We take the view here in RobinHood country that newcomers can look at maps (even Orange /LGreen course maps - shock/horror) before they start and have some tips from a coach or a map walk - I don't know where you are? As I say to parents who want to attach their child's clip on compass or check that they know where they are going 'It's not the World Champs'.

Come on (some) clubs - get a grip and be more helpful

[AndyC]

I agree with The Outlaw - if a map has been issued (normally for White or Yellow) before the start it is precisely so a novice can get some advice from the more experienced to help them -so unless the map is sealed at issue (because of a mass start perhaps) no-one should criticise anyone for opening it.
Similarly where the blank map is available before the start (as per the rules) I have been in huddles discussing the orientation of the map and where exactly on it we were -all things a novice can use if they are brave enough to join in. (However I do remember one event where maps were issued at registration (master maps) where half a dozen of us couldn't get the map and compass to agree with the reservoir we could see below us and another recently where the compass pointed 15 degrees from Mag Nth at the start but was right within 100 yds of moving off -we think a natural lodestone right by the start -another thing for the Controller to check)
Where a novice has stood at the start clearly having trouble getting started -especially if they are on an "easy" course and at a low key event - I'd expect a spare official or helper to wander over with a friendly "need help?" and even walk with them the first bit of the course perhaps.
It is similar to the situation where we meet a clearly lost competitor (especially children) and "put a finger on the map" for them -not something in serious competition but for those developing possibly essential.
I actually did it in my Club Championship this weekend for someone who was well lost after making a classic 180 error leaving a control - she'd obviously been lost for a while and had ceased to have any chance of featuring in the prizes so no issue.
I also did it for my wife at an event (no choice there really!) and had to point out my next control which was visible to convince her that I wasn't lost as well!

[SeanC]

InvisiblyEQuipped - you could take this as a complement. Maybe someone thought you were an experienced orienteer trying to gain an unfair advantage.

Beginners are at a definate disadvantage as most experienced orienteers will have been to the area before and will look at an old map to help them anticipate the distinctive problems the area could pose. InvisiblyEQuipped - in general it might be worth seeing if someone in your club will send you a scan of an old map before you go to an event - it definately helps.

Something club coaches could do more of maybe when looking after beginners in their club?

[NeilC]

Don't underestimate how unnerving the unknown is to beginners. At all of our club league events competitors are given their course maps at registration (even Blue course runners). Studying the course before the start, and even discussing it with others, is encouraged. Of course if experienced orienteers want the challenge of identifying the best route choices in race time no-one forces them to look at the course beforehand. In the sort of terrain we have mistakes are much more likely in executing the route than in choosing it. These events are very successful (averaging well over 100 for the 24 event series) and it wouldn't surprise me if this relaxed attitude contributes to this success.

[SeanC]

Neil - encouraging orienteers to talk to each other We do this at our North West Kent League events and I think SLOW do as well. In general, I suspect it's more typical that only the white/yellow and sometimes orange course maps get handed out at registration?

[InvisibilityEquipped]

Thanks everyone for all the tips. I can see if nothing else I need to take a look at my compass much sooner - no reason I can't know where north is before I get my map...

I'm in Australia and I don't think we have the same colour codings for our courses. There are 4 levels at most events I've attended the easiest 2 are built on handrails and I feel they are too easy for me (could do most of them without a compass) and so have moved up to the next level. The time I was told off for looking at my map I was doing the second easiest course - looking back I was handed a folded map - is that what you call a sealed map? I'm wondering if that was a "sealed" map why there were sealed maps at only that one course and why there was never any explanation from anyone that some courses have a sealed map and what it means? I think some people must have been doing the sport for so long they forget what its like to be new to it....

If I can just get to the bottom of when I am and am not allowed to look at a map before starting that would be a huge help. I could use all the tips here to help me orient my map before I arrive at the start if I just know I'm allowed to look at my map.

[Becks]

Hi InvisibilityEquipped. Some excellent advice above, but I just wanted to add that there are lots of Australian runners on Attackpoint.org. If you posted the message there, you might be able to find someone to give you a few hints in person at the next meet.

[AndyO]

IE, don't feel embarrassed to do a so-called "easy" course. Orienteering courses are set to suit various standards so that newcomers can learn techniques in stages, and progress to more technical courses as they learn the necessary skills. Sure, you can get round a course on paths and handrail features without using a compass, but you should be reading the map and using the compass as you go, and become more comfortable with these skills the more races you do. The vertical lines on the map are aligned north-south, and writing on the map including control codes will always be read with north at the "top" of the map, so you only need to hold the compass on the map and turn around so that north on the compass points to the top of the map, and you have oriented the map.

One very important skill to learn, that makes a good orienteer is visualisation, or being able to look at the map and "see" a 3 dimensional picture of what it looks like on the ground. That should match with what you actually see around you. Doing that in reverse (seeing what is on the ground and how it should look on the map) is part of it, too. You build up that skill by practice, practice, practice, and starting with the "easy" courses lets you develop at your own pace. After you have got the hang of the basics, then you can work on using them at speed.

Remember too that we all do this because we love it, and most of us still make huge mistakes more often than we would like, and yet we are quite happy to give advice to an inexperienced runner. There are some good books to give you help on basic and advanced techniques which will also help.

[DaveK]

Nice helpful post Andy O. .

[mappingmum]

I agree the start can be a very daunting experience. But it does get better as your skills and experience improve.

IE - you talk about standing at the start punch working out the course. Perhaps it's different, but in the UK there is always a separate start control you don't punch on a run-out from the start punch. So, you don't have to work out what you're doing after punching. You have until you leave the start control to work it out. Even if you only walk to it, that could be 20 "free" seconds. Or you could run like the clappers to it, escape the spectators, then stop and orient your map and decide your route choice to #1 in the relative peace and quiet of the start kite.

And if it is in sight . . . . . . what to do is to watch the runners starting before you. Work out the layout of the map boxes. Identify your map box. Watch the runners taking your map and see which direction they set off in. Use this info to your competitive advantage! Or to prevent a competitive disadvantage.