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Croydon Hill

QOFL4

Sun 11 Dec

Near: Dunster
Level of event: Local

Type of event: Race

QO Forest League and Devon League event in wood and deer park in Exmoor. UPDATED with planner / controller and organiser comments.

Results

Provisional results
RouteGadget
Discussion

Planner / controller comments from Simon and Miffy:

Gosh that was fun!

Croydon Hill is a super area but has some challenges for planning. The best bits are up steep hills, access in and out of the deer park is limited and routes along either side of the main river offer few enticing control options.

The undergrowth had changed significantly since the previous map updates. Many rough open areas had become grotty and often impassable. The benign autumn climate meant any dieback was delayed. Potential control sites became unattractive and we had to use locations which some might regard as ‘too easy’ for longer courses. We didn’t hear anyone complaining about this :)

Control 118 in the campfire was a good example; the area south of it was solid fight all summer and autumn; ironically an extraction lane SE of the control emerged when the snowfall crushed the undergrowth on the day before the event. Sadly climate change may mean we must get used to this in future …

A series of fallen trees (one very recently) impacted the White and Yellow courses but the only child on White thought climbing through or round them was great fun. We couldn’t remove the trees but we did cut substantial amounts of gorse and bramble across paths on White and Yellow. We have the scars to prove it!

We had planned to print all courses at 1:7,500 for map clarity but eventually went with 10,000 on the Brown, Blue and Green courses.

The snow added to the occasion and most seemed to appreciate the added beauty and challenge on their courses. The views from the fort and the hill in the north east were spectacular.

We spent much longer surveying than expected. Even with help from Robin Fieldhouse, we ran short of time as the event approached. We made essential updates but did not spend much time on areas unlikely to be visited on our courses (except if seriously off route!). We regret that the area around 138 was a little ‘subjective’. That area in particular needs a thorough survey before the next event.

The climbs were inevitably rather larger than we wanted and course times were all a bit longer than ideal but people seemed happy.

Many thanks to our resilient control collectors: Graham Hartley, Jeff Pakes, Olly Rant, Pete Shirvington, Ray & Sue Toomer who climbed all those hills yet again as the light started to fade.

We retrieved the last control at 4.15 in near darkness. Thanks also to Roger & Judy, Robin Fieldhouse, Andrew Hopkins, Andy Rimes, Richard Sansbury and Bill Vigar for all their help.

Our dog Louka is now enjoying a well-deserved rest – we reckon he ran over 300k in total over all our visits. He’s building up his energy for next time :)

Simon St Leger-Harris
Miffy Treherne


Organiser comments from Richard:

Excellent day out in one of my favourite orienteering areas. Yes it was cold, but great to be in snow. So glad we were able to go ahead - had it been the day before we would have had to cancel due to road conditions. We had a fair number of no-shows which must be due to the weather. I realise we could have sent out a message to confirm the event was going ahead - lesson learnt for the future.

Many thanks to our planners, Simon & Miffy, for many days on-site updating the map as well as planning eight different courses for us, and to the others who helped in advance. Thanks to the helper team too for doing the jobs on the day cheerfully, and well done everyone for coming. Great to have lots from other clubs visiting. See you again soon.

Forest League 2022/23 Series Info

Local events open to all, beginner or experienced orienteer, young or old and there are colour-coded courses suitable for all.

We have six of these events a year and together they form the Forest League (QOFL). The series starts in the Autumn and continues at approximately one event per month until the spring.

Anyone can get a result for an event, but for it to be included in the league scoring you have to be a member of a British Orienteering affiliated club at the time of entry.

Events list for Forest League 2022-23

Code of Conduct

Please make sure you have read and comply with the Participant Code Of Conduct and, if applicable, the Parent Code Of Conduct.

Directions / Parking

Park in Nutcombe Bottom public car park, free of charge

Course Information

CourseMapDistanceHeight gain Controls
White A41.7 km55m15
Yellow A42.0 km70m13
Orange A43.6 km130m15
Light Green A43.1 km105m15
Short Green A43.2 km125m14
Green A34.5 km290m13
Blue A35.5 km325m19
BrownA36.3 km375m18

Course details subject to final controlling.


Entry Details

Pre-entry closes on 8 December 2022.

Please note that if you enter on the day you run the risk that we have run out of maps for your preferred course.

Pre-enter

ClassPre-entry FeeEOD Fee
Senior £9 £10
Senior Novice £5 £6
Junior £3 £4
Group £13 £15
  • Junior - anyone 21 years or younger at the time of the event, regardless of the course they are running.
  • Senior novice - an adult running White or Yellow.
  • Group - all going round a course together, two maps provided - please contact us to arrange if wanting to pre-enter a group.

An SI dibber can be hired for £1. Failure to return it will incur the cost of a replacement (£30).

If you are a helper at this event, please contact the organiser for the discount code.

Please consider buying a pack of pre-entry credits in advance. This costs you the same but saves the club a lot in credit card fees.

Buy Credits


Registration & Start Times

Start open at 11:00 (10:30 for helpers).

Last start is 13:00 and courses close at 14:30.

SI & SIAC Contactless enabled.

Dog restrictions

Dogs are allowed

Safety

Required?
leg covering yes
waterproofs depends on weather
whistle yes
U16 accompanied by responsible adult no
reflective clothing required no
headtorch required no

There is no mobile phone signal at Registration, so you will not be able to contact the organising team during the event.

The area is thickly wooded, and likely to be wet under foot. Because of steep and slippery slopes we recommend having good grip on your shoes. Parts of the area are commercial forest so there may be log piles and machinery - please do not touch.

Its the middle of December so the days are short. We have chosen an early course closure time to allow control collection during daylight. If you are likely to be slow please choose an early start time.

Please could all competitors carry a whistle. We will check all juniors but we will trust adults to comply.

If it is wet we may make it compulsory to carry or wear waterproofs. Please respect the volunteers enforcing this rule.

If it is windy we may be forced to cancel by the landowner. We recommend checking the website before travelling.


Contacts / Officials

Planner: Miffy Treherne & Simon St Leger-H

Organiser: Richard Sansbury

Photo Gallery

2022 12 11 11 25 07

2022 12 11 11 25 07

2022 12 11 11 29 08

2022 12 11 11 29 08

2022 12 11 15 04 40

2022 12 11 15 04 40

Camp Fire

Camp Fire
Credit: S St Leger-Harris

Control 110

Control 110
Credit: S St Leger-Harris

Control 143

Control 143
Credit: S St Leger-Harris

Distinctive Tree

Distinctive Tree
Credit: S St Leger-Harris

Distinctive Tree 2

Distinctive Tree 2
Credit: S St Leger-Harris

Qo Tent

Qo Tent
Credit: S St Leger-Harris

Stream Junction

Stream Junction
Credit: S St Leger-Harris

Sunset

Sunset
Credit: S St Leger-Harris

Important Event Information

Safety and Risk: A comprehensive risk assessment will have been carried out by the organiser, but participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety during the event. All participants must report to download whether they finish their course or not.

Privacy: when participating in our events/activities your name may appear in the results section of this website or in newspaper reports. Read our data protection page to see how we look after your personal data.

Photography: QO has an agreed policy on the taking of photographs at events, based on national guidance. This provides a sensible balance between the benefits and risks associated with the taking and use of images. If you are unsure about acceptable practice, please speak to the event organiser.

Safeguarding: QO is aware of it's responsibilities in safeguarding and child protection. To comply with The Child Safeguarding Practice Review and Relevant Agency (England) Regulations 2018, we now provide an email address for individuals to report concerns to the Lead Safeguarding Officer. This address is safeguarding@britishorienteering.org.uk.