Cademuir (SoSOL)

ESOC Event in the South of Scotland Orienteering League (SoSOL) Series

Sun 17th Sep 2023

Info updated: 19th Sep
Type of event: Regional
Type of terrain: Moorland

Results

Results are here

Winsplits are here

Routegadget is here

General Information

Controllers Comments:

I was approached to act as co-controller together with Lindsey Knox who had a City Race Euro Tour in London on the Saturday, trying to defend her 2022 title. Cademuir is a tough area, and unfortunately most of the short runnable grass is far away from the start and finish ! We tried our best to keep as much as we could of the courses away from the highest heather and the steepest climbs. Thanks to Mark for dealing with nitpicky comments from not one but two controllers, and Lindsey for doing a lot of work leading up to the event, including updating the map in places, even though she couldn't be there to reap the fruits of her labour.

Hearing from Moorfoot Runners that they had lost some equipment on Cademuir due to vandalism at their hillrunning event the previous weekend, it was decided to put out all the SI units, and all on-path controls, on the morning of the event. With checking controls the day before, this meant many visits to the Southwest hill of the map within a 24 hour period, but the scenery makes up for it.

Fredrik Nordvall Forsberg  STAG

~~~~~~~~~~~

I've controlled for ESOC at Cademuir a few times and I enjoy the extensive views once you get the unavoidable climb out of the way.  With no nearby parking there's no easy way of getting the controls out and that's probably the main drawback for planners and controllers but Mark sensibly limited the number of controls.  Too often I see planners putting out far too many controls which generally reduces route choice and creates more work.  Course winning times look about right apart from Brown which was perhaps marginally short and it looks like they coped with the climb and undergrowth quicker than we anticipated.  My thanks to Mark and Frerick for all their hard work which seems to have resulted in a successful event.

Lindsey Knox  RR

Organisers Comments

Long shifts, seamless changeovers, hard work, attention to detail;  ESOC teamwork at its best!  Everything worked smoothly and on time, very well done everyone.  Makes you proud to be a member of this team and this club!

Janet Clark (ESOC)

Final Details now uploaded  here 

Start Blocks are on Racesignup here (scroll to bottom of page) 

LOCATION OF THE EVENT: Cademuir, on the south side of the river Tweed, adjoins Peebles in the Scottish Borders.  The event will be based at Sports Hall 2 at Peebles High School (EH45 9HB) where there will be Parking, Registration, Toilets and Download.

NB There will be a Final Details document published a few days before the event.

Other Users: The John Buchan Way passes through the area. You may encounter walkers, cyclists and horse riders and you should adhere to the Scottish Outdoors Access Code.  Please be considerate and courteous to everyone you meet.

Weather and Dress: Please check the weather forecast on the day and dress appropriately.  

Map: Based on 2007 version by Peel Surveys with updates in 2017 and 2023. Contour interval 5m

Course maps: The map will be printed on waterproof paper, the control descriptions will be printed on the map and available as loose copies at the Start. Map scale TBC.

Terrain:  Mostly open hillside with plenty of contour details and some paths and tracks.  This event uses only the open moorland of Cademuir Hill; not the Forestry section at all.  There may be some taped routes on the White and Yellow courses where the vegetation may still be high. 

Dogs:  On leads in the car park and can walk to the Starts.  No dogs on the courses due to sheep on the hill. 

Course Closure Time: Courses close at  3pm,  controls will start to be brought in from this time.  If you think you may be out for some time, please opt for an early start block.

COVID 19: You should not attend the event if you are showing any symptoms of Covid 19 even though you have pre-entered. You should also not attend if you have specifically been asked to quarantine or self-isolate. 

The event will be managed to take account of all Scottish Government Guidelines and run in accordance with Scottish Orienteering Association (SOA) Guidelines.  Please: 
- do not arrive too early for your start block
- use the hand sanitiser provided at the Start and Download

Location

Nearest town: Peebles

• Grid Ref: NT251397
• Postcode: EH45 9HB
• Latitude: 55.64522
• Longitude: -3.19296
• Google Map (aerial) - Bing Map (OS)

