New Year Cracker!

Final details for the 13th New Year Cracker, at Beacon Fell on 1st January, are now available here.

Compass Sport Trophy 2014

The first round draw has been made and SROC will face POTOC and SELOC in the Compass Sport Trophy at Irwell Valley on Sunday 16th February. Please keep this date free as we would like to field a full team. More details specific to SROC members will follow. See http://www.pgopage.co.uk/compasssportcup.htm

Street League

The updated Street League tables are now on the web for you to study during the festive season. We are now at halfway and the Gross Score table is being very keenly fought whilst Jane is establishing a good lead on the Age & Gender Adjusted. How will things change over the second half of the series? What New Years Resolutions will be made in an effort to change things? See you in the New Year at Torrisholme - New map and, I believe, a new scale to keep us on our mettle - see you there - Bob

Cottam results

Greetings - the provisional results for Cottam are now on the web - as I say in the Organisers comments we have tried to be as lenient as we could but if you have a query then please get back to me. I think you were all great to turn up and run in such awful weather. What was particularly frustrating/annoying was that it 'targeted' the running window of the event. Even given the weather the event did have it's moments. Yes it is true that Tony Varley was within the 75 minutes!! We also had one regular Street Leaguer who, despite being injured, turned up to walk the event - just goes to show how addictive it can be. I also gather that we a had a couple of people trying to perfect their 'walking on water' trick at control 42 - thank goodness it wasn't very deep. Once again many thanks for turning up, the numbers far exceeded my expectations. Have a good Christmas and I look forward to seeing you all at Torrisholme - Bob

Cottam Street League

Well there was no shortage of weather at last night's event! RouteGadget is ready for your routes.

Street League tables

The updated Street League tables are now on the web. There won't have been many times when a number of us are ahead of Quentin into the New Year and the second half of the series!

Northern Championships Festival of Orienteering 3rd-5th May 2014

As part of the Jubilee Year celebrations SROC is hosting the Northern Championships on the excellent terrain of Gummer's How & Blakeholme near Newby Bridge. Lakeland OC are organising events either side of the Champs - a Middle at Summerhouse Knotts and an Urban in Kendal to create a full bank holiday weekend of fantastic orienteering. More details may be found on this page. Entries for the weekend are due to open on Fabian4 from tomorrow, 17th December.

Golden Jubilee Challenge Match - SROC v SN (Southern Navigators)

In 1965, on Leith Hill, Surrey, there was an inaugural 'North v South' inter-regional event. The North represented by SROC and PFO and the South by SN and OO. The South, with athletes such as Bruce Tulloch, Martin Hyman, Roger Bannister and Mike Murray ran out clear winners. In 1989, as part of SROC 25th anniversary celebrations, Southern Navigators came to Tockholes for a re-match. On this occasion the North triumphed.

As part of our Golden Jubilee celebrations we have challenged the 'South' again. The match will take place at Bentley Wood, near Atherstone (OD event) on Sunday 9th March. The club is planning to take a coach to the event (pick up points in Lancaster and Preston ) with the possibility of a social gathering afterwards. SROC members will be allowed to run any course. Travel costs will be available at the club handicap in January. If you are interested in taking part can you email me. mark.edwards170@gmail.com

Street League 5

SROC Junior Squad

Thanks to Thomas Somers for this photo of members of the junior squad at Low Park Wood last Saturday. The group meet for fun training sessions and are showing good progress through the technical levels. For more details contact Julian Lailey.

Golden Jubilee Car Stickers

Everyone should have received a Golden Jubilee 1964-2014 Car sticker in our recent newsletter. These are free to members, please display them with pride. If you require additional stickers, I will have some available at the New Year Cracker and the Club Handicap.
Mark Edwards - SROC Chairman

Street League scores

Many thanks to Paul, Pete and colleagues for providing us with a very enjoyable event and an excellent venue. The results are now on the web for your perusal. The league tables have also been updated after Blackpool and I will add the Bolton result during next week pending any queries. Many thanks for coming and I look forward to seeing you all at the pre Xmas event at Cottam. - Bob

Bolton North street league 4th December

SROC is grateful to members of SELOC for their excellent Bolton North event, no 4 in the 2013-14 league. RouteGadget for the event is now available.

Low Park Autumn series 3

Results for the Autumn series event held yesterday in Low Park Wood are now available here, and RouteGadget for the event is here.

North West Night League event 1, Low Park

Event 1 of the NWNL saw a good turnout in pleasant autumnal weather at the compact Low Park Wood. Results and RouteGadget are now on-line.

UK Orienteering League

Congratulations to Quentin, Sue and Zoe Harding all of whom won their classes in the 2013 UK Orienteering League, which is now complete. In addition SROC finished a highly creditable 6th Club. The best 15 individual club members’ scores count, subject to certain conditions about classes.

First North West Night League event of the season coming soon

The first event in the new season is SROC's event in Low Park Wood not far from Kendal next Saturday 30th November. A must for all fans of orienteering in the dark, but also a good place to try night O to see if it's for you. There are full details of the event here.

RouteGadget mk2

Anyone who uses RouteGadget, the route analysis tool, will know that there are currently problems with the Java software that drives RG mk1. It seems that this will become more of  problem in the near future and will render the whole RG system useless. Fortunately Simon Errington is working on RG mk2, avoiding all the problems. It is still very much under development but SROC has installed the latest version on our RG site and it is available for viewing all our past events and testing usability. New functions are being added every few days, so check back regularly if you are interested.  There is not as yet the ability to draw new routes but this will be included soon. So for now any new routes should be added using the old version.

