Edinburgh Southern Orienteering Club

Scottish Spring 2018 Middle/SprintAbbey Craig/Rosyth, 24 March

ESOC members enjoyed two contrasting events on small but challenging areas, with several course/class winners.

This weekend of events was presented by members and friends of SEDS, ScotJOS and the GB Orienteering Squad, with 5 events over 3 days:

  • SEDS Dark Thistle night race at Barr Wood
  • ScotJOS middle distance at Abbey Craig, Stirling
  • GB Squad sprint race at Castlandhill, Rosyth
  • Dark Spring night race at Polmaise
  • GB Squad SOL 1 at Auchingarrich (see separate news item)

The Sprint and SOL 1 were part of the 2018 UK Elite Orienteering League.

The Middle Distance race at Abbey Craig, north of Stirling, saw a fair turnout from ESOC. It was a fine spring morning and the woods were delightful – mature deciduous trees on the slopes below the Wallace Monument, with a network of paths and many rock features. Courses looped around the area and the longer courses had double-sided maps.
ESOC results in the top half were:
Brown (20 competitors) – Rona Lindsay 6th
Blue (37) – Alistair Hindle 6th, Keith Brown 10th
Green (30) – Rachel Brown 2nd, Mike Stewart 8th, Maggie Scrugham 9th, Alastair Lessells 11th, Sally Lindsay 15th
Short Green (18) – Margaret Dalgleish 1st
Yellow (7) – Megan Brown 2nd


Some moved on to Castlandhill to compete in the Sprint race on Saturday afternoon, and more arrived to swell the ESOC numbers. The venue was a modern housing estate in the south of Rosyth. Concentration was vital – there was plenty of route choice through a maze of small pathways between the houses, with many twists and turns, and most of the running was on tarmac, though there was some grass in open areas. Again the longer courses had double-sided maps. The weather remained fine.
ESOC results in the top half were:
W Open (27 competitors) – Laura Robertson 1st, Rona Lindsay 12th
M Vet (16) – Alistair Hindle 1st, Walter Clark 6th
W Vet (14) – Helena Nolan 2nd, Judy Bell 6th, Hanne Robertson 7th
M Supervet (20) – Keith Brown 5th
W Supervet (20) – Alison Cunningham 1st, Maggie Scrugham 4th, Sally Lindsay 8th
W Ultravet (5) – Janice Nisbet 1st
W Hypervet (1) – Janet Clark 1st
W Young Junior (4) – Maja Robertson 1st

See the Scottish Spring website for more details about the events and full results.
Some photos from Abbey Craig (by Crawford Lindsay) are here, and photos from Castlandhill (by Wendy Carlyle) are here.

Other entries categorised under: Event Reports