Gold Rush Motala Results

The road to orienteering is not always a lonely road.

First they had to navigate circuitous, pot-holed, and deeply rutted logging roads. Some mastered the task. Others (To protect his dignity and reputation for awe-inspiring navigation I won't mention Sergey's name.) found themselves befuddled and desperate to the point of resorting to following another car. Then fifteen orienteers took on the Saturday challenge of five different courses ranging from 1.1 K to 1.5 K.

Every orienteer experiences a minor navigational disaster from time to time. It's not that you are lost like some poor soul you read about in the newspaper. It's really not that you are lost; it's the control that's lost. Having withheld Sergey's name, I am obligated also to withhold Innes's and Mike's names from the roster of humbling mishaps. However, a quick examination of the results below will let those cats out of the crumbling wet paper bag. Congratulations, Mike, on your Loop B performance outpacing Innes by almost an hour. And, Innes, having suffered some of my own disasters, I can only hope that Melanie was gentle with you on what must have been a long ride home.

Kudos to the team of Vivian and Joe Kosak. I first met them at Eagle Island earlier this year when they were entirely new to this sport. Since then they've taken on everything from urban landscapes to the wide open rugged terrain at Rabbit Creek and now the mountain woodlands of our Gold Rush map. Those of us who are getting to know you admire your growing skill and obvious determination.

Veronica Fletcher is a new member this year. She brought her friend, Monica, to team up on the Sport course. Veronica is an avid hiker. There was some mention of having gotten lost on a hike or two and that they hoped orienteering is the cure. Well, we all get lost at one time or another, but I have no doubt that orienteering reduces the probability and builds the skills necessary to work your way out of being lost.

Angela, Jack, and Torin

Orienteering stalwart Great Uncle Jerry Stewart came accompanied by Jack, Angela and Torin. the three of whom navigated Loops A, B, and C. When all was said and done, they came out of the woods with smiles. For that matter, I think everyone was smiling. For some of the more serious competitors the smiles erupted over the memories of a mistake here or there.

Five orienteers completed all five loops. They are noted by a green background in the following spreadsheet.

Note that Norma completed three loops with no times recorded. Norma helped me set controls and was my forerunner for the Sport course. I can tell you from our conversation on the way home that she was very pleased with her performance. I was almost as pleased as she was. This sport isn't easy for any of us, and it's not intuitive for many of us.

Below are results for each loop.