Blackpool North Street League and Tower Trophy

Many thanks to Bill & Dawn for hosting the Tower Trophy event on a blustery but dry night. The provisional results are now on the web as is the winner of the Tower Trophy. RouteGadget is also ready for your routes. Subject to any queries/appeals this year's winner is Ray Pickett. Many congratulations Ray a real boost for us 'oldies'. I have shown the individual/team multiplier we use for age and gender and the resultant adjusted scores. A reminder that the Tower Trophy winner must not have won it before. Don't forget that the next event is at Bolton North courtesy of Pete Kidd and Paul Turner. See you there - Bob

Movember - Team SROC

Some SROC members have joined the 'Movember' campaign. The campaign raises issues surrounding men's health. If you wish to donate and support Team SROC follow the link and 'Donate to my Team'. Updates on the teams facial hair can be found on SROC Facebook page. Beth Davey (SROC Junior) thought our Chairman looked like Shakespeare!! . http://uk.movember.com/mospace/7072237 .

Street League Tables

The League Tables are now on the web for your perusal. See Gross scores or Age-adjusted scores. There was some lost property from the Wigan event. The items are a Petzl Headtorch currently with Mark Sammon, a blue cap and a black drinks bottle, these are currently with Bill and Dawn Lock.

White Coppice Autumn series 2

Results for the White Coppice events held yesterday are on-line here, and RouteGadget is here. The weather forecast was ‘Changeable’ for Saturday 9th Nov. and this proved to be accurate – sun (while I put out the controls), rain and heavy hail squalls during the event and thunder and lightning when we brought in the controls!

Wigan South results

The results from Wigan South are now on the web. The tables will be updated after the weekend in case there are any appeals. Many thanks to Mark and Darren for developing a new area, I know how time consuming this is. Shame about the drizzle as it spoilt our 'dry' run. It wasn't really a problem except for the almost hallucinatory effect it produced through my glasses. Once again the chosen venue provided a very convivial atmosphere for the after run chat, an aspect of the events which I think we all find most enjoyable. Now on to Blackpool and the Tower Trophy! - Bob

Street League event 2, Wigan South

A new area for street league with an excellent map. The light rain just serving to keep the runners cool! RouteGadget is now ready for your routes.

Autumn Series event 2 - White Coppice

Details of the second Autumn Series event have been added to the fixture list. Choose from Odds and Evens score, traditional score or Orange courses.

Street League scores

The first set of League Tables are now on the web (see Gross Scores or Age-adjusted Scores) - I have added the Avenham results to the table but obviously not added them to the totals since I thought those who came would be interested to see how they scored. I have also amended the Leyland scores as we had some self timers. Paul T and Karen N did it on the Thursday night. Bob Nash

Street O event 1

Leyland results now on the web. Many thanks to Elaine for being prepared to take on an event and to Tony as mentor. Plus some new faces. Hopefully tables will on after the weekend - See you all at Wigan for the new area. Bob

Spook O

A gathering of ghouls, vampires and assorted Halloween characters enjoyed a fiendish frolic around the woods of the Silver Helm Scout Camp near Silverdale this evening. Results may be perused by following this link.

Leyland Street League

The 2013-2014 Street League started well last night with a return to the Leyland Lion. A few light showers did not hinder runners too much, provided they remembered to take a pencil rather than a pen with them! RouteGadget is now ready for your routes, and some notes on RG for Street League may be read here.

NW night league 2013/14

The North West Night league fixture details for the 2013/14 season have been added to our website. Brightbikelights are again sponsoring the series

RouteGadget for street league events

RouteGadget for street events is s little different to "normal" O events where there is a file containing everyone's split times uploaded at the same time as the map. (Then all you do is pick your name from the list and draw your route). So here are some simple step by step instructions for adding your route to a street event RG. (Yes, I have been asked how it's done).

Broadgate and Avenham RouteGadget

RouteGadget for the warm up event is now ready to receive your routes.

Night Street League

The results from Avenham and Broadgate are now on the web. Well done Tony for a storming run on what turned out to be a pleasant night for running as the rain stopped just in time. Looks like we are going to have a very competitive pairing now that Albert's daughter is running with him and keeping him on the 'straight and narrow'. Also good to see Tracey having a go on her own. Now it is on to the real thing. See you all at Leyland, Bob.

Williamson Park - beginner/junior event 3

Well done to all those who took part today. The results are on-line here. The next event is the Spook O on Friday 25th October. Don't miss it!

Lancaster University 12th October

Results for last Saturday's event may be viewed here.

New Street League season about to start

This flyer gives details for the first event in the new street league season. Don't forget the warm up event tomorrow!

2013-2014 Talent and Performance Pathway Squad Announced

British Orienteering has announced the latest Development Squads today. Follow this link for the full article. SROC athletes who have been selected are Zoe Harding to the Elite Development Squad and Helen Ockenden to the Talent Development Squad.

Spook O

The popular SROC Spook O returns to Silver Helm near Silverdale on 25th October. Guaranteed fun for all the family! Check out the event flyer.

Traitor's Gill Autumn series 1, Saturday 5th October

We were pleased with the numbers entering and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. One control placement was queried and on investigation it was decided to re-instate the competitor on the Orange course whose run had been affected. Congratulations to Laurence Johnson, winner of the World School Championships this summer, who found all the controls within the hour on the odds and evens course. Full results may be viewed here.

LOC/WAROC night event series

LOC/WAROC are putting on a series of weekly night events on Wednesday evenings starting on November 6 in Bowness. Please see the LOC website for further details.

