Welsh Championships and Urban League Double-Header

A few QO members ventured to the Welsh Championships this weekend.

In the Middle Distance - Andy Rimes lead the QOs on the brown course coming in 5th, with Jeff Pakes coming in 7th, and Pete Shirvington close behind in 11th (after drifting off course in the middle following a compass bearing). Rosie Wych came in 14th on the blue course.

In the Long Distance - Oli and Annabelle Lewis did well, coming 4th on orange. Karen Lewis came 26th on the short green course:

“I must say there were features to work with. It was tough on the legs with very uneven, sometimes rocky and sometimes marshy ground. It also consisted of some serious pits - had visions of falling down and never being able to get back (especially after seeing the sheep bones at the bottom of one).

I got off to a pretty good start and was going well (for me) until I got to my control number 4, where I had a wobble over which boulder was marked and which wasn’t. Got back on track and controls 5 - 9 went well. Then a couple of schoolboy errors. My second booboo - got to my penultimate control and then headed off to the finish. Got about three-quarters of the way and realised my mistake and as a result, I struggled to find control 12.”

Rosie Wych pull out of the short blue after a few controls after a good start (fingers crossed nothing more than a minor injury). Andy Rimes was 8th on the short brown, with Martin Lewis 24th after recovering well after struggling to find the first control. Jeff Pakes had a successful run on the brown course - coming 5th.

Pete Shirvington gave the black course a go (running against international orienteers like Ben Mitchell and Megan Carter-Davies):

“I certainly got my money’s worth this weekend!!

I was warned how technical the area was, but still struggled even when I slowed down. With few line features and lots of similar features (pits, big pits, and bigger pits!) It was tricky to relocate. Whenever I deviated from heading in a straight line on a carefully monitored compass bearing while pace counting, it went horribly wrong. Proper orienteering! I found the terrain tough going so 18km felt more like 28km!”

Congratulations on getting across the finish Pete!

The Sorrell-Hemmings took part in two events in the Midlands that are part of the South England Orienteering Urban League (SEOUL). At Great Linford Urban in Milton Keynes, Phil Sorrell came 5th on course 2 (M40 / Women Open) - despite nearly missing the last control like Karen! On course 7 (W/M12) Al Hemmings came 1st in W12 (2nd on the course overall), with Sebastian Hemmings in 3rd.

“Al did some good running between the controls, although she had a few controls where she went off course and had to relocate. Sebastian took things a bit slower but was more consistent, carefully stopping to work out the route between each control - ultimately finishing just behind his sister.”

At North Cambridge Urban, Sebastian coped well with the detailed map to finish in 7th, and Phil Sorrell came 8th on course 2 (M40 / Womens Open):

“I again had a good run - especially enjoying the detailed mapping. You had to stay in constant contact with the map to maintain pace through all the twists and turns. I had a moment where my finger slipped and my mind went blank and I completely lost where I was for a few moments.”

You can read more on how people got on at the events, with more detailed analysis on our chat site: https://chat.quantockorienteers.co.uk/t/weekend-results-11-12-sep/124/4

If you are taking part in an event - local or further afield, you can share how you get on by posting at https://chat.quantockorienteers.co.uk/ or by emailing phil.sorrell@hey.com.