Directions

By bus: X62 Borders Bus runs an hourly service from Edinburgh on a Sunday, it takes about an hour and 15 minutes and there is a 0.6 mile walk at the Peebles end.

By motor vehicle: From the A72 at west end of Peebles High Street (at Old Parish Church) cross the Tweed Bridge. Fork right along Springhill Road for 400m to 1st right, Springwood Road (signed “High School”). 

There will be a £2 parking fee.

Edinburgh based orienteers are welcome to join the newly expanded ESOC car sharing WhatsApp group. Please contact  for the joining link.

Registration & Start Times

Registration: Will be open from 10.30 - 12noon for the collection of hired dibbers, Yellow and White maps and EOD.

Start Times (more information below under Entries): 11.00 - 13.00

Course Closure: 15.00

Start and Finish
From the Peebles High School Sports Hall there is a walk of about 1km to the Start plus 30m climb at the end (allow 20-25 minutes) and the same (without the climb) back from the Finish, along the same route.   The Start and Finish are close together. 

The route to the Start is along pavements, a short wood section, and 3 residential road crossings (which should be quiet on a Sunday) The walk is suitable for buggies but the courses are not.

Course Information

Juniors may be shadowed, please make this clear in the comments field on the entry form

Explanation of colour courses

• White are very easy with all controls on paths. They are mainly used by 6-10 year olds and family groups.
• Yellow use simple linear features like paths, walls and streams. They are mainly used by under 12’s and family groups.
• Orange progress to basic use of the compass and route choice. They are ideal for novice adults or experienced youngsters.
• Light Green are ideal for improvers as the navigational difficulty begins to increase and uses simple contours and point features.
• Green are used mostly by experienced under 18’s and adults wanting a short but challenging course with a very hard navigational difficulty.
• Blue are a longer, more physically demanding course in comparison to the green. The distances are more varied between controls and the course attracts experienced orienteers.
• Brown & Black are very physically demanding and have a very hard navigational difficulty. They are for experienced orienteers only.
• Score means visiting as many controls as possible in any order in a specific time, like 45mins.

Entry Details

Pre entry preferred by RaceSignUp, and entries open on Saturday 2nd September here and close on Friday 15th September at 8pm. However, in order for us to order the maps in good time the following conditions apply 

1. Entries by Tuesday 12th September at 2pm are guaranteed a map for your chosen course
2. Entries will stay open until Friday15th September at 8pm, if maps are still available
3. EOD will be available at registration if maps are still available

The RaceSignUp page will display the number of maps available (as an entry limit) on each course from Tuesday 12th at 2pm

Start Times

1. Entrants can select a 15 min start block from the range available at the time of making the entry on Race Sign Up

2.  Please arrive at the Start in time to start within your chosen time block.   It is not however necessary for everyone to be there at the beginning of their chosen block.  

3. Juniors may be shadowed, please make this clear in the comments field on the entry form

Entry Fees

SI dibber hire available via the entry form:

Free standard SI card hire, if required, but there will be a £30.00 charge if  lost.
Hire of SIAC (touch-free) cards is £2.50 and a charge of £60 will be made if lost.

Contacts / Officials

Planners: Mark Sanderson (ESOC)

Controllers: Lindsey Knox (RR) & Fredrik Nordvall Forsberg (STAG)

Organiser: Janet Clark (ESOC)

Early enquiries of any kind:  

Entry enquiries once entries open:  

PUBLIC LIABILITY INSURANCE INFORMATION: Please note that all participants will be covered by Public Liability insurance provided by British Orienteering's insurance policy.

To become a member of an orienteering club, such as ESOC, which includes membership of British Orienteering and/or Scottish Orienteering visit our website www.esoc.og.uk  or ask at Registration. There are many benefits of being a member of an orienteering club and one of these is lower entry fees at most events.

Acknowledgements:  We are grateful to Patricia Anderson for acess to Cademuir Hill and to Peebles High School for the use of their Sports Hall.

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.

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