Williamson Park results now published

Results for Saturday's event may be viewed here. Apologies to Joshua Edwards whose run on the White course was not recorded, this was our fault not his! A couple of you mispunched on the White course, in trying to correct your original mistake you punched another wrong control! Don’t worry, we all do it! We hope you all enjoyed the day and will be back for the next event on Saturday 12th October.

Williamson Park Results

The results will be posted asap, and we expect to have them on the website by the middle of the week. In the meantime, those who came should book Saturday 12th October at Lancaster University in their diaries, for the next event especially for schools.

Warm Up Event for the SROC Winter Street League

An opportunity to dust away the cobwebs before the series starts in earnest. The event will take place on Wednesday 16th October, The area is the Avenham and Broadgate map and the venue is The Continental, South Meadow Lane, Preston, PR1 8JP. As it will still be daylight ish the start times will be from 6.00 to 7.00. This is also to accommodate the pub who only serve food until 8.30. If you are going to eat you will need to order the food before you run (there will be a menu on the Continental website). Usual conditions: a Score event 60 or 75mins Start times 6.30-7.30. Entry fee £3 seniors/ £1 juniors . Lights desirable, high visibility clothing essential. Organiser: Bob Nash 01772721573; nash.family@talktalk.net

Farleton Fotos

Thanks to Martyn Roome for these photos of the Farleton event.

AGM minutes

Minutes of the 49th AGM, held last Thursday, may be viewed here.

Farleton Knott Planner's comments

At first sight a Cat C event limited to 200 competitors with the inconvenience of no EOD might not have looked so attractive. However, on an excellent area like Farleton Knott not likely to be used for another 5 years and with entries at £7 for seniors I hope that the courses made it well worth the travel.

Farleton Knott

Results for today's level C event are now on-line here. RouteGadget is ready to receive your routes here.

Home Internationals selections

Helen Ockenden (W16) represented England in the Junior Home International last weekend, and Sue (W50) and Quentin (M50) Harding are both selected for the Veteran Home International in two weeks' time. More details on the English Orienteering website.

Street O warm up in Ramsbottom

Matt Driver of SELOC is putting on a street O warm up / training event on the Ramsbottom map as part of SELOCs club night programme. Details as follows: Monday 30th September, Toby Carvery Greenmount (formally Bull's Head), Brandlesholme Road, Greenmount, Bury, BL8 4DS.

Starts 6.30 - 7 pm. 45min / 60min score. Linear course approx 3km straight line / 5km actual.
Please let Caroline Barcham know via email to c.barcham@sky.com if you're thinking of coming to assist map printing.

Farleton full

The entry limit of 200 for Farleton on Sunday 22nd September was reached today. Please note that there are no more entries available either in advance or on the day.

Daylight Street League

Apologies to those looking forward to the proposed upcoming Daylight Street League events but a number of factors have conspired to prevent me organising all of the three events. However, I am still hoping to put an event on in the Preston area for Wednesday 16th October. More information nearer the time. Don't forget that if you are in the Preston area there is still one last Run Challenge event next Wednesday 18th September at the Black Bull pub, Longton. Bob Nash

A Race2Remember

The Bolland family are organising an 8km TRA certified trail race around Nicky Nook on 29 September. Lovely route (with a sting in the tail). Walk option, fun run, junior and kiddie races. Great family day out based at Wyresdale Park Hall (Applestore Café). Terry Bolland senior has advanced Alzheimers and this event is dedicated to dementia awareness, with all proceeds going to Alzheimers Society. Margaret, Claire, Brendan, Sean, Helen, and Terry plus their families would love as many orienteers as possible to be there. If you know Terry or any of the Bollands, or you are affected yourself by dementia in some way, or you just fancy doing the best trail race ever, please get your entries in and help make this a great event. And tell your friends……..More details, www.facebook.com/TheRace2Remember  or call Claire on 01524 382976 or Sean on 07956 450276. Or check out this flier.

Farleton Knott 22nd September

There are still places available on all courses for the forthcoming level C event, for which final details are now available. Pre-entry only via Fabian4.

SROC AGM

The annual general meeting is to be held on Thursday 19th September at 7.30 pm at the Victoria Institute, Caton near Lancaster. All welcome; please bring a contribution to the Jacob's Join to follow.

Farleton level C event 22nd September

Pre-entries are open on Fabian4 for the Farleton Knott event a month away. There is a limit on numbers so there will be no entry on the day. SROC helpers are allowed over and above the 200 limit so any club member wishing to help should email the organiser with their details. More information on this flier.

Barbara Comish

We have heard that Barbara, who now lives in Sussex, has been admitted to hospital following a mild stroke.  All her friends in SROC wish her get well soon and hope that she will soon be back home.  Many SROC oldies well remember how much work Barbara put into our club in the past. Peter Knott

Run Challenge

Anyone looking for some competitive navigation may like to try Run Challenge which is being promoted by BOF and is a bit like score orienteering. There are events each wednesday in the Prteston area, plus others around Burnley, Wigan and in Cumbria. Several events have been enjoyed by SROC membetrs.

FAO all Street Leaguers

For all those itching to know the details for the next series below are the dates, venues and organisers/planners.
23rd October Leyland Tony Marlow/Elaine Sutton
6th November Wigan South Mark and Josh Sammon and Darren Baker
20th November Blackpool North Bill and Dawn Lock
4th December Bolton North Pete Kidd
18th December Blackburn (hopefully) Bob Nash
15th January Lancaster Chris Roberts
29th January - yet to be decided
12th February St Annes Ray Pickett
26th February Lancaster Quentin Harding
12th March - yet to be decided
19th March Final - probably Ashton Bob Nash
You will notice that at present there are two gaps in the series, so if anyone is able/willing to take on an event on either of these dates then please let me know. Additionally it is hoped to put on a pre-winter series, the likely dates are 18th September, 2nd October and 16th October all on a Wednesday and will be based in the Preston area. Bob Nash

Whitewell 50th anniversary challenge event

Competitors battled searing temperatures on the hottest day of the year, whilst also enjoying either the challenge of trying to beat the best time of fifty years ago or a slightly less vigorous 60 minute score. Whether the weather was to blame or not no challenger equalled the target time. The event also hosted a friendly match between SROC and PFO. The results of that match may be viewed here, and for the event as a whole here.

