Perth Perfect Day Out 2014Saturday 15 February
The ‘Perth Perfect Day Out’, organised by Tayside Orienteers, featured the Scottish Sprint Championships in the afternoon at North Muirton, and the Scottish Night Championships in the evening at Kinnoull Hill, with ESOC winners at both events.
There was a good ESOC turnout for the Scottish Sprint Championships at North Muirton, by the River Tay on the northwest side of Perth. This area was used for the Scottish Sprint Championships 3 years ago, and this time had a different event centre, at North Muirton Primary School, in the middle of the area. It's a complex modern housing estate, with many confusing alleyways between similar buildings, and a few dead ends to trap the unwary. Underfoot conditions varied from fast running on tarmac and pavements, to wet and muddy grass. Lots of route choice and a control pick in a play area meant concentration was tested right to the end, and prior knowledge was no advantage. Afterwards there was animated discussion about route choice, over cakes and hot drinks in the school hall. The weather was sunny and dry, a very welcome surprise after a wet start to the day in Edinburgh.
ESOC had 8 winners:
Kerry Wood, W14
Rona Lindsay, W20
Heather Thomson, W40
Mark Wood, M45
Maggie Scrugham, W55
Janice Nisbet, W60
Eleanor Pyrah, W70
Jim Clark, M75
Other ESOC members who were in the top half of the results for their urban class were:
Veteran Women 40+ (24) – Helena Nolan 4th, Alison Cunningham 5th
Supervet Men 55+ (25) – Mike Stewart 6th, Crawford Lindsay 8th
Supervet Women 55+ (13) – Sally Lindsay 3rd, Margaret Dalgleish 7th
Ultravet Men 65+ (11) – Roger Scrutton 2nd
Ultravet Women 65+ (7) – Eleanor Pyrah 2nd, Fiona Findlay 3rd
Young Junior Women 12- (4) – Rachel Brown 2nd
Full results and more information about the event can be found on the Scottish Sprint Championships event page of the TAY website.
This was also the 2nd event in the 2014 Scottish Orienteering Urban League. A link to the 2014 Scottish Orienteering Urban League tables is available on the SOUL page of the SOA website.
After a few hours spent relaxing in various ways (such as an afternoon in the pub or Tiso’s café, exploring the centre of Perth, or a stroll around the River Tay art trail), a subset of the ESOC contingent reconvened at the monastery on Kinnoull Hill for the Scottish Night Championships. The monastery itself is an imposing building, and registration was in the fine setting of the crypt. The terrain is mixed woodland, with some thickets and open areas – many remembered it from previous events, but it’s harder to recognise in the dark, and the path network certainly proved confusing. Courses looped around the hill, with a change of pace through some open fields, then descended towards the finish back at the monastery. It was a clear starry night with an almost-full moon, and striking views to the lights of Perth below. Although there was a little snow underfoot further up the hill, it was fairly mild, and remarkably dry underfoot. Everyone enjoyed soup and bread afterwards, followed by more cakes and yet more post-event discussion.
ESOC had 8 winners:
Claire Ward, W21
Rona Lindsay, W20
Heather Thomson, W40
Sally Lindsay, W55
Roger Scrutton, M65
Ian Pyrah, M70
Eleanor Pyrah, W70
Jim Clark, M75
Full results and more information about the event are available on the Scottish Night Championships event page of the TAY website.
Other entries categorised under: Event Reports