Sheffield Weekend - Sat 30th / Sun 31st January 2010

[Spookster]

Entries are now open for a weekend of high quality orienteering near Sheffield.

On Saturday 30th January it's the Beeley Wood Regional Middle Race, just on the outskirts of Sheffield. Beeley is a small but intricately contoured area, with good rock features and varied runnability. Well mapped at 1:5000 by Oli Johnson, and previously used for the BUSA relays, it's ideal for the middle race format.

On Sunday 31st January it the first National Event of 2010, incorporating the Northern Championships, on a new SYO area on the edge of the Peak District just outside Sheffield. "Baslow, Curbar, Froggatt Edges And Big Moor" is a combination of intricately detailed gritstone edges and tough open moorland, that will be a good test of both technical and physical ability. The new map is by Dave Peel.

The event centre on Sunday is a college that is just off the map, and it has overnight accommodation available for Saturday night. Or there's plenty of accommodation of all standards in Sheffield, and plenty else to do in the evening. If it's proper orienteering you want, rather than a run around the streets of Edinburgh then this is the place to come.

Event Details

Entries on Fabian4

[DavidJ]

If it's proper orienteering you want, rather than a run around the streets of Edinburgh then this is the place to come.

And for those of you living further South who want top quality orienteering in a high class forest (as used for previous JKs, etc), even better is the BKO Concorde Chase on Sunday 31st January. This year's event returns to Star Posts with its intricate contours and large areas of fast runnable forest. Should be at its best in late January! No need to rush to enter. More details will be on the BKO web site in due course.

[Scott]

And for those of you who actually live in The South, KERNO are holding a colour-coded event on Polly Joke on Sunday 31st January, which will probably be the most technical orienteering on offer that weekend .

[DavidJ]

which will probably be the most technical orienteering on offer that weekend .

I expect Gross will think he has something better to offer but it will be on the other side of Europe

[Mrs H]

I am finding this a very hard decision to make

[Gross]

I expect Gross will think he has something better to offer but it will be on the other side of Europe

Nope... can't think of anything yet.... but there is a good ski-o competition on that weekend in Belerus

[Spookster]

Nope... can't think of anything yet.... but there is a good ski-o competition on that weekend in Belerus

There may well be a very good ski-o competition in Derbyshire, given the date...

[redkite]

Having mentioned to the non-O wife that she might fancy a weekend in Edinburgh at end of Jan, had I better own up and let her know hat she could also visit the daughter in Sheffield the same weeknd.

Shame, after weeks with not much on that they clash and I am sure that there will be many other with a similar choice.

[ba-ba]

Well seeing as most ShUOC can't get to Edinburgh as it's smack in the middle of our exams, I'm very pleased there's an even better weekend on the doorstep

[graeme]

Nope... can't think of anything yet.... but there is a good ski-o competition on that weekend in Belerus

There may well be a very good ski-o competition in Derbyshire, given the date...

The new Edinburgh map includes the skating rink.

...and one embargo violator has already been dq'ed for a dodgy route choice on the chasing sprint area

[LesS]

Well, given the extensive discussions on the Levels thread and the thoughts about terrain and competition on the CompassSport Cup thread, I'll be going to the National Event as that's the one so designated.

I've never really understood over the years why Regional Events are allowed to be held the same days as National Events thus detracting from what should be our sport's premier competitions. It also limits entries to those more well-known Regional events which I would probably attend if they didn't clash.

[Oldman]

I've never really understood over the years why Regional Events are allowed to be held the same days as National Events thus detracting from what should be our sport's premier competitions.

I don't know if it's still the same, but quite a few years ago you were allowed to have a clashing regional event as long as it was more than 250 (? I think) miles away. I assume the reasoning was to allow other events which because of distance would only lose the national event a few competitors. Not sure what the rules are now, though.

[DavidJ]

I've never really understood over the years why Regional Events are allowed to be held the same days as National Events thus detracting from what should be our sport's premier competitions.

I don't know if it's still the same, but quite a few years ago you were allowed to have a clashing regional event as long as it was more than 250 (? I think) miles away. I assume the reasoning was to allow other events which because of distance would only lose the national event a few competitors. Not sure what the rules are now, though.

I am aware that BKO thought carefully about the timing of the Concorde Chase for 2010. However, the fixtures list for the SE/SC in this area looks like this for early in the year:
17-Jan MV REGIONAL
24-Jan CompassSport Cup Heats
31-Jan BKO REGIONAL - Concorde Chase
07-Feb GO REGIONAL
14-Feb TVOC REGIONAL- Chiltern Challenge
21-Feb NGOC NAT. (S. CHAMPS)
28-Feb HH REGIONAL
07-Mar SARUM REGIONAL
So there was no flexibility if BKO wer to go ahead with a Regional event this year. I believe it was discussed by the appropriate fixtures secretaries though.

[Spookster]

Entries for the SYO National Event (Northern Championships) being held near Curbar in the Peak District will close on 17th January, though late entries (at a premium price) will continue to be available online until 26th January. Postal entries also close on 17th January. Although the wintery weather conditions have led to the cancellation of events across the country due to snow and ice, the organising team are confident that a thaw is possible by the end of January, meaning that the event can still proceed. Planning, site taping and controlling is complete. The latest status of the event will continue to be announced on the SYO web-page.

The associated middle distance event at Beeley Woods on the day before the National Event has the same closing date arrangements, so get your entries in now for both events. Overnight accommodation between the events at Cliff College, the event centre, is also still available.

[RanaldMacdonald]

Just to add a bit more to the weekend, on the Saturday evening DVO has a 45-minute night score event at Hardwick Hall, to the E of Chesterfield just off Junction 29 of the M1.

Details at: http://www.dvo.org.uk/details/hardnightdet.htm.

Please let the organiser know if you intend coming so we can print the correct number of maps.