How did recreational sport get so extreme?

[DM]

and that’s without considering the hideous ki

t

We are missing the chance here ~ lets scrap the full body cover and go for skimpy kit. It did wonders for sports like Beach Vollyball.

Then throw in losts of mud and gore and then apply for Olympic status. That should keep the media couch potato's happy,

Did that today at the local race, Bruntwood Park. One club member has shorts for all seasons, varying from the short to the almost non existent. Combined with the Bruntwood mud it would meet Clive's criteria. Luckily for all of us we did NOT take pictures.

[AndyC]

OK I'll ask-- did the competitor have permission from the Organiser under rule 7.1.2 to breach rule 7.1.1?
I had during last year to insist on the strict application of rule 7.1.1 as planner (I know it is the organiser's responsibility in theory) because in hot weather (I got sunburn retrieving controls) course ran through spiky grass in sand dunes that had cut my legs through trousers while planning. One person complained - I rolled up my trouser leg and complaint ceased!!! On the other hand it is only when I've been sick for a month that I have no scratches on my legs so it could have been misleading.

[Red Adder]

Yesterday Mike whatshisface from the Beeb was pootling around parts of the evnet near Wolverhampton that features lots of mud water, barbed wire and electric shocks.

Surely we can manage all of that OMM for rain, Epping for mud, ban mappers from including waist hire barbed wire fences (all the better ifd they hidden under a liberal coating of creeper) and most clubs seems to use the stakes that used for electric fences so just add the put the wires back on them, and if you are feeling really mean send the assistant planner out with a fully charged cattle prod (or taser) to tickle up a few random runners.

[King Penguin]

Apparantly Sky Sports were fiming at Concorde Chase today, though I didn't see any cameramen (or women) anywhere.

[Darwin]

I think we are in danger of getting diverted by the "extreme" example of the Tough Mudder. The way I see it is:

- Yes we are in trouble, as the orienteering population ages and younger people are not joining. I support the FRA stance but we are in a different situation.

- Attracting kids is important, but the key target should be the 18 - 30 crowd who have the money, time and increasing inclination for adventurous outdoor sports.

- Participation by this demographic in things like rock climbing, trail/fell running, mountain biking have absolutely exploded, whilst simultaneously orienteering has declined.

- We all know that orienteering is not for everyone, but a significant number of these people would love it if they tried it. Those sports also require some personal investment to get fully into.

- The commercial interests who have been pushing climbing, trail running, mountain biking i.e. the kit manufacturers & retailers with big research/marketing budgets to spend, know their target. They have driven the growth of those sports by marketing an image aimed at the 16-30's, showcasing them as fast paced, sexy, adventurous and challenging.

- If they thought they could sell more gear by featuring the family, "sport for all" aspects they'd be doing it. Whilst they are perfectly aware that children and pensioners represent a significant proportion of participants, they don't feature on magazine covers and in promo videos. I can tell you that half the Tough Mudder participants are middle-aged punters, but you wouldn't guess from that promo.

- Clearly we can't compete with professional marketing but we can certainly learn from it - and I think it's time for a radical rethink of how we project the image of our sport.

[Paul Frost]

Clearly we can't compete with professional marketing but we can certainly learn from it - and I think it's time for a radical rethink of how we project the image of our sport.

I agree, but "we" are now committed to promoting it in a different way due to the "contract" with SportEngland

So we may have to wait until that contact is fulfilled.

[Darwin]

Here's a really good example from trail running - almost makes you want to run a 100 mile race. Almost.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=4a26xp28jm0

[Roger]

Apparantly Sky Sports were fiming at Concorde Chase today, though I didn't see any cameramen (or women) anywhere.

They interviewed Emily Benham, filmed young Tommy R on the string course (he was a star, apparently, describing accurately the features he was looking for!), filmed Emily starting and then waylaid her at 7/11 on black. She ran S-7 with a head-cam. They also filmed in the nice forest near to the end of the courses.

So plenty of quite diverse footage. I don't know what 'angle' that Sky wanted but the crew seemed to be friendly and engaged and pleased with the shots that they'd got. It's for a slot on Sky Sports News but I don't know when it's going out.

[andypat]

Clearly we can't compete with professional marketing but we can certainly learn from it - and I think it's time for a radical rethink of how we project the image of our sport.

I agree, but "we" are now committed to promoting it in a different way due to the "contract" with SportEngland

So we may have to wait until that contact is fulfilled.

Also agree with Darwin. I cant think of anyone I have spoken to outside of orienteering who has been aware that it is a competitive sport with a world champs and elite athletes. I dont think O has a credible proflie in the wider world and I do think thats partly down to how it is marketed at the upper levels.

Its great if Sky sports is getting involved as Roger notes and also some of the recent coverage in the adventure show has been good, but its pretty few and far between. I agree with whoever it was that highlighted the blurb on the front page of the BOF website - I dont think this angle on the "sport" does us any favours in attracting or at least as importantly retaining good athletic orienteers. Time for a rethink IMO.

[SeanC]

Something I've learned over the past few months is how limited BOF's marketing resources are. I'm told that SportEngland don't give orienteering (and presumably other sports) money for marketing/publicity as such. Ie £0. Nothing. Zilch. I don't know about the other bodies but as 2/3rds of BOF's income is from outside the sport this is pretty significant. The (part time) marketing officer is quite overworked and most of her time is spend on what you might call internal marketing (eg Focus).

It seems like money for marketing and publicity (or support for volunteers doing marketing and publicity at club level) has to come from within the sport.

[Copepod]

I recently left a copy of Focus at an education centre which is used by school groups who come for introductory orienteering sessions at a country park, intending visiting teachers and students to look if they were interested. A couple of weekends ago, I showed it to a father who attended a child's birthday party and who asked about photos of orienteering on the wall. I'd suggest that Focus isn't just internal marketing - being able to show photos of the wide aspects of the sport to the father was worth 1000 words!