MAP RACING!

[Suzy R Sopham]

When I discuss orinteering with non-orienteers, they often say things like, 'I remember doing that at school/scouts; it's walking around with a map' and what they're really describing is, at the most, hill-walking.
Whenever there are long-O events with fancy names or adventure racing, then they seem to attract a lot of people from other sports disciplines. I wonder if a lot of runners are put off as they don't realise how much actual running it involves. I've been to the recent 'bog and burn' fell-running series around the west of Scotland and mid-week they are getting the numbers equivalent to a SOL!.
What I believe we need is to shake off the fuddy-duddy odd-ball image. Would a change of name to something like "Map racing!" instead of orienteering' attract more people?

[NeilC]

Must be June again
http://www.nopesport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4126

[Suzy R Sopham]

Excellent list, however the 2nd last comment on that thread makes a good point,:

"This thread has come up with many brilliant expressions and descriptions of what our sport is to us.....We have the opportunity to define the word 'orienteering' ..... and show that it isn't walking with a rucksac, map and compass"

[John Morris]

It's far too hot to run, so how about a few other funny names to be hollered across Mo's Bar...

[Gnitworp]

Remember Mole Valley Map and Compass Foot Racing Society (now MVOC); you knew exactly what they did, rather than Far Eastern aural adornment.

[Gnitworp]

When I discuss orinteering with non-orienteers, they often say things like, 'I remember doing that at school/scouts; it's walking around with a map' and what they're really describing is, at the most, hill-walking.
Whenever there are long-O events with fancy names or adventure racing, then they seem to attract a lot of people from other sports disciplines. I wonder if a lot of runners are put off as they don't realise how much actual running it involves. I've been to the recent 'bog and burn' fell-running series around the west of Scotland and mid-week they are getting the numbers equivalent to a SOL!.
What I believe we need is to shake off the fuddy-duddy odd-ball image. Would a change of name to something like "Map racing!" instead of orienteering' attract more people?

I think Mountain Marathons and Adventure Races, with their limited potential appeal compared to orienteering, got their terminology right from the outset, rather than trying to anglicise a Swedish word (orientering). The French, with 'course d'orientation', and the Germans, with 'orientierungslauf', at least call it a race.

Unfortunately, I'm afraid we're stuck with 'orienteering' now, Lou, and will have to make the best of it, but an image change should certainly be high on the agenda.

[Fratello de Pingu]

Unfortunately, I'm afraid we're stuck with 'orienteering' now, Lou, and will have to make the best of it, but an image change should certainly be high on the agenda.

We could stop call orienteering events orienteering events and start calling them orienteering races though

[Gnitworp]

Yes

[awk]

Well, I've for some time now referred to 'going to an orienteering race' at work or wherever, rather than an 'event'. It's interesting the number of times that people have said something along the lines of "Oh, do you race in orienteering?". That maybe my shape or obvious lack of speed that stimulates the question, but I prefer to think that it's ignorance of the sport!

[johnloguk]

When it comes to promoting orienteering this thread has hit several nails right on the head, and shown the quandry we are in. Most of us reading this, although clearly not all, do love orienteering because it is a race, an adventure, damned hard work at times, a challenge, highly competitive, extreme at times and fun. But many people love it simply because it gets them out into beautiful countryside, often places they wouldn't normally have access too, and the competitive element isn't a factor. All those people who hate relays for instance!

So how do we promote orienteering and who exactly are we aiming those promotions at? I've always believed passionately that if we go down the "adventure line", stressing the racing element, then we will attract people that previously wouldn't have considered orienteering because their previous view of it was a "boring sport for geography teachers (I've actually heard that said!). This more adventurous, and as a final year M45 dare I say "street" image(!) has to be a good thing for the sport in the long term. But at the same time are we putting others off by adopting this image?

I've recruited many people to orienteering using the tag line "orienteering is whatever you want it to be". This covers the competitive end and the recreational end. Those of us that push our (often very limited) limits, and those that wander at their leisure with the doggy in small groups.

Does that approach dilute the image of orienteering though, and perpetuate lots of the old negative ones, it's a difficult one?

Other threads on here have talked about using Swedish dementia research to attract an older age group. Initiatives like MADO are aimed largely at families, and are hugely successful. My club has tried to target road runners, with some limited success. The trouble is that any one image or campaign will tend to only attract a certain type of person. Is this what Mike Hamilton meant by priorities?

Yes for me orienteering is a race, and I would totally support referring to races rather than events, but how many people would we put off by that approach? One thing for certain, we have to get away from the idea that orienteering is walking with a big map and an even bigger rucsak! Although am I showing a personal bias there?

[Ed]

Well, I've for some time now referred to 'going to an orienteering race' at work or wherever, rather than an 'event'...

when I was programming up the ukcup.db I'd started with "events", but realised it sounded very undynamic so now everywhere on the public bit of the site it says "race". Internally they're still called events though...

[Gnitworp]

Dare I suggest that orienteering by its very nature is competitive. Few people do it more than a handful of times without becoming competitive, i.e., getting round their course as fast as they can, even if it's very slowly. Virtually all events (races), even low key informal ones, have timing, usually electronic. How many people would do orienteering if there was no timing? How sophisticated would events be? How far would the sport have developed?

[Suzy R Sopham]

totally agree Gnitworp, but the contention is how do we get the point, that orienteering is competitive, across to non-orienteers?

[Gnitworp]

Tell them it is.

[helen]

Thats what I try to do when explaining what orienteering is to people my age, make it sound competitive and extreme and looooads of people are interested. But the main problem is actually getting them into it. For example, I have a friend through athletics, based in the Bradford area, who is a very good steeplechaser/x/c runner who thinks orienteering sounds great fun and really wants to give it a go. But how do you get him to try it out, where would he get kit from, and instructions on what to do? The problem is its not accessible enough, you need a compass, and someone to help you through the basics before you can really get started. We need more MADO style events to help beginners get going.