Ultimate Orienteer #3 – Night-O
ULTIMATE ORIENