BabertonWed 7 Aug

Parking and registration will be in Odeon Luxe Cinema car park in the Westside Plaza shopping centre in Wester Hailes.

Please try to walk, bike or use public transport if at all possible.

Public transport: Please try to use public transport to come to this event if you possibly can. Check Lothian Buses to plan how to get there.

Bike: It should also be easy to come to the event by bike especially if you live in the city or close to the city. A variety of quiet cycle route maps throughout the city are available on the Edinburgh City Council Quiet Routes web pages. It should be possible to find a place to lock your bike while you run.

This is an opportunity to test yourself over the intricate Wester Hailes competition area recently used as part of the WOC 2024 Sprint World Orienteering Championships.

Mainly urban street terrain with many road crossings so all Under 16s must be accompanied, The map we are using was updated and used for the sprint WOC and will be 1:4000.

Sprint style map at 1:4000. Please refresh your understanding of the Sprint mapping symbol set - Sprint (ISSprOM 20-19-2) - here and in particular the symbols indicating out of bounds areas (olive green), impassable features which must not be crossed and artificial barriers.

Those new to Urban orienteering can see examples of sprint maps (showing artificial barriers as thick purple lines) that were used in February this year for EUOCs Big Weekend, at South Queensferry (event called Saturday WRE) and Bughtlin (event called Sunday Sprint/Urban), on Routegadget here

Maps will be printed at A4 on normal, non-waterproof paper, so if wet bring a poly pocket or map bag.

Planners' notes:

There are artificial barriers marked on the map with thick purple overprint lines. These are not marked in the terrain so it is up to you to ensure that you don’t cross one. Barriers are located in the same location for both Long and Short courses.

• The Long and Short courses cross public roads that will not be closed for the event. Please take care crossing all roads and be aware of traffic at all times.

• Westburn Avenue is the main access into the event area for traffic travelling from Wester Hailes Road. All courses cross Westburn Avenue at least twice and extreme caution must be taken when crossing during the event.

• You may encounter cars, motorbikes and buses on roads within the event area.

• All Junior athletes under the age of 16 will require to be shadowed for safety reasons.

• The area is mainly paved and may be wet should it rain. Please wear appropriate footwear and clothing for the conditions.

• The courses loop around a relatively small area of map and there will be lots of people in the same area and there are some narrow paths so please be careful. Watch out for people running in the opposite direction to you.

• Please avoid running close to local residents homes.
• You must report to Download even if you do not complete your course, so we know you are back safely, and we don’t have to mount a search for you.
• The area may be busy with the general public, including dog walkers, runners and bikers. Please respect their right to be there at the same time as you are orienteering.
• Please give any dog walkers you encounter extra space ie don’t run too close, especially if their dog/dogs are off lead

Please also read the Planner's notes in the Map and Safety sections.

There are 2 courses , SI timing will be used for Start and Finish only, controls are ONLY marked with red/white tape streamers or flour.

Long Course:

There are two parts: part 1 on one side of the map has 8 controls and an optimal distance of 1.9k; part 2 on the other side of the map has 11 controls and an optimal distance of 3.3k.

Short Course:

The short course will be laid out on a single sided map and shall consist of short fast intricate orienteering.

The course will have 15 controls and an optimal distance of 3.4k.

As road crossings will be involved on both courses all Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

Read more about Course lengths and Difficulty here

Pre-Entry strongly advised: Entries will be open on RaceSignUp at 10am on Wednesday 31st July and close at 8pm on Tuesday 6^th August.

If you miss this deadline send an email to email hidden; JavaScript is required to ask about a late entry. Entry on the evening of the event may still be possible but this is subject to spare maps being available, payment by cash or bank transfer. Cash preferred, please bring the exact change if possible

Remember all under 16s must be accompanied by an adult. Either enter separately but run together or order an extra shadowers map for £1 if only the Junior is entered.

Fees: Senior £4, Junior (under 21)/Student £2. Shadowers map £1

Si dibbers are free to hire (via the entry form) but there is £30 charge if lost

Registration will be located in the Odeon Cinema Car Park and will be open shortly before the first start time at 6.30pm. Pre-entered competitors with their own dibbers can head straight to the start which will be close by.

START PERIOD: 6.30pm - 7.30pm.

COURSE CLOSURE: Courses will close at 8.30pm. If you are unsure about how long you will take to go around your course please come and start early.

FINISH AND DOWNLOAD will be close to Registration. It is essential to report to DOWNLOAD as a safety check that all competitors have returned.

• Toilet facilities will not be available at the event.
• A first aid kit will be available at Registration