March 21, 2011

Results: Ann Morrison Classic Meet

A prudent person would have heeded the forecast calling for rain, rain and more rain by orienteering at the mall. The daunting weather forecast did not deter 20 stalwart orienteers who were rewarded by a occasional patches of blue sky in a surprisingly mild and dry day as they attacked controls at Ann Morrison Park.

Jake Tadje negotiated the Beginners’ Course to take first place and meet one of the requirements for his Boy Scout merit badge. Aleksi Morgan grabbed second place while Dondi introduced her friend Tammy to orienteering. Carolyn Flynn, her daughter Susie Wolfskiel and grandson Tyson walked away with first place in the Stroller Division. Actually, Tyson rode to victory.

Beginners Course - 7 Controls - 1.61 K
Jake Tadje 0:23:00
Aleksi Morgan 0:24:15
Dondi Black & Tammy 0:39:01
Carolyn Flynn, Susie & Tyson Wolfskiel 0:56:09




The team of Melanie and Jamie Schuster topped the Intermediate Division with a 39 minute performance. Renee Kline got back in the groove with a respectable second place. While shadowed by his father, Liam Murray, our youngest competitor at 6, navigated the intermediate course to earn a third place. Close behind were our new members David (7) and Ryan (10) Stocks. We are delighted to welcome the Stocks family to CTOC. They recently moved to Boise from Adelaide, Australia.


Liam on a run



Ryan spikes #2 while David consults the map.





Intermediate Course - 13 Controls - 3.53 K
Melanie & Jamie Schuster 0:39:00
Renee Kline 0:43:53
Liam Murray 0:52:45
David Stocks 0:53:12
Ryan Stocks 0:57:15


In the Advanced Division Jeff Black set the standard covering the 6 kilometers in 32 minutes. Erik Bergset bested his father’s worthy performance. And worthy it was as Ole outran men half his age. Jeff Harvey came to his first orienteering meet on Saturday to develop his navigation skills for adventure racing. We are looking forward to giving Jeff some fun challenges in the coming months.




Garth Summey leaves 5 Jay Morgan goes to 6.

Advanced Course - 18 Controls - 5.76 K
Jeff Black 0:32:00
Erik Bergset 0:35:02
Jay Morgan 0:37:16
Ole Bergset 0:39:10
Greg Davidson 0:39:20
Jeff Harvey 1:05:55
Garth Summey 1:35:00


















Ole on a long run. How did Ole run that fast? He’s even older than I am!

This was my first experience as a meet director. I suppose it was possible to do it alone, but it would have been a much different meet without all of the advice and assistance from seasoned orienteers. Sergey generously took the time to spell out the criteria for a suitable course and introduced me to CTOC procedures. When Sergey was called out of town on business Jeff Black seamlessly guided me through preparation of the maps. Andy Hill’s critique dramatically improved the clarity of the Advanced Course maps. Thanks to Ellen for the cookies with custom orienteering messages and to Ole for help picking up the controls.

On Saturday, April 23 at Stewart Gulch East we begin our season of orienteering in the hills. Looking forward to seeing all of you there.

John Murray

March 11, 2011

Upcoming: Ann Morrison Classic Meet 3/19/2011

Get a jump on spring. Tune up your navigation skills in our last winter-in-the-city meet. Or, if you are new to orienteering, let the City of Trees Orienteering Club introduce you to this exciting sport in the familiar surroundings of Ann Morrison Park. Stroll the beginners’ course, challenge the intermediate course or test your endurance on the advanced course.

You can easily access the start and finish just south of the green pedestrian bridge by entering the park from Royal Blvd.

Date: Saturday, March 19
Start time: 11:00am - 1:00pm (course will be closed by 2pm)
Location: Ann Morrison Park
And remember, you can register on-site, or print out the Registration Form at home, fill it in and bring it with you to the meet.

March 5, 2011

Results: Willow Lane / Veterans Park Score Meet

A big "Thanks" to all of you who came out for the Willow Lane Score Meet. It was a beautiful day and perfect weather for a walk or run in the park. There were 140 total possible points spread out over 21 controls. And the time breakdowns for each course were 25 minutes for Beginner, 35 minutes for Intermediate, and 45 minutes for the Advanced course with a 5 point penalty for each full minute over.

Jeff Decker got things started early on the Intermediate course and finished in the top spot. David Bergset finished well under the allotted 35 minutes but felt like he'd had a good run. And Joanne and Joe had no intention of racing the clock. They were determined to find every control.

David Stocks and his brother Ryan decided to have a little friendly family competition, each going out with a parent on different courses. David made a mad sprint for the finish to beat his brother by only one second (we won't split hairs that they were on different courses). We're looking forward to seeing the Stocks family at future events.

The Advanced course tested everyone, with only three competitors reaching all 21 controls. Jeff Black took a narrow victory of only 25 seconds over Sergey. Jay Morgan thought the course was so enjoyable that he decided to run it twice, working on improving his efficiency he was able to shave 10 minutes off his previous time. Other great finishes to note came in from Melanie edging out her partner Greg, and Ole beating out Bill Leahy by one minute but both had the same points.

Please join us for our next meet at Ann Morrison on Saturday, March 19th.