SROC team for tomorrow's Whitewell Challenge Match against PFO announced

Beth Davey      W10

Helen Ockenden     W16

Hazel Browne       W18

Karen Quickfall    W50

Jane Anthony     W55

Peter Collins   M21

Matthew Cochrane    M55

Michael Wilmore    M60

Bob Nash      M65

Dick Collins    M65 

Selection based on current form and on the need to match up on age, gender and ability with the ten PFO members entered on the Score Course. The result will depend on the cumulative scores of the team, so every 10 point control visited in the hour (and no 10 penalties for going over time) really counts. Though it's been rumoured that PFO have been having special training sessions we have every confidence that SROC will triumph and keep the bragging rights for the next 50 years. Julian Lailey.

JWOC photos

Thanks to Martyn Roome who has sent some photos taken during the recent JWOC in the Czech Republic. We see Zoe on the run in, Quentin in 1st place in the M50 JWOC Tour class, and the GB team. More photos over on the SROC Facebook group.

Whitewell Challenge event Saturday 13th July

Start time allocations for the Challenge course on Saturday have been added to the on-line start list There are three start blocks corresponding to tractor and trailer loads to the start. Challenge runners should be ready to depart 15 minutes before their allocated time. On arrival at the start they will be started at regular intervals as normal. For Score competitors, starts are at one minute intervals from 12 o'clock on an as-you-come basis.

Summer Sprint Series final scores

With 100 people taking part over twelve races this has been the biggest SROC sprint series so far. At the finale prize giving last night congratulations went to the following winners: Junior Men Finlay Johnson, Junior Women Alice Ball, Veteran Men Derek Fryer, Veteran Women Jane Anthony. The two open classes were both won by juniors: Lawrence Johnson and Helen Ockenden. Final results tables for age class and overall scores are available.

Sprint Series event 6

Results for the last event in the 2013 series are available via the usual link.

Sprint Series finale and prizegiving

The sixth and final event in the SROC Summer Sprint Series will be held on the University of Cumbria map this Tuesday 9th July. The venue for registration, results and prizegiving is the function room in the Park Hotel. The series scores after event five have been calculated but remain un-published in order to maintain the suspense! Some of the age class winners are already clear but in other classes there are two or three possible winners, depending on results in this last event. This is a classic campus sprint area and running speeds should be high. Don't miss this one, and take advantage of the discounted meals at The Park while the results are confirmed.

JWOC 2013

Facebook users have been treated to regular updates from JWOC 2013, the Junior World Champs, which has been taking place in the Czech Republic over the last week. The SROC interest has been our top junior Zoe Harding. Catch up with all the action on the JWOC website.

Summer Sprint Series 5 - Astley Park and Astley Village

A bit of seasonal wet sunshine did nothing to spoil the fun at Chorley yesterday evening. Results are now available via the sprint series page.

Anniversary Celebration Challenge final details

Final details for the special event on 13th July are now available. Entries remain open on Fabian4.

Northern Champions!

Finlay Johnson (M12), Lawrence Johnson (M16) and Quentin Harding (M50) were all crowned as Northern Champions at Castle Carr on Sunday. There were several other commendable results on the championship courses; Mike Johnson, Julian Lailey, Peter Knott, Helen Ockenden, Deb Murrell and Jane Anthony were all on the podium. In the Short classes Roy McGregor, Jon Carberry, Martyn Roome, Philip Gager and Sarah Watkins were also in the top three places. Congratulations to them all.

Summer Sprint Series event 4 - Salt Ayre

Results from yesterday's event at Salt Ayre are now available via the Summer Sprints Series page. The league table with two events to go may be viewed here.

SROC cycle ride

Wonderful weather greeted the 13 members of SROC who met at Kirkham on Sunday 9th June. Peter Knott had organised not only the weather but also a great ride, taking in the lanes in the mid Fylde, with coffee at Great Eccleston and lunch at St Michaels. Peter crowned it all off with tea and cakes at his house!

50th Anniversary Challenge and Club Picnic

Details of the special commemorative event being held on 13th July at Whitwell are now on the fixtures list. Entries are limited to 100 and should be made via Fabian4.

Summer Series scores

The scores after three events in the Summer Sprint Series are now available here. Please note that the Halton scores have been recalculated after a discrepancy was pointed out by one of the competitors.

Summer Sprints event three, Worden Park

A perfect summer's evening welcomed sprinters to Worden Park in Leyland yesterday, where they were faced with a different challenge to the earlier urban style sprint events. Results have been added to the SSS page.

MDOC Countryside Score Series

With 60 minute and 90 minute runs available and using enlarged OS maps to navigate on public rights of way, these events offer an alternative form of informal low-cost orienteering suitable for newcomers and experienced navigators alike.  Please bring your friends!

Event three in the Sprint Series

We venture south for the third event of the Summer Sprint Series, to Worden Park in Leyland next Tuesday. This race is predominantly on grassland and woodland terrain so studded shoes are recommended. Details have been posted on the fixture list. Please could anyone who attended the Halton event check their kitbags for a pair of black powerstretch tights which don't belong to them? Their owner believes them to have been left behind at The Centre.

Sprint Series scores

League scores after two events are available here. Any queries to results@sroc.org

Summer Sprint event 2, Halton

Damp conditions for the Prologue did little to reduce the enthusiasm of participants in the second sprint event yesterday evening, held on a new ISSOM map of Halton near Lancaster. Our picture shows that the rain had stopped in time for the Final as we see the orderly queue waiting to start. Several Halton residents took us up on the offer of a free try, and The Centre Coffee Shop opened specially for our benefit. many thanks to The Centre staff for being so accommodating. Results may be viewed via the Summer Sprint Series page.

SROC buff on TV

Brian Jackson writes: "Here is the link to the episode of Helicopter Heroes shown last Monday at 9.15am. Available on the iplayer till 7 June and now doubtlessly to be endlessly repeated on Daytime TV. Apart from a a quick preview in the intro you can skip to minute 36. Hope Karen appreciates the product placement and it generates more sales. I put it on after giving my balaclava and fleece hat to the pilot when we put more clothes on him to keep him warm."

Sprint Series event 2 at halton Tuesday 28th May

Details of the second event in the series have been added to the fixture list.

Summer Sprint Series event 1 Clitheroe Castle

The first event in the summer series was held in Clitheroe last evening. Runners were treated to the new SI Active touch free system, on trial at this event with full back up from Sportident UK. They also enjoyed a sunny evening with challenging courses around the castle grounds and the town centre. For results please visit the summer league page.

SROC social bike ride 2013 – Sunday 9th June

 ‘PETIT le TOUR de FYLDE’

10am start from Kirkham public car park (GR SD 425 322). Enter approach road to Morrison’s supermarket and follow road uphill into the car park. There is no charge.  (Do not park in Morrison’s car park)

This is a social ride, not a race ! We will keep together throughout by the usual method of stopping frequently at junctions to allow all to catch up.

2013 Scout & Guide Champs

This flyer for the Scout & Guide Champs at Beacon Fell has been published today.

Summer Sprint Series

For a series flyer click here
Summer Sprint Series - Event 1 - Clitheroe 
The first event at Clitheroe is going to be slightly different in that we are being asked to trial the new SI Active Card system. This system does not require you to dib into the control box, the dibber is activated when you are within 0.5m of the box. This means we will be using the special boxes and dibbers. As the dibbers will need allocating and time is short at an evening event we are asking that, if you have even the slightest wish to run at Clitheroe [it doesn't matter if you don't then turn up], you complete this survey. You will then simply collect the dibber from registration. NB There will be no additional charge for the use of the system. Please complete the survey also to order your food for Clitheroe, or to enter the rest of the series. Food orders need to be in by Saturday 18th May at the latest.

The Club Name

From time to time this issue raises its head. Opinions are always divided between those wanting to keep tradition and history and those who feel the name presents some problems. Some feel potential members will not think they live in South Ribble and so it is not the club for them to join. Others feel that some councils do not like to think they are supporting another council etc and so will not provide funding.  The Committee have agreed to have a vote at the AGM which would be a simple choice of keep SROC or change to AN Other (one predetermined choice).
This is your chance to make suggestions or to express preferences before the proposal is worded for the AGM.

British Championships successes

SROC members brought home a selection of medals from the British Orienteering Champs this weekend, with several more just outside the top places in their classes. Alice Ball was 1st in W12B, Quentin and Zoe Harding were both 2nd (in M50L and W20E) while Sue Harding (W50L) and Karen Quickfall (W50S) were 3rd. In Sunday's relays the M50 team of Mike Johnson, Andy Quickfall and Quentin Harding were winners and Junior Ad Hoc runners Lawrence Johnson, Annie and Helen Ockenden were second.The Women's Premier team of Zoe and Katrin Harding and Heather Gardner were third. Congratulations to all. Full results are here.

British Orienteering volunteer survey

Have your say on volunteering within orienteering! What do our volunteers need? What would encourage you to volunteer within your club or at events?
“Valuing volunteers and volunteering” is one of the areas the Board wants to focus on in 2013 and, in doing so, has set up the Volunteer Needs Work Group.
Volunteering in orienteering takes many forms, from access and car parking, to welfare and web development. The common feature is that people give up their time and put effort into making sure the sport happens.
We are interested in the attitude and motivations of all volunteers in orienteering so that we can see how British Orienteering can best provide support.
The Volunteer Needs Work Group has put together a questionnaire, accessed via this link , and we would be grateful if you could take a few minutes to complete it please.
The questions look at why you volunteer, what you enjoy and don’t enjoy about volunteering and what improvements could be made.
This information will enable us to provide the most appropriate and effective support to volunteers within orienteering. We would like the questionnaire completing by Wednesday 22nd May if possible please.
If you have any further views about volunteering in orienteering, not covered by the questionnaire, please email info@britishorienteering.org.uk with ‘Volunteering in Orienteering’ as the title.
Many thanks for your assistance with this.
Volunteer Needs Work Group

SROC trip to the O Ringen 2014

Please complete this survey to let the committee know if you are interested in joining a club trip to the O Ringen next year. We need to be thinking about accommodation now.

Nicky Nook level C event

Strong winds and heavy rain did little to reduce the enthusiasm of runners at the Nicky Nook event today. Results are now available here and splits analysis by Winsplits Online and Splitsbrowser plus RouteGadget are all available via the Results index. Check out your ranking points on the BOF website. Lost property: one thumb compass. Please contact results@sroc.org to claim.

