Hello everyone

I hope you have all been safe in your bubbles throughout Covid 19 Alert levels 4, 3 and now 2 – I’m sure you are looking forward to being able to explore further afield and even go orienteering again!

Sadly, as is the case all over the world, many orienteering events have had to be cancelled or mothballed – our rogaines are very social events, so these will be on hold until larger group events are permitted. 
All NZ orienteering events to date have been cancelled / postponed - please keep checking the NWOC website for further information about cancelled or re-scheduled events.  We are waiting for clarification from Sport NZ and Orienteering New Zealand as to the new guidelines for holding orienteering events in Level 2.
Social distancing is easier to maintain for standard orienteering courses and we are looking at ways to comply with guidelines by having pre-entry only events, no mass starts, no water supplied, no results displayed on TV’s at the event centre (compare results in your grade by checking Winsplits Online when you get home). As soon as we have details of up coming events, we will let you know.

I hope you honed your virtual orienteering skills with some of the coaching suggestions in the March newsletter – the World of O website continues its Route to Season 2020 series of challenges, where you can compare your route choice skills with those of elite runners on actual course legs on maps from around the world.http://news.worldofo.com/2020/05/09/route-to-o-season-2020-day-56/.  See all the other suggestions below.

Check out the interview with club members Madeleine and Shaun Collins.  Earlier this year the 2020 Auckland School Sprint Series, although cut short by Covid 19, was run brilliantly by Madeleine Collins of Lactic Turkey Events, helped by a wonderful team of club assistants and volunteers.

Read on for more news.

Lisa Mead
NWOC news hound

1. Events
2. Interview with Shaun and Madeleine Collins
3. Training from home and beyond in Level 2
4. Designer wanted
5. Forest access

Interview with Shaun and Madeleine Collins
Madeleine and Shaun Collins are widely known through their company Lactic Turkey Events, which has long created and hosted outdoor adventure events. Some of you will have followed Shaun’s crazy endeavours in the ultra-distance Revenant Race.  My memories of them go back to when they were orienteering as teenagers and I think Shaun was once even treasurer of NWOC.

Q. Number of years orienteering?
A. Started in 1990, so 30 years but with a big gap of about 10 years after our third child was born.

Q. How were you introduced to orienteering?
A. Our Dads used to work in the same building as each other but on different floors with different companies. They were both lunchtime runners so got to know each other in the changing room in the basement of the building. Another great guy, Roel Michels (past NWOC member), also used to run with them. One day Roel encouraged our Dads to come to a summer evening orienteering event and drag their families along. So they did. Shaun and I were both in our early teens then.

Q. Key orienteering achievements to date?
A. Shaun- Winning at the Labour Weekend event last year, including beating Carsten, after not having orienteered for more than 10 years.
A. Madeleine - Making the A final at JWOC in 1997 in Belgium. I also did the best comeback ever – after not orienteering for years I entered the Nationals in one of my first years as a W35 and won! Then I didn’t orienteer again for about another 5 years!

Q. Current orienteering project or goal?
A. Shaun - No specific orienteering goals, but I have a few ultra-running adventures planned that need careful navigation for me to succeed at them.
A. Madeleine - (Was) working hard on Auckland Secondary Schools Sprint Events. Also planning up a storm of further schools events we could do and increasing the number of kids that give forest and club orienteering a go.

Q. Favourite map and why?
A. Shaun- The Revenant map
A. Madeleine - Although I’ve orienteered in several countries around the world and have loved the challenges of those different maps, especially the delightful maps in the Bordeaux region of France, I have to say a good sand dune Woodhill map tops them all. I love being in that terrain.

Q. Map you have yet to experience but aspire to orienteer on?
A. Shaun - Barkley Marathons map, Frozen Head State, Tennessee.
A. Madeleine - I’d like to orienteer in a country that is really different – like China. I kind of had World Masters in Japan on the wishlist too. And I’d love to try one of those crazy multi-level mall maps.

Q. Orienteering hero?
A. Madeleine - The first kiwi orienteers that got placings at World events back in the nineties. They are also good friends of mine. Until then NZ orienteers were perceived as somewhat second-rate. These runners showed us we could be world class and I think that changed the attitude and expectations of all NZ orienteers. They were Alistair Landels and Tania Robinson (now Larsen of CMOC).
A. Shaun - None. I don’t really have heros. My wife is my hero.

