BOF Competitions Survey

[Spookster]

Do you have opinions about what is good about the competitions held in orienteering or about how they could be improved?

The Board are looking to get your feedback and opinions about current orienteering competitions, why you enter some and not others, how far you will travel, whether you like to compete against everyone on a course or against your friends or age group, do you like relays or is your preference for individual competitions? And would you like more inter-club competition?

BOF Competitions Survey

[EddieH]

I know it's difficult to write decent muliple choice surveys, but How often to you enter the JK/ British and multiday events? has the options "once a week" then at the bottom nothing between "once a month" and "once a year or less"

I can't see any of these options applying to many keen orienteers.

[Eeyore]

As Eddie says it's difficult to get these things right. However the box at the end seems unlimited so I just used it to express my views in addition to answering the questions.

I just evened the events out, e.g. 7 SOLs is once every 2 months (despite Coull & Forvie being on consecutive days). Doesn't reflect the frequency of the events but you couldn't tick the more than once a week or more frequently button and make it meaningful.

[Lumpy Lycra]

Eddie - I think you've probably completed the same version of the survey that I did - where that question lumped together as "once a month" anything from 51 times a year (ie less than once a week) to twice a year (ie more than once a year) - which made it impossible to distinguish between say attending a local event once a fortnight and doing a regional every six months.

e-mailed BOF central and had an impressively prompt reply - and that question now has more options. I thought about going back and filling it in again, since it doesn't ask for any id, but that's another can of worms.....

[awk]

Interesting the preconceptions/prejudices/biases inherent in the survey. For instance, there's an assumption that the grade of event dictates or is closely related to distance travelled. For me, it's one of the smaller factors. Far more motivating is the quality of competition, area and potential technical interest. Thus I will travel a LONG way for a top notch urban race against good competition, but am not interested in travelling less than an hour to a national event on an uninteresting area.

Equally, it's not the style of orienteering that is of inherent interest, but the quality of orienteering and competition.

All in all, completed the survey, but don't think it provided an opportunity to express views properly - especially as the last slot was very limited on amount that could be written.

[frog]

I competed it but as we now have few regional events in Scotland I'm mainly doing not that local local events. They could have done with a "local events a fair way from home" in Q6 as I seem to attend a fair number of those.
A cat 3 event (or cat 1 can't remember which way round they go) doesn't imply small and local anymore but includes most events under SOL level.

[madmike]

All in all, completed the survey, but don't think it provided an opportunity to express views properly - especially as the last slot was very limited on amount that could be written.

spot on Awk - moreover, doesn't really cater for addicts who will orienteer whenever and wherever we can regardless of level and location

[Eeyore]

All in all, completed the survey, but don't think it provided an opportunity to express views properly - especially as the last slot was very limited on amount that could be written.

spot on Awk - moreover, doesn't really cater for addicts who will orienteer whenever and wherever we can regardless of level and location

I completely agree with AWK on the survey. But the last slot doesn't have a limit as far as I could tell. Once the initial space is used it automatically allows more and a scroll bar appears on the right hand side. I used it to elaborate on questions and then added my thoughts / prejudices.

[andypat]

Interesting the preconceptions/prejudices/biases inherent in the survey. For instance, there's an assumption that the grade of event dictates or is closely related to distance travelled. For me, it's one of the smaller factors. Far more motivating is the quality of competition, area and potential technical interest. Thus I will travel a LONG way for a top notch urban race against good competition, but am not interested in travelling less than an hour to a national event on an uninteresting area.

Equally, it's not the style of orienteering that is of inherent interest, but the quality of orienteering and competition.

There are definitely a broad range of opinion out there. For me - I find myself travelling further if i need an extra event to complete my (say 4 out of 7 SOLS) or to relegate a poor score from a SOSOL.
I also remember having an argument with a previous chairperson of our club about whether it might not be a good idea to time people (and produce results) who came to the CATI events (which after all seems to be the whole point of the sport) but this was turned down at the time.

Regards travelling for a top nitch urban race - I suspect there are a few people about like me who havent quite twigged to this style of O yet but who may be waking up to it, although there may be some died in the wool traditionalists who just dont see it as "proper" Orienteering?

[madmike]

Regards travelling for a top nitch urban race - I suspect there are a few people about like me who havent quite twigged to this style of O yet but who may be waking up to it, although there may be some died in the wool traditionalists who just dont see it as "proper" Orienteering?

you suspect right and there's no may about it - some addicted orienteers don't find urban/sprints to their liking. Different technicality, different physical/technical balance, inability to map 3-D so it can be visualised.... The confirmed addicts I have spoken to on this are very good technical orienteers who just don't enjoy it - don't think they are necessarily ditwts. Gross generalisation, soley based on those I've talked to so wholly unrepresentative, but over 60's seem to enjoy urban O less as a proportion and it seems to attract more 21s than "traditional orientering"

personally I love it Andy so I recommend you go for it

[awk]

The confirmed addicts I have spoken to on this are very good technical orienteers who just don't enjoy it. Gross generalisation based on those I've talked to , so wholly unrepresentative, but over 60's seem to enjoy urban O less as a proportion and it seems to attract more 21s than "traditional orienteering"

Most of those who I've heard rejecting it, are those who haven't actually tried it, or at least haven't tried the more modern version (as opposed to old style street events on B&W simple maps, lampposts for controls, limited quality planning etc). I've not yet actually talked to anybody who has tried, say, a race like London and not enjoyed it. Would be interesting to hear from them. Personally, at over-50, I'm a confirmed addict of urban races, and there seems to be more and more of us as well.

Next year's fixtures list is filling up nicely, indicating perhaps that numbers are starting to reach critical mass.

[madmike]

OK AWK some have tried it and rejected it. Those that haven't and are naysayers are ditwts but that's not all of the objecters. There's more to rejection of urban than just ditwits and I acknowledge there are ditwits in the sport.

[IanW]

I thought about going back and filling it in again, since it doesn't ask for any id, but that's another can of worms.....

If BOF are paying for the service - which one assumes they are otherwise it only allows 50 responses - there is an option to "protect against duplicate responses".

This is probably done by logging IP addresses or using cookies. It won't stop determined cheating and can penalise those (e.g. families) using the same PC or network connection.

The usual technique is not to let on that a duplicate attempt has been detected but just to ignore it.

[awk]

OK AWK some have tried it and rejected it. Those that haven't and are naysayers are ditwts but that's not all of the objecters. There's more to rejection of urban than just ditwits and I acknowledge there are ditwits in the sport.

I'm sure there are; I was just reporting my anecdotal experiences. It would be a boring world if we all liked the same things!

What I find great about urban racing is that it is a variation that has provided some much needed variety in our sport, thus enabling us to attract/keep a wider range of competitors. So I'm not overly bothered if some, or indeed many, people don't enjoy it, as long as enough do to make it widely viable!

Personally, whilst I have obviously got hooked on the urban side of things, this, along with sprints, middle distance races etc., has also meant that I now enjoy 'standard' terrain based events much more now as well. I'm more selective, but those I do go to are all the more enjoyable as a result of that variety.

Incidentally, one thing I especially enjoy (which only partly came up in the survey) is that urban races are more accessible, even if further away, especially if organised on a Saturday (rail is hopeless on a Sunday), with usually better assembly/socialising possibilities. Fewer courses also usually means better competition. So, even when the course itself has not been that great, the whole event package has often been better than is often available at a 'standard' event.

[Tatty]

Andrew - I definitely agree whole heartedly with your final paragrgaph. In fact I enjoy city/urban racing so much more than forest now. It shows in my appaliing recent forest results