Warrior OC Battleaxe League 2013

The usual 60 minute score events. Wednesday evenings. Starts 18.00-19.00. Suitable for all. £5/2. Sport Ident. Best three results to count overall. No dogs allowed. All walls and fences must be crossed at stiles or gates. Please be back by 20.00.
 Check these details before each event for last minute changes.
1/5/13 Bishop Woods, Hawkshead. Parking at GR369941 near Eel House
8/5/13 Black Fell. Parking at Silverthwaite CP  GR340037 or on road near Skelwith Bridge Hotel. 5 min walk to start at 343030 – take care following / crossing main roads – riverbank path is an option.
15/5/13 Brantwood. Parking at Machell Coppice CP  GR310951. 10 min walk to start. Includes new forest terrain at High Man.
22/5/13 Loughrigg Fell from Brathay Hall, Ambleside. DETAILS PROVISIONAL – check www.waroc.org.uk nearer the time. GR365034. BBQ provided by Brathay (there will be a small charge this year). Prizegiving.

Nicky Nook Sunday 28th April

Final Details for the upcoming level C event at Nicky Nook are now available.

British Middle Distance Champs

More excellent results from SROC members in today's Middle Champs, including second places for Zoe and Quentin (pictured left and right above) in their respective classes. Also pictured is Helen Ockenden who finished fifth both days. Full results on the DVO website.

British Sprint Champs

Saturday's sprint contest at Loughborough University saw World Champion Quentin Harding taking 1st place in M50, while Sue Harding took 2nd place in W50, tied with Alison Harding! Full results are on the LEI website The Middle Distance Champs follow today. 

Laurence Johnson Wins at World Schools

Laurence had an outstanding run to win gold in the long distant race at the World School championships in Portugal today (Friday). This comes following a good 10th position in the middle race on Wednesday. Laurence is part of the England junior select team . See results here.

Tuesday Evenings at Williamson Park

As in previous years, training on Tuesdays comes outside during the summer. Meet outside the cafe in the park at 6:30pm for a mixture of physical training, a bit of orienteering and a game of frisbee. Intended to be fun. Donation of £1 for adults towards training expenses.

Junior World Champs selection

Many congratulations to Zoe Harding on her selection for the GBR team at JWOC 2013. See BOF news.

Dalton Crags Spring Series

Results for today's event at Dalton Crags are now available here. Also RouteGadget - share your route here.

JK winner

Congratulations to Karen Quickfall, winner of W50S at the JK and SROC's only individual winner this year.

Calling EUOC alumni

Anyone who has ever been connected with Edinburgh University Orienteering Club should read this letter.

SROC win Gold in Veteran Men (M165) at JK

The SROC team of Andy Quickfall, Martyn Roome and Quentin Harding took a dramatic victory in the Veteran Men Class at the JK in Berkshire on Easter Monday. Andy led them off with an excellent 4th, with Martyn on 2nd leg taking 3rd place on the run in. So it was down to Quentin to catch the leaders, which he duly did at the last control, overtaking Steve Webb of AIRE on the sprint out of that control – and after that Usain Bolt would not have caught him!

It turned out that AIRE had, in fact, been disqualified by their 2nd leg runner mispunching, so Quentin could have taken it easy! SROC retained the trophy in fact, having won it in Scotland last year.

In the picture, Andy had already left, for a date with Harry Potter apparently!

There were several other good results on the day, including the Womens Open team of Zoe and Katrin Harding and Heather Gardner taking a fine 7th place.

JK triumph

The SROC Veterans Men team of Andy Quickfall, Martyn Roome and Quentin Harding were victorious in the JK Relays today. We thank Wendy Carlyle for this photo of Quentin about to cross the finishing line.

JK well under way

Thanks to Pete Davis for these photos of SROC members in action during days 1 and 2  of the JK. Clockwise from top left we see Zoe Harding, Paul Ferguson, Jane Anthony and Sue Harding. Check out the results on the JK website.

Kirkham street-O results

The Kirkham results are now on the web. Many thanks to all those who made it to this event, we had over 50 runners which is very pleasing for the event and the Prize Giving. My impression is that a good time was had by all and it was particularly pleasing to welcome runners from Thornton and Lytham. The results are in three groups. The raw results in black; results using the one off Event Multiplier in blue; results using the Age Multiplier in red. The official result is that Dawn Lock is the winner of the Kirkham event so heartiest congratulations to one of the stalwarts of our Street Leaguing. Once again thank you to all of you have supported the series. We already have several who have volunteered for 2013-14 but still need more if we care to have a complete series so please if you are able to do an event then let me know. - Bob

Street League finale

Many regular street leaguers plus a few first-timers enjoyed the mass start finale to the series at Kirkham yesterday evening. Afterwards league co-ordinator Bob Nash organised the prize giving with SROC founder member Maurice Dean presenting the prizes. Maurice had earlier competed in the event with help from Peter Knott, on wheelchair pushing duty. Pictured are the age-adjusted top five with overall winner Quentin Harding holding the trophy. Full league results and results for the handicapped final event will be published soon. Meanwhile RouteGadget is ready to receive your routes.

British Relay Entries - Act Now

For those taking part in the British Orienteering Championships who would like to be entered in a club relay team, it is now time to make yourself known.

Entries for the BOC relays have a two tier entry fee as follows:
Up to 31/03/13 Seniors £40 per team, £13.33 per person. Juniors Teams £20 per team, £6.67 per person
Up to 20/04/13 Seniors £49 per team, £16.33 per person. Juniors Teams £25 per team, £8.33 per person

The club will subsidise entries by up to £6.33 per person. Expressions of interest received by Quentin by 28/03 will be combined in to teams and entries made with the ‘best fit’. These people will be asked to contribute £7 each for seniors and £1 for juniors. Expressions received after that time but by 18/04 will be combined in to a second entry with a contribution of £10 each or seniors and £2 for juniors.
So if you want to take part in the thrills and spills of relay orienteering e-mail Quentin now!

Street League event 10, Adlington, 13th March

The Adlington event brought to a close another successful Street League season. It was very enjoyable to run on a new area especially on a cold clear night. Many thanks to all those who turned out to enjoy the events and the socialising afterwards. I am especially grateful to the Planners and Organisers without whom there would be no series. However as one series ends thoughts turn to the next one so anyone who is willing run an event in the 2013/14 season please let me know. Now onto the final event, the culmination of our efforts, the prizegiving at Kirkham - See you all there - Bob. Follow these links for results and RouteGadget.

Interland success

SROC's Helen Ockenden and Quentin Harding aided the victorious England team at the international Interland competition over the weekend. Both runners scored well including a 1st and 2nd place each out of the three events. Full results here.

Yvette Baker Trophy NW round

Members of the South Ribble Junior Squad competed for a place in the YBT final at the LOC event at Holker Woodlands yesterday, placing fourth behind LOC, MDOC and WCOC despite some excellent individual performances. There are some photos from the event posted by Steve Davey on Facebook.

Arnside Knott Spring Series

Competitors at today's event at Arnside Knott enjoyed a suitable challenge prepared for them by Mike Johnson. Results may be viewed here and RouteGadget is here.

TWT RouteGadget

With apologies for the delay, we now have RouteGadget for the Tim Watkins Trophy on 3rd March ready to receive your routes.

Night Street League

The latest league tables are now on the web. (Gross and Age adjusted). Please check to make sure I have done the discards correctly. There is still competition in a number of classes. Will Karen catch Quentin in the Age Adjusted if he isn't able to come to Adlington? Who will gain the minor places in the Age Adjusted? Will John Britton make a late charge? Still much to play for at Adlington, not to mention the various challenges happening lower down the tables. PS Don't forget to order your food for Adlington. See you there - Bob

Arnside Knott event Saturday 9th March

Final details for the informal event at Arnside my be viewed here.

Tim Watkins Trophy 2013

Results from the 2013 Tim Watkins Trophy held today on Hutton Roof may be viewed here. More photos can be viewed in the Gallery and more will be added soon. Thanks to Roy McGregor for these. Also Facebook users can view many more photos thanks to Mark Edwards.

Adlington Street O 13th March

Details of the next (10th) event in the street league have been posted on the fixtures list. This is your last chance to gain some points! Food needs to be ordered in advance, see the fixtures page for details, deadline Friday 8th March.

Helmshore results

Congratulations to Steve on such a rapid producing of the results - They were with me in the early hours of Thursday - unfortunately (or fortunately from my point of view) I was asleep so they only went on the web at 8.00 - sorry about that Steve. Unfortunately I wasn't able to make the event which was pleasingly dry again, will this last until the end of the series - I sincerely hope so. I understand that Matt Driver's love of 'Street Leaguing' was tested last night - hopefully he will be fully recovered by Adlington. See you there - Bob

Helmshore & Rawtenstall Street O

Tonight's event saw a welcome new venue to give a new perspective to this hilly area. Share your route on RouteGadget.

Street league scores

Only two events remain in  the current season, before the mass start series finale and prizegiving at Kirkham. There's still chance to improve your score and league position, either at Helmshore & Rawtenstall or  Addlington. Current standings may be viewed as Gross scores or Age-adjusted scores.

Interland selections

Congratulations to Helen Ockenden and Quentin Harding who have been selected to represent England in the annual Interland international competition, to be held on 10th March in The Netherlands. See Orienteering England website.

North West Night League

Latest league scores after three out of six events may be viewed here. The next event is on Saturday 23rd February in Delamere Forest. See the event flyer. Don't forget to pre-enter the Northern Night Champs in Great Tower - see LOC website, closing date 26th February.

Compass Sport Cup at Claife Heights

A somewhat under strength SROC team came in fourth place at the CSC North West heat held today at Claife Heights. Full results are available via this link.

Eccleston results

Results are here. League coordinator's comments: It was pleasing that for the the early starters at least we had another dry run (hope the rain didn't spoil it for the later runners), quite unexpected after the rain during the day - the weather men got it right. However the rain did ensure that the event was certainly muddy - if mud is good for the complexion then after Wednesday many of us must have the most beautiful feet and legs around. Shame about SPOTY but I did find the post box although doing that did make me late. Never mind I did have agood time and enjoyed the pub food and the 'after run' chats. We have some lost property so if anybody wants to lay claim to a pencil with string loop attached, a black buff or a head torch then I have them. Bob Nash

Coaching opportunity

We have planned two days of coaching for our Juniors next week, on Tuesday on Arnside Knott, and Wednesday on Beacon Fell. The sessions will be from 10.00 am until 3.00 pm. If anyone else, of any age or experience, would like to take part they would be very welcome.

Please contact Julian Lailey on telephone 01524 845990 or email kezi1@btinternet.com

Eccleston RouteGadget

Did you visit the gold post box? Share your route on RouteGadget for this event. Results to follow soon.

Eccleston Street League event is on

In case anyone has a little snow were they live, they need have no fear because the street event in Eccleston will go ahead as planned. Conditions there are merely a bit damp, with any earlier snow melting rapidly.

Compass Sport Cup/Trophy

Start times for Sunday's event at Claife Heights have been published here.

Williamson Park Spring Series 1

Today's event in Williamson Park enjoyed a very good turnout despite the cold drizzle. Results are here.

Ramsbottom Street O

The much awaited Ramsbottom event was eventually able to take place. The map was excellent but not sure about the hills! A pleasing number of competitors were able to make what is our most southerly event and a good time was had by all. Many thanks to Pete, Matt and all their helpers for putting the event on and finding such a pleasant hostelry for the post run chats. Bob Nash. For results, click here, RouteGadget here.

Ramsbottom street league event tonight

The organiser has confirmed that tonight's event in Ramsbottom is definitely going ahead, after twice being postponed due to weather conditions. See you there!

Latest Street League tables

With six events gone the street league competition is hotting up. Some high scorers still have only four counting scores out of a possible five, so positions are bound to change over the next few weeks. Follow these links for Gross Scores and Age-adjusted scores. Don't forget the rescheduled Ramsbottom event is on Wednesday 6th February, with the Eccleston event the week after.

Clayton le Woods street league

Pleasingly the weather improved for the  rearranged Clayton event - disappointingly only 28 competitors were able to make it. Hopefully this is just a blip and we will get more of the 'usuals' for the rest of the series. I am very grateful to Dave Hargreaves who, despite no longer being a 'street leaguer', gave of his time to ensure people experienced the demands of the area especially the testing northern bits. Thanks Dave, greatly appreciated. See you all at Ramsbottom next week. Bob Nash. Follow these links for RouteGadget and the results.

JK Relay Entries - Act Now

For those taking part in the JK Orienteering Festival over the Easter weekend who would like to be entered in a club team, it is now time to make yourself known.
Entries for the JK relays have a two tier entry fee as follows:
 Up to 03/02/13 £36 per team, £12 per person
 Up to 10/03/13 £45 per team, £15 per person.
The club will subsidise entries by £6 per person. Expressions of interest received by Quentin before 31/01 will be combined in to teams and entries made with the ‘best fit’. These people will be asked to contribute £6 each. Expressions received after that time but by 07/03/13 will be combined in to a second entry with a contribution of £9 each. Teams from the first wave of entries will not be broken/rearranged with those from the second wave unless all in the teams involved agree.
So if you want take part in the thrills and spills of relay orienteering e-mail Quentin now!

Ramsbottom Street-O further postponed

Conditions in Ramsbottom are, if anything, even worse than last week so the street league event has been further postponed until 6th February.

Proposed Compass Sport Cup Team 2013

The Club Captain has published a proposed team for this year's Compass Sport Cup first round match at Claife Heights on 17th February. Please confirm with him (Mark Edwards) by email or phone (01524 841130) after 6pm if you are happy to run your allocated course. Click on Read more to see the team.

Ramsbottom Street League event postponed

A late pitch inspection has prompted the organisers to postpone Wednesday's event until a week later: Wednesday 23rd January. The snow and ice are judged too dangerous for the event to go ahead tomorrow. Please check back here for updates as we get nearer to next Wednesday.

NWNL event Saturday 19th January

The next event in the North West Night League is MDOC's in Macclesfield Forest this Saturday. See the flyer for details.

Ramsbottom Street O weather warning

Recent snowfall and icy conditions in Ramsbottom mean that there is a chance that the event planned for Wednesday 16th January may have to be postponed. Check back here for an update before travelling.

Tim Watkins Trophy 2013

The long distance, mass start, Tim Watkins Trophy returns on Sunday 3rd March on the newly extended Hutton Roof map. More details via the event web page accessible from the link at the top of the home page, or see the event flyer. Entries are open now on Fabian4.

Club Handicap photos and RouteGadget

Thanks to Brian Jackson and Sarah Roberts for some action photos around the start of the handicap, which have been added to the Gallery. RouteGadget for the event is now ready to receive your routes.

Club social and prize giving

Thanks to Martyn Roome for his photos of the prize giving at Abbeystead today. Pictured above is Quentin Harding celebrating receiving the Overall Men's Trophy. More in the Gallery.

Club Handicap

Wellington Wood did not disappoint and Julian's course setting was testing to the right degree. All competitors had the same last few controls but started at various points around the 30-control course. Handicapping proved accurate with the bulk of the runners finishing within a few minutes of each other. The clear winner however was Finlay Johnson, who received his trophy at the social and prize giving  in Abbeystead Village Hall, along with all the club trophy winners. Results for the event are on-line here. Please note that the mass start time has been corrected so that everyone's total time is about 5 minutes shorter than in the provisional results. The order is of course the same.
Trophy winners:

Annual Club Handicap and prize giving, Saturday 12th January

The annual club handicap competition will this year return to the delightful Wellington Wood, near Dolphinholme (GR 514 547). Registration from 12.00 with a mass start at 12.45 pm. Afterwards, the presentation of club awards and prizes at Abbeystead Village Hall (GR 562 543), with the usual Jacobs Join, raffle and quiz. No charge - just come along for the run and the fun.

North West Fixtures

The latest North West fixture list in PDF format is available to download via the link on the left of the home page. Click on the picture as shown above.

New Year Cracker RouteGadget

RouteGadget is now ready to receive your routes for the event on New Year's Day at Lancaster University.

New Year Cracker!

We hope you all enjoyed today’s New Year Cracker, with over 100 entries and quite a few more people than that it was probably the largest ever. Our thanks go to Dick and Jane Collins for planning such good courses and making life very easy for us as organisers. Also to Chris Roberts and Quentin Harding for help on the day.

A couple of changes to the declared results (rushed a bit because you and we were were getting colder by the minute!) are that James McCann won the M14 category and prize – we will get the prize to him (the originally declared person actually did the Beginners course) and that Alastair Thornton won the M18 prize – I think he will already have eaten his prize by now! Full results here.

The next time you run at the University it may well be the JK Sprints – better commit all those routes to memory! Martyn and Sue Roome