Extortionate Pricing Discourages New Orienteers

[distracted]

I thought it was usually the case at Regional events to offer limited colour coded courses for on the day entry, but not as the same cost as the Regional courses! Even at the JK it's only about a fiver for adults. This is the first I've heard of such high prices for a colour-coded at a regional, I'd be interested to see why SOC have taken this stance. Entirely agree that it will discourage new orienteers from turning up to such an event.

[tim sleepless]

Not sure what if it's really a suitable place for BOF to be interfering. The economics of individual events are going to differ so significantly for total regulation to be unworkable.

However, it sounds as if the individual club is using a rather absurd pricing structure, so take it up with them, as you have.

[johnloguk]

I think we've just had this thread somewhere else

Yes definitely not for BOF to interfere in, but I think I did suggest that the multi-layered membership scheme could result in something like this.

[AndyO]

The "surcharge" - or discount depending on how you look at it - only comes into effect from 1 January, so should not affect the November Classic

[Rookie]

Compared to running, orienteering is really cheap.

any road or cross-country races I've done have cost me at least £7 (admittedly they don't ever charge junior/student rates) and there has got to be less to organise for a fixed course race than orienteering

if anything extortionate prices are putting me off running races, but £12 does sound a lot

[Nails]

Well Saab Salomon are charging 22 quid entry for their annual 'Hell Runner' event at Longmoor. Its just a cross country race with a few muddy and wet bits, that most orienteers would easily pass with no problems. They are basically selling this race to road runners. The name of course helps -'Hell Runner' sounds exciting for people that just run along roads, but it definitely ain't worth 22 quid -get to a 3 quid fell race instead!

[Schnitzy]

Cambridge science park fun run is 1.1miles and has an entry fee of £15, which makes the November Classic look like a bargin.

[martyn]

In the old days, there was a noticeable difference between what you got on a Badge course, and a colour coded at a badge event. Your badge course would be over-printed and in a bag, whereas on colour-coded you would be kneeling in the mud, scraping at the map with a pen that was trying not to work. So you could argue that the higher badge course fee was justified by a "higher quality" product.

Nowadays, all the courses are overprinted and in bags. All the other event overheads are shared by all the competitors (toilets, carparking, access fees, etc. So where's the difference, and why should we have different entry fees for colour codeds any more? Surely it's just a tradition that we're hanging on to.

On the other hand, colour-codeds at Badge events are usually done by people new or on the fringes of the sport, and the last thing we want to do is put them off. So having a lower fee to encourage participation is no bad thing.

At the end of the day though, it should be up to each club, and not BO to set the entry fee. We all have the option of voting with our feet if we don't like what is being charged.

Incidentally, BO are encouraging clubs to offer free local membership for a year to newcomers, which then gets around the surcharge issue (for local events at least)

[SeanC]

Yes, the November Classic eod for beginners are a bit higher than normal for a regional event. However there might be good reasons?

Two options for Owen.

1) Practical. The DFOK local event at Randscombe Country Park near Rochester the day beforehand will only cost his girlfriend £4. Brand new area BTW. (Shameless plug but in context).

2) Philosophical. His girlfriend will be going to one of the UK's premier orienteering races, in one of the most beautiful forests, at the most beautiful time of year. The buzz and the romance are probably worth a few quid, and the event will still cost less than a bunch of flowers from my local florists.

[the duncan]

£12 does seem steep, the Glen Dye race at the weekend was £4 eod, with pre printed map and emit.

races like the hellrunner and also mountain bike XC races are always real pricey, not sure why, the timing for the Mtb races i do here in scotland is basic, man with stopwatch/paper. there just needs to be some tape put out, so minimal time/effort compared to orienteering events. and they charge £25-30 for this!

i don't know where the money goes to really.

[Nails]

some entrepreneur's deep pocket no doubt....

[bedders]

is Alan Sugar secretly running orienteering?

[P2B]

The question is: Did you enter her? Did you bring this up with the organising club? or just the entries person?

For what it's worth, I think £12 is steep. I tend to agree that colour coded at regional events are to encourage less experienced orienteers to get out in to the forest.

[graeme]

Can't believe we really want BOF telling us what to do.

Anyway, you cheapskate students out there can soon enter the 6-day for £3. It'll be better technically and weatherwise than the November classic as well.
http://www.scottish-orienteering.org/soa/index.html

Rest of us taxpayers will be subsidising you at a tenner a shot.