Oh no - things aren't so bad after all

[70plus]

It's really hard to start orienteering for the first time as a 20-35 yr old, especially if you're a good runner, as it can be very frustrating to get beaten by people you think you shouldn't be every week!

Ah - now that is one way the sport has changed since its early days. That is exactly how I got into O, as a 30-year-old knowing I was not a good runner, but also knowing that as a decent navigator I might frustrate a few . What appealed to me was the combination of physical and cerebral skills. At that time O in the NW was still recognisably a spin-off from fell-running - is that still a way in?

Could there be any parallel between people taking up O, and the alleged British reluctance to admit to numeracy skills?

[70plus]

Your club is called West Cumberland. What works for you isn't going to work for everyone. The demographic of where you guys do your work is totally different to somewhere like London, Birmingham, Sheffield or Edinburgh.

We've been telling RJ this for a long time, mharky ..

[JennyJ]

Most fellrunners round here seem to be quite snooty about orienteering (and not very good navigators!?!)

[SeanC]

We're finding that it's much easier to target adults than families.The broadcast message "orienteering's great for families"... well I'm not so sure. The families market seems to have moved on 100 years since the 70's and 80's. For example, back then children's parties were home made stick a tail on the donkey affairs, but now parents seem happy to spash £100 - £200 for someone to sort it all out for them whilst they have a good gossip/coffee. I suspect in sport it's similar - people expect sports to look after their kids, coach them and sometimes entertain them whilst they relax and look on, and are more happy/able to pay for the privilage.

Maybe it was always this way, but our expectation that parents actually do orienteering is a real barrier IMHO. If I am persuaded by the many adverts for martial arts that I take my son along I wouldn't expect to be pressured to joining in and get karate chopped by juniors (though my son would love it I'm sure ). In urban areas I think dedicated childrens events in safe areas like scout activity centres could work really well though, run by coaches who look after the children and charging £5-£10 a time with decent marketing and somewhere for the parents to relax. It seems the natural progression from all those soft play areas that are springing up everywhere.

[70plus]

I suspect in sport it's similar - people expect sports to look after their kids, coach them and sometimes entertain them whilst they relax and look on, and are more happy/able to pay for the privilage.

You may have pointed to another feature of O not shared by some other sports - most participants take turns to be providers. Which means that if there aren't many 'young adult' participants there are even fewer young adult providers, and that task rests ever more heavily on the oldies. Partly this is because orienteers go on participating into their dotage ...

[Kitch]

Zeitgeist

I think part of the equation was highlighted early on in the thread. Orienteering arrived and grew in the 60s, 70s, 80s and its the same families still at the heart of it now.

Prior to that came the post war growth of outdoor activities; hill walking, rock climbing.
A good number of those 60s and 70s orienteers were moving on from the crags and the hills and into the forest.

90s and naughties came Triathlon and Adventure Racing

Nowadays its these mud yomping 10ks that are all the rage. And cycling.

What is significant about the zeitgeist participation sports since the 90s is kit, lots of yummy, costly kit, and immense race fees.
On Saturday you can go to Traquair and do a muddy 10k with a couple of river crossings and obstacles, up and down a couple of hills in the forest and all for the princely sum of £45 - if you want admission to the party, then you buy a £10 ticket for that, and you buy your food and drink, and have a merry time.
Theres no point in knocking it, people enjoy it, they have the disposable income.

[RJ]

Your club is called West Cumberland. What works for you isn't going to work for everyone. The demographic of where you guys do your work is totally different to somewhere like London, Birmingham, Sheffield or Edinburgh.

Exactly right, mharky. There are many ways to cook an egg. Models for development amongst various clubs differ quite a bit. However, they tend to be variations on a theme..... You try to sell your O product to an interested group of people, but you design your product so that it attracts that group. You simply can't attract everyone by using the one model. The great thing is that we can learn from the successful models and try and replicate them in our own area. I would certainly like to learn more about the SLOW model and see if we can attract more M/W21s.

We've been telling RJ this for a long time, mharky ..

70plus.... there is a difference between..... it doesn't work all that well in that way..... and...... it doesn't work at all. Moulding the model to work for you is worth the effort!