Southern Night Championships

[SJC]

The odd thing is that "Night" is currently a tick box separate to the other field (where you choose between sprint, middle, long, relay, cross country, urban, score, trail-O and closed event)

Night is correctly separated out as it is independent of the other choices.
In effect the (unpublished) default is day, although you could argue that some events such as the Harvester need a third day/night option. Having said that, it does sound as though if collected it would be useful if it was used somewhere.

There are course types (eg score, cross - country, relay) and event types (eg. night, urban, mountain bike).

I find this then gets confusing.
The choices come from:
How is it done - on foot, on a bike, on skis
What sort of race is it - take the controls in order (usually referred to as cross country which isn't a good name for it as you can have a cross country urban event), score, trail O, and there may be more
What sort of race is it - individual, relay, team
What length of event - long O, normal, middle, sprint
What type of terrain - traditional or urban

This would lead to a few more boxes, but with the benefit of a much better description of the type of event. For example someone could stage and advertise a bike score event around the streets at night. Good fun, but not sure about the risk assessment.

[Gnitworp]

This post was intended to follow Mharky's

I'm obviously seriously out of date. I hadn't even noticed the ad on this website (I tend to have a blind spot for advertisements).

A club mate of mine was agent for the Vaska headlamp retailing at over £300. Our entire B Course Harvester team at Merthyr Common last year used them and did rather well as a consequence. A photograph of the B Course mass start shows only one enormously bright light (mine). Compass Point had the photo on its stall to promote the lamp. Out on the moor I gained significant advantage when the pack had veered off line. I, and one other running near me, had seen our control a long way to the left that the rest of the pack missed. The other lucky person had been running near enough to me to benefit from my light's powerful illumination.

[roadrunner]

I had a period some years ago when I did quite a few night events (mostly "SENILE" - SE Night League) and thoroughly enjoyed them. The main thing that caused me to give up was failing night vision - perhaps, given the age profile of orienteers, this might be a factor?

I used a Petzl head torch (which I already had for camping) plus a halogen bulb (about £5 if I remember correctly), which of course was far less bright than many people's lights even in those days before white LEDs. I think you'd have to already be pretty keen to want to spend £80+ on a headlamp just for a few night events in the year, unless of course you already had one for cycling or whatever. So perhaps there is a case for an event where you can only use "normal" lights/torches (however that might be defined).

[mharky]

The new levels of brightness achieved by LED lamps is now quite impressive. With halogens a 20W limit was set as the maximum. However, with the energy efficiency of LEDs, 20W would give you a massive light. Plus, since September 1st, the EU has now ruled that all lights' powers should be given in lumens, not watts. Perhaps some orienteering bodies will introduce new lumen limits on head-lights.

At the recent Fourth Valley night league a few us were discussing new lumen limits as some custom lights and lupines are so bright it's just not night orienteering anymore

[madmike]

Mharky,
with 900 lumens it might not be night orienteering for 26 year old eyes but it still is for some of us - trust me

[Jon X]

I think you'd have to already be pretty keen to want to spend £80+ on a headlamp just for a few night events in the year

True.....if it was just for a few night events. (Although it does open the door to the "I'll have to go to Jukola/Tio/Harvester/etc because I have invested in a decent headlight" justification!)

However it is good for more than just the occasional night event - having a decent headlight opens up a load more in the way of interesting possibilities for winter training routes than exist if dependent on street lights - I probably use my torch two or three times most winter weeks up here in Darkest Scotland.

Although I guess the clue is there that you prefer running round the streets anyway

Back on topic I see the Southern Nights has "Fuel" caterers providing hot food/drink on the night - pretty sure these are the same people who provided excellent food at the Compass Sport Cup Final - should be just the job for post-race on Saturday!

[Mrs H]

The odd thing is that "Night" is currently a tick box separate to the other field (where you choose between sprint, middle, long, relay, cross country, urban, score, trail-O and closed event), so that extra snippet of information is already captured. Unfortunately it is then not used anywhere, unless you click the flags on the event map.

but is displayed in the little emblem on the entry - it's easy to spot the night events by the crescent moon

Having not night orienteered to over two years when my old battery failed, I've invested in one of the new lights and have done two events in the last fortnight, It's very good and incredibly light in every sense of the word although the beam is narrower and I've not quite managed to stop it moving around yet - but i'm working on it.

I wouldn't want to venture out with anything less - it's what they call progress and I recommend it to anyone thinking along those lines - particularly the ladies who are very thin on the ground out there.

My apologies for the Southern night champs - we would certainly have been there but for a family wedding.

[SeanC]

Jim - my feeling is that last year the new LED lights would deter more (by the cost) than attract (by making night Orienteering more accessible/easier and by being lighter nad more reliable*. This year with a price of < £100 I would say the balence is the other way, and if Mr BrightBikeLights can make something from his shed for that price, I would hope that soon £50 will buy you something equivalent. As well as local night leagues there's a lot more night stuff being done as part of the club night initiative. Can I say that the future for night Orienteering is bright?

However not so sure about the night area championships. Its a lot of work for a small number of competitors. How would people feel about replacing the area championships with a night league with Nopesport Urban league style age classes (ie vets, supervets etc), a national league and say 1 event per region per year? Then just the British and maybe Scottish night championships as traditional age class events?

* so it seems so far.

[Gnitworp]

Yes Sean, reduction in price is obviously a desirable trend, but I'm not sure about opened-ended luminosity, which may not only reduce the challenge of the sport that by definition should take place in darkness, but also cause considerable dazzle problems, especially for people with less powerful lights who can't 'get their own back'!

[Zokko!]

area championships with . . . Nopesport Urban league style age classes (ie vets, supervets etc)

The Northern Night Champs 2011 is ahead of you on that idea Sean. The age classes for that event are exactly the same as the Nopesport Urban League classes, with the similar intention of increased competition within classes, as well as keeping the number of courses within reasonable limits. This was agreed after consultation with fixtures secretaries from all the affected regions that form "The North", and a wider group of regular night orienteers. Since there are no Northern Night trophies to worry about (as far as I can discover) that was one less thing to prevent the change.

[NeilC]

As was the SE Night Champs held back in February
http://sloweb.org.uk/events/20100227/medals.php

Just three competition courses plus a novices one

[EddieH]

My reserve light cost £9 odd from Argos and I needed it at the British Nights this year.
Frankly it was fine for running. I wasn't managing to read the map properly, but it was only after finishing that someone pointed out to me that I was shining the narrow beam over the top of the map

Get that right and it is in my view a perfectly acceptable light to go and try night O out in the toughest of forests. It might not be maximal but far better than the expensive kit I used back in the early 80's.

[SeanC]

If the existing regional night championships were replaced with a national night league, with 1 event per region per year, with the best 3 scores counting, and points/prizes for the following ages classes: W18-, W20-40, W45-50, W55-60, W65+ M18-, M20-40, M45-50, M55-60, M65+, would this encourage you (ie everyone, not just Eddie ) to do more night orienteering?

[EddieH]

Wel Sean it most certainly would NOT encourage me. I'd far rather travel the rather smaller, but still not insignificant distance to the Deeside night league. I am in fact due to depart in half an hour but the snow is piling down here and this is near sea level. My road goes rather higher

[AndyO]

Yes, Eddie

Sadly I have decided against travel over to Deeside tonight (although roads were great at Kilmarnock today) as there is black ice and heavy snow here. Have to get back to Moray tomorrow, too hope the snow doesn't stay too long.

Back nearer to topic, I'm still using my Mila lamp, though I do have a single high output LED as backup. This has a very long narrow beam, but a diffuser spreads the light so it's useable for running through terrain.