Q. Day job?
A. Madeleine – Event director
A. Shaun - Husband and Dad extraordinaire/Sponsored ultra-runner/ Commercial manager/
Event director

Q. Other interests?
A. Madeleine - Trail running, MTB-ing, playing piano, reading and I’m learning Te Reo Maori.
A. Shaun - Ultra-running, trail-running, running, reading, photography

Madeleine and Shaun share many of their adventures with their three daughters – Zara, Meg and Annie-Rose

Orienteering from home and training resources
Moving into Alert level 2 will allow greater freedom to train but you can still get an orienteering fix from the couch.
Look at orienteering maps and courses and dream – flowing through the terrain and nailing the controls, who needs a good novel. The worldofo website has lots of links to maps and route choice exercises.
Those of you who have been orienteering for a while and throughout New Zealand may like to see how many maps you can identify in Briana Steven’s Guess The Map challenge here.
    

How well do you know your map and control symbols?
Scottish Orienteering has a puzzle where you can match the control descriptions to the symbols on the map: https://www.facebook.com/scottish.orienteering/posts/3525548987456705

If you need help, you can check out all the map symbols on the following Map legend.
https://www.orienteering.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/ONZ-Mapping-Master-Legend-ISOM2017-02-July-2017-v12.pdf. Sample below:

Our very own Marquita Gelderman is the convenor of Orienteering NZ’s technical committee and one of our most skilled orienteers. She has written a newsletter targeted at event controllers but which will be of interest to many orienteers, especially those involved in setting and controlling events.
https://www.orienteering.org.nz/news/onz-controllers-newsletter-april-2020/

From Colombia comes Virtual Antioquia Trail-O: yet another option for honing your map reading skills.
This on-line competition will have around 10 challenges with some questions, in different places or scenarios of Antioquia, a beautiful region in Colombia. In each challenge you will find:
- A picture from the scenario in which you will see between 4 and 6 marker flags who will which be identified from A to F, from left to right. The north of the picture will always will be the same of the north in the map.
- An image from the orienteering map with the terrain characteristics of the picture, with the control in magenta color which can be part or not (option Z) of one of the marker flags in the picture. North will be shown on the map.
- Control descripton.

Competitors match the correct flag to the control circle shown on the map. Enter for this virtual event by 23 May 2020. Information here .

Catching Features- is software based orienteering game at which club member Matt Ogden (former Junior World middle distance champ) is an expert.  A Lockdown virtual orienteering event saw him take a win over a number of well-known international orienteers. https://m.twitch.tv/videos/619987837

MapRunF Course at Browns Bay
AOC has been created some training runs for people to get out and do. There is now one in the Browns Bay area so NW folk might like to give it a go. The map can be found here:
The instructions of how to get MapRunF on your phone and the maps are all on  the AOC web page: http://www.orienteeringauckland.org.nz/resources/training/streetnavigation/#LogoStreetTraining. Anyone can do them - there is no charge.

Permanent Orienteering Courses
Now that travel is permitted, you might like to check out one of the permanent orienteering courses around Auckland. There are 20 permanent markers at beautiful Mahurangi West Regional Park (maps available from the notice board – or to be on the safe side you can download a map here). Orienteering courses are also at Atiu Creek Regional Park, north of Auckland and Duder Regional Park south of Auckland – brochures should be available from the notice boards.
https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/parks-recreation/get-outdoors/outdoor-activities/Pages/orienteering.aspx

Do you have graphics and design skills?
We are looking for a club member(s) with graphics and design skills interested in becoming involved with designing materials (flyers, certificates) and helping with the look of the website for a major event. This could be a perfect project for a student. Contact Annemarie for more information: northwestorienteering@gmail.com

New Member
A warm welcome to Rohan Farmer of Coatesville.

Forest Access – please stick to the rules
Most of our orienteering events take place on private land. North West Orienteering Club does not support or condone any access to private land outside of organised orienteering events, unless the access has been authorised in advance by the land owner. Possession of an orienteering map from a previous event does not imply approval for future access.

Access to the areas in which we orienteer, such as Woodhill Forest, is usually subject to the club meeting special conditions, regarding safety or payment of access fees; sometimes landowners have moved stock to accommodate us or have concerns about some areas (spread of kauri dieback disease). Please ensure that we maintain our good relationships with land owners.