Meadows, Edinburgh (Sprintelope)

World Orienteering Day maze event during the day followed by Sprintelope urban event in the evening

Wed 23rd May 2018

Info updated: 24th May
Type of event: Local, Sprint
Type of terrain: Urban

Results

The results are here

ORGANISER’S COMMENTS: I expect participants in World Orienteering Day (WOD) experienced a wide range of climatic conditions throughout the world.  Here in Edinburgh it was a bit on the cold side, though lovely and sunny in the afternoon.  Good for running, though.  
 
The WOD activities during the day were fantastic.  ESOC provided the Maze, masterminded by Judy Bell and Ben Brown and enjoyed by eight Primary school classes and a number of passers-by of all ages, some delighted to rediscover orienteering  from their youth.  The INTerlopers club provided a range of activities related to orienteering, resulting in lots of happy children racing about the Meadows with intense concentration.  

The Sprintelope in the evening moved across to Bruntsfield Links to avoid the embargoed area of the Meadows.  The Yellow course for Juniors around the Links was enthusiastically received by, among others, a large group of local Scouts.   The urban courses visited areas new to many and enjoyable to all, with the sprint finish apparently especially competitive.
Thank you to everyone who came and helped us to contribute to the world-wide event which is WOD.
A thumb compass was left behind on the Registration table.  Contact me if it is yours.
Janet Clark       .
 

General Information

To celebrate World Orienteering Day ESOC and INTERLOPERS are joining forces on behalf of East of Scotland Orienteering Association to put on a maze and other orienteering related activities in the Meadows in Edinburgh for newcomers followed in the early evening by a SPRINTELOPE for more experienced club orienteers. 

THE MAZE AND ACTIVITIES: These are aimed at locals and pre-booked school groups to come along and try maze orienteering and other orienteering activities.  This is free and all ages are welcome to come and take part.  The maze and activities will be available from 11am to 4pm.  Email  before the day of the event if you need more information. The maze and activities will be solely on a large grassy area of the Meadows (see below for more directions).

THE SPRINTELOPE: 'SPRINTELOPES' are informal urban events in the Edinburgh and East Lothian area for members of local orienteeering clubs and visitors from other orienteering clubs.  Come along, pay, register and run.  Very, very informal. 

EMBARGOED AREA FOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (Sprintelope only):  Note that central Edinburgh is currently an embargoed area as Scotland has bid for the World Sprint Orienteering Championships in 2022.  The majority of the area to be used for this informal event is not part of the embargoed area however if you are in any doubt about then please err on the side of caution. 

TERRAIN FOR SPRINTELOPE: Residential streets and small urban parkland areas.

SAFETY, OTHER USERS and TRAFFIC FOR SPRINTELOPE: Central Edinburgh is a busy residential area with plenty of cars, buses, pedestrians and dog walkers, please be mindful of this while running. Please take care when crossing all roads and bicycle lanes.

CLOTHING FOR SPRINTELOPE: Please wear appropriate footwear, the courses are likely to be mostly on paths.  If the weather is poor please be careful as the ground may be slippery.  Please remember to bring sun cream if the weather is good and also some water or other drink for after your run.

Location

Nearest town: Edinburgh

• Grid Ref: NT260727
• Postcode: EH8 9NL
• Latitude: 55.94182
• Longitude: -3.18445
• Google Map (aerial) - Bing Map (OS)

Directions

THE MAZE AND ACTIVITIES: These will be based in the large grass area immediately to the east of Middle Meadow Walk (ie the side towards the tennis courts and play park). Best to come on foot, by bike or by bus.  Those in cars should park in streets surrounding the Meadows (south side is best) and walk to the maze event. Note that parking charges apply during the day time for a substantial area spreading out from the city centre.

SPRINTELOPE: The Sprintelope will use Bruntsfield Links and streets to the south and east of here but will start opposite to the Pavilion Cafe on the Meadows and use two pedestrian crossings over Melville Drive and Marchmont Road.  The Pavilion Cafe on the Meadows is almost opposite the end of Marchmont Road, to the west of Middle Meadow Walk.  Streets off the south south east side of the Meadows are likely to be the best place to find parking.  Parking charges should be finished by the time of the Sprintelope.  

Registration & Start Times

SPRINTELOPE ONLY

Registration, Start and Finish will  be close to each other in the Meadows near the Pavilion Cafe which is almost opposite the end of Marchmont Road, to the west of Middle Meadow Walk (see under Directions above)

REGISTRATION: from 6pm to 7pm.  

START TIMES: from 6.30pm (or as soon as controls are out and we are good to go) to 7.30pm  

COURSES CLOSE: 8.30pm

Course Information

SPRINTELOPE ONLY

COURSES: There will be a Long and Short course. In addition, there will be a Yellow standard course within Bruntsfield Links suitable for under-16s, with no road crossings.  Note that to go out on the Long or Short course any under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

TIMING and CONTROL SITES: SI will be used for the start and finish only.  Control sites are likely to be informally marked, please check during the few days before the event.  Please bring along your SI if you have one.  There will be some available to borrow if you don't have one.

DOWNLOAD: As a safety measure, all competitors must return and download even if they do not finish their course.

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

SPRINTELOPE ONLY: Entry at the event only.  Registration/Entry forms will be available for completion at the event.

COST: £2 for Seniors, £1 for Juniors (see above for information about under 16s).

DATA PROTECTION UPDATES MAY 2018:  Entry to this event is by completion of the ESOC entry form on arrival at the event.  By completing the entry form to enter this event you agree that we may publish your Personal Information as part of the results of the Event and may pass such information to the governing body or any affiliated organisation for the purpose of insurance or for publishing results either for the event alone or combined with or compared to other events. Results may include (but not be limited to) name, any club affiliation, race times and age group.

Contacts / Officials

Email:

Phone: Janet at 0131 225 7771

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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