Cammo Estate

ESOC local event in Edinburgh and the Lothians

Sat 12th Jan 2019

Info updated: 24th Sep
Type of event: Local
Type of terrain: Parkland

Results

Results are here

Winsplits are here

ORGANISER’S COMMENTS from Leonne Hutchinson:  It was wonderful to see so many people at Cammo. It is a lovely estate and the weather was ideal for a New Year’s outing. I’m glad the wee drizzle mid-way didn’t amount to anything.  It was a shame on arrival to find a window had been broken at the lodge and much rubbish left in the ruined house but both were quickly sorted by our volunteers. 

Cammo is often a popular event, and today was no exception. There were 197 entries on the day, with many family groups and newcomers, as well as experienced orienteers. It did lead to a busy registration and subsequent wait for dibbers to be returned. I was impressed with everyone’s patience and understanding, maybe aided by ginger biscuits and cake. Thank you to those who loaned their own dibbers to save people waiting, even their SIACs.

The team of helpers worked calmly and efficiently in getting everyone out to enjoy Peter’s courses. It is always rewarding when people return from their courses having enjoyed themselves and with positive comments for the sport and for the team that worked so hard to make it happen. A special shout out to the juniors that helped today - Rowan and Tom at the starts, Joseph and Ben on the computers, and Senan, who helped put up the signs. 

PLANNER'S COMMENTS from Peter O'Hara: I hadn’t planned an Orienteering course for more than 25 years. Back then I used little fiddly metal rings and got covered in ink. Condes software was great fun to learn and pretty user friendly I felt. Really had fun playing around with different course designs.  

Cammo was a challenge at times to plan for, particularly because of dog walkers causing the rapid evolution of the paths, my initial draft courses were changed after some ‘ground truthing’ and head scratching, so I avoided some of the more confusing areas. Vegetation boundaries were also avoided as control sites, partly because of it being Winter and looking very different, but also things have move on in places compared to the map.  Katy provided key comments on early drafts to help me revise some rather silly proposed control sites in dangerous ruins etc. as well as sorting out many design flaws and mistakes. 

One suggestion I got from a beginner whilst planning the course was not to cover up the map key with the control descriptions as had happened in a previous event they had been to, something we do have to be careful about with beginners who find some O symbols baffling to begin with. When this happens competitors can usually get a copy of (or get a look at a copy of) a map legend at Registration. 

For the Green as well as trying to get the length up with not too much repetition, I tried my best to make it as challenging as possible in a very familiar area/control sites for many, by making most controls only visible when you were inside the circle, trying to disorient through rapid twists and turns, and provided as many route dilemmas as possible, including trying to use the out of bounds fields as an obstacle. This was only partially successful, I noticed a few foot prints across the soil by the end [��] , thankfully no one tried ‘route one’ through the canal. Although a few will have to wash their shoes after going for it through the swampy ditch. Sorry for that….there was always the option of the long way round. 
Orange used many similar controls to the Green, but coming in from a more visible angle. I worried some sites may be tricky for beginners, but also a good way to hook beginners by giving them a bit of a challenge. My wife Monette certainly got her money’s worth on her 90 minute run on the Orange, some of it spent entirely off the map.
I think the Yellow was possibly too short and possibly a bigger step down from the Orange than desirable. Thankfully Katy advised me to make the Yellow and White quite different in case those that ran the White wanted to do the Yellow also, good advice.  

The White and particularly Yellow I probably found the least fun to plan, my instinct was to try to get kids to have forest adventures and get muddy, but the guidelines said paths only. 

 I really enjoyed the experience of planning, learnt a lot, would recommend it to others to try and definitely up for it again in the future if there ever is a need. Thanks especially to Katy for the wise mentoring and to Janet for gently keeping me on track in preparation milestones and also very impressed by the well-oiled machine of so many dedicated ESOC volunteers, calm under pressure on the day. Apologies that us Peebles outliers don’t do more. 
 

General Information

Dress: Please check the weather forecast and dress appropriately.  At time of writing (Tuesday afternoon 8/1/19) the forecast is for a fine Winter day.  Even though this area is on the edge of the city of Edinburgh, it is can still be cold, even on a fine Winter afternoon. It is essential therefore to make sure you are dressed appropriately. 

Terrain:  Parkland with some wooded areas and a good network of paths.

Other Users: Cammo Estate is very well used by the general public including other runners and dog walkers.  Please respect their right to be there at the same time as you are orienteering.

Dogs: Dogs are allowed and should be kept under close control at all times. 

Course Closure Time: Please note that all competitors should be back at download by 4pm at the latest. Controls will be brought in at 4pm as it will already be dusk with sunset at 4.06pm.

Extra Safety: There is a water feature at Cammo which is easily recognisable on the map, please make sure juniors know this and stay on paths when passing close by.  

MEDICAL CONDITIONS: You have the option of downloading and completing this Medical Form. It could be life saving if the organisers are aware of any existing medical conditions in the event of an incident. You can leave it at registration/enquires in a sealed envelope that will only be opened if required and destroyed after the event.

Location

Nearest town: Edinburgh

• Grid Ref: NT177748
• Postcode: EH4 8AW
• Latitude: 55.96017
• Longitude: -3.31972
• Google Map (aerial) - Bing Map (OS)

Directions

Head for the Ranger Centre at The Lodge at the end of Cammo Road.  Park in Cammo Road or other surrounding streets and enter the Estate through the Lodge Gates. Please park carefully and give due consideration to local residents who may be coming and going from their houses during the course of the event.  You should be able to come close to the event by bus, check Lothian Buses for more information about services.

Registration & Start Times

REGISTRATION: In the Ranger Centre at the Lodge at the entrance to the Estate and will be from 1.30pm to 2.30pm for newcomers to orienteering and will run from 1.30pm to 3pm for experienced orienteers. 

It is not necessary - or possible – to pre-enter for this event.  Everyone is very welcome, just to turn up.  Whether you are a newcomer or have been to a lot of events, please try to come and start early if you think you might take a long time over your course.

Registration Form - We know how time consuming, and occasionally frustrating, it can be for our competitors to have to complete the Registration Form outside in the cold and wet of a Scottish Saturday afternoon so we have produced an ESOC  ADVANCE REGISTRATION FORM for you to complete and print off and bring with you to the event. This will save a lot of time and the forms easier to read!!  Apologies to those experienced Saturday attendees who feel they don't need the sample at the top of the page but it will be very helpful to our newcomers and properly completed, legible registration forms are a huge help to those manning our computers during and after the event.  

Thank you in advance for helping us by completing the form and bringing it with you.

 If you would like a little more advance information about the registration process at a local event why not read our QUICK GUIDE TO REGISTRATION?

NOTE: Current members of an orienteering club who have their own registered SI can continue to come to Registration and go through the speedy entry system.  If in any doubt whether this applies to you then it is best to complete the attached application form and bring it with you.

DATA PROTECTION:  Completion of the Registration/Entry Form for this event confirms your agreement to have your entry details stored on a computer system and for your name and age class to appear in the results on the ESOC website and the British Orienteering website. More information about ESOC's Data Privacy Policy. 

START AND FINISH: both close to Registration.  The start will be a very short walk of less than 100m from Registration and it is an easy walk back along a track from the Finish to Registration/Download.  There will be a marshall at the finish to make sure competitors get the correct track back to Registration/Download.  Start times will be from 1.30pm to 3pm.

COURSE CLOSURE TIME: Please note that courses have a closure time of 4pm after which controls will be brought in.  You should be back at Registration/Download by 4pm.  It is dusk followed by darkness very early at this time of year so it is even more important to start bringing in controls at 4pm otherwise head torches would be needed!! Please make sure you arrive in plenty of time to register, get to the start and complete your course before controls begin to be brought in.

Course Information

As usual at ESOC local events there will be White, Yellow and Orange courses for newcomers and improvers.  There will also be a Green course (4.7k) suitable for experienced orienteers.     

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

Entry Fees are shown below.  

Note that a Junior is a competitor who was born in 1999 or later and an Adult (Senior) is a competitor who was born in 1998 or earlier.

SportIdent (SI) electronic timing will be used.   If you would like to buy your own dibber (SI-Card) then a variety are available directly from SportIdent UK.   The choice may be confusing and it may help you to know that the SI-Cards which ESOC hires out are very similar to the most basic model shown on the linked page - the SI-Card 8.

PUBLIC LIABILITY INSURANCE: If you have joined an orienteering club, or are competing in one of your first 3 events, then you are covered by our public liability insurance. If you would like to join ESOC you can find out how to do this here.  Entry fees are lower for members of an orienteering club.

Contacts / Officials

Email: 

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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