Edinburgh Southern Orienteering Club

British Middle Champs + Northern Champs 2024Danefield / Kilnsey South, 27-28 April

Rachel Fawthrop punches the final control at the British Middle Champs 24
Rachel Fawthrop punches the final control at the British Middle Champs 24
Credit: Wendy Carlyle

A double-header Yorkshire weekend didn't stint on orienteering riches, offering bouldery forest fun at the British Middle Championships at Danefield followed by challenging exposed moorland for the Northern Champs at Kilnsey South. ESOC came away with 2 shiny Silver medals for Janice and Eleanor in W70 and W80, a frustrated 4th for Megan in W16, and plenty of smiles from the whole ESOC contingent!

Map of W21 course at British Middle Champs 24 - "fun, fast and fiddly" in Alison's opinion
Map of W21 course at British Middle Champs 24 - "fun, fast and fiddly" in Alison's opinion
Credit: Alison O'Neil

The British Middle Championships were held at Danefield, near Otley in Yorkshire. Courses were planned in true middle distance style, with average 200m legs between controls and lots of twists and turns. In a case of elite sport imitating life, the M21 and W21 crowns were taken by engaged couple Megan Carter-Davies and Ben Mitchell. ESOC achievements included Janice and Eleanor adding silver medals to their cabinets in W70 and W80, Megan nailing a nail-bitingly close 4th in W16, and Alison slipping into 6 in W21 after going to #2 via #9 (oops).

ESOC results in the top half are shown below (see also the full results here).

  • W16 (25) - Megan Brown 4th

  • M16 (38) - Calum Robertson 16th

  • W21E (26) - Alison O'Neil 6th

  • W55 (40) - Helena Nolan 19th

  • M60 (43) - Keith Brown 20th

  • W65 (32) - Sally Lindsay 7th

  • W70 (14) - Janice Nisbet 2nd

  • W80 (6) - Eleanor Pyrah 2nd


A cheerful Crawford Lindsay on the run-in at the British Middle Champs '24
Image: A cheerful Crawford Lindsay on the run-in at the British Middle Champs '24
Credit: Wendy Carlyle
David Robertson ponders his options on where to go next at the British Middle Champs '24
Image: David Robertson ponders his options on where to go next at the British Middle Champs '24
Credit: Wendy Carlyle
Alison O'Neil being chased down by current WOC Sprint Champion & ultimate winner Megan Carter-Davies, who caught her by 10 mins in W21! #britishmiddlechamps24
Image: Alison O'Neil being chased down by current WOC Sprint Champion & ultimate winner Megan Carter-Davies, who caught her by 10 mins in W21! #britishmiddlechamps24
Credit: Wendy Carlyle
Janice Nisbet takes Silver in W70 at the British Middle Champs '24, flanked by BL duo Christine Kiddier and Judy Johnson in 1st & 3rd respectively.
Image: Janice Nisbet takes Silver in W70 at the British Middle Champs '24, flanked by BL duo Christine Kiddier and Judy Johnson in 1st & 3rd respectively.
Credit: Wendy Carlyle
Eleanor Pyrah takes Silver in W80 at the British Middle Champs '24, with Ruth Rhodes (SO) in 1st and Clare Fletcher (BOK) in 3rd place.
Image: Eleanor Pyrah takes Silver in W80 at the British Middle Champs '24, with Ruth Rhodes (SO) in 1st and Clare Fletcher (BOK) in 3rd place.
Credit: Wendy Carlyle
Map of W55S course at the Northern Champs 24, described by Judy as enjoyable and challenging
Map of W55S course at the Northern Champs 24, described by Judy as enjoyable and challenging
Credit: Judith Bell

The Northern Champs were held at Kilnsey South, near Grassington, Skipton in Yorkshire. Grassington is otherwise known as the fictional village of Darrowby in the TV series adaptation of James Herriott's "All Creatures Great and Small" about a countryside vet, and indeed on Sunday Kilnsey hosted a strange and rarely seen species of creature, displaying navigational skills both great and not so great. Those who braved the cold but bright conditions enjoyed their courses! This was a selection race for juniors hoping for spots on 2024 JROS summer tours - all the best to Calum and Megan.

ESOC results in the top half are shown below (see also the full results here).

  • M16A (34) - Calum Robertson 17th

  • W55S (17) - Judy Bell 6th

  • M60L (43) - Keith Brown 17th

  • W70L (17) - Janice Nisbet 3rd


Keith Brown focusses on finding his next control at a windswept Northern Champs '24
Image: Keith Brown focusses on finding his next control at a windswept Northern Champs '24
Credit: Wendy Carlyle
Spot the Difference! David's car windscreen at the British Middle (Left) and Northern Champs (Right). Luckily, in both cases, this proved to be an early rain scare and the weather brightened in time for our orienteering.
Image: Spot the Difference! David's car windscreen at the British Middle (Left) and Northern Champs (Right). Luckily, in both cases, this proved to be an early rain scare and the weather brightened in time for our orienteering.
Credit: David Robertson

There were the 9th and 10th events in the 2024 UK Orienteering League. There are more details about the UKOL, including the league tables, on the UK Orienteering League website. With the scores for these events included, ESOC is lying 24th in the club league. The latest score for each club is calculated automatically from the 15 best club members' scores (across various age class groups) - so the club members whose scores are included may change as the year goes on and more events are included.

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