IROC races

[Oldman]

I stumbled across a poster re this. Web site at http://www.iroc-race.com/Index.asp

What are other Nopesport readers views of this cycle, run, orienteer event which clashes with Greythwaite.

[graeme]

At £70 an entry it will be an interesting test for those who think people are put off by high prices.

I expect it will be fun, badly mapped and marshalled, and people will get more lost on the run and cycle than the orienteering.

[Angry Haggis]

The website looks great!
It is quite pricey if you do all six races (£70) although you can do the shorter option - six races for £30 is not bad actually. Plus you can run as a pair without extra cost.

I would be well up for doing it if it wasn't so far away from London.

[deebee]

And what about this - http://www.ukresults.net/forms/090301apedale.doc - ? An Orienteering race that doesn't require any mapreading skills.

[lakesorunner]

It is quite pricey if you do all six races (£70) although you can do the shorter option - six races for £30 is not bad actually. Plus you can run as a pair without extra cost.

The shorter option is a fun race - and you can't run as a pair - it is 6 races between you (ie. one person racing in each of the events). To run as a pair, it's double - £140.

I expect it will be fun, badly mapped and marshalled, and people will get more lost on the run and cycle than the orienteering.

There is no reason to assume it will be badly mapped and marshalled. I have been to O-events that have been though...
But I don't really know what line this thread was intending to take. There will always be various types of races taking place on the same w/e as an orienteering event - Adventure races, fell races, MTB events, etc. etc. The main thing orienteering must do is to promote itself as a sport which people want to do... As there are many more options for people to compete in compared to even 10 years ago, we cannot assume that once people have tried orienteering, they keep coming back. As has been said on other threads, there needs to be a healthy number of local events for locals to go to.

[RS]

Suggest you look at the site before you slag off the mapper and organiser

[graeme]

Only just found that . OK, so I admit I made four predictions in ignorance (certainly no personal sleights intended), I'm still confident about the fun and that the price wont deter entries - let's see how the other guesses pan out... hope I'm wrong!

[Copepod]

I think some of the marshals will be OK, too...

[andy]

The main organiser is an orienteer and has organised some pretty major UK adventure races, so I'd say it'll be a great weekend... sad that I couldn't make it

[Shane Ohly]

Great to see there is some in interest in the iROC™ adventure race weekend!

Let me explain the concept behind the event. We wanted to organise a series of different races across different disciplines that include fell running, mountain biking and orienteering. Each of the individual races is being designed as though it were a standalone race; the idea being that if you turned up and competed in just one race, you’d be impressed with the format, organisation and experience of that one race (to be honest, I expect most competitors will want to do all 6 events though).

With many traditional adventure races you get a series of challenges or different stages, which when taken together, are really good fun. However, if you closely examine one individual aspect of the race (for example an ‘orienteering’ section), it will typically, be found to be sub standard when compared to an independent orienteering race.

So, each of the six races at iROC™ are planned as though they were independent races run to the prevailing standards of that sport. Hence for the orienteering at iROC™ we have Marcus Pinker (he’s produced World Cup maps) producing a brand new map for a brand new area (to ISOM standards) and have Steve Birkinshaw acting as controller.

What really makes iROC™ an adventure race is the close succession of each of the 6 individual races rather than a mishmash of activities spread over a day. Of course the different skills sets required for each discipline mean that only a true all-rounder will be able to win outright. It really will be an action packed weekend.

The format of the first orienteering race is unusually and I make no apologies for that! We actively wanted to do something different. Image the event centre, where the start and finish is located being the centre of 4 butterfly loops. Competitors will be handed sealed maps just before the start that will be randomly assigned, by running each of the butterfly loops in either direction you have 24 different combinations but everyone ends up running exactly the same distance and locating the same controls. Because there will be range of abilities (navigational skills) the technical level will be low and rather than being disqualified there will be a (severe) time penalty for missing a control but competitors will still get a finish time and race result. I think that an experienced orienteer will have a huge advantage at this event with their ability to interpret the map quickly in the initial stages or the race in addition to all the normal map reading and route choice skills.

The format of the second orienteering race will be familiar to any regular orienteer; it’s a score format with 1 hour to collect as many points as possible. However, the race starts just before dusk so you’ll start in daylight but finish in the dark. Again, because there will be a range of abilities at the event, controls that are harder to locate (TD5) will score significantly more points than easy to locate controls (TD2). We think it’ll be very exciting to have a wide range of abilities all competing on the same course at the same time!

Finally, to make the event fun and sociable there will be a late bar on both the Friday and Saturday night and some live music on the Saturday evening. We really want each competitor to have a great time out on the hill and a great time catching up with their friends afterwards.

Hope to see you there!

Shane Ohly
iROC™ Race Director

[Jon Brooke]

Also clashes with Highlander Mountain Marathon

Can you look a bit more closely at the calendar next time Shane!?

[graeme]

Everything always clashes in April . I wonder if BOF fixtures would have forbidden it had they been asked?

As it happens, I won't go, because its not family-friendly. Not a complaint - I think Shane has it right in that he's identified a target audience and catered for it, rather than the one-size-fits-nobody-very-well that orienteering often suffers.

OrienteeringTM format is interesting - definitely not fair to run loops in opposite directions - but so what? it will be more fun to see everyone else in the woods.

[Adventure Racer]

It is quite pricey if you do all six races (£70)

Compared to what? Is only £7 more than entering 4 races at JK if you enter today!

[Becks]

I am already entered and really looking forward to the race!

But have to agree with Graeme - the orienteering will be great fun but it certainly wouldn't ever be run as a stand alone competition in such a way , going opposite way round the loops. Still I think it's perfect for the setting and am pretty excited about the whole thing. (Aswell as concerned I'm really, really not going to be fit enough!)

[graeme]

But have to agree with Graeme

Erm, well, I did organise a BOF-registered standalone race like that once, (plus a common final loop) and it panned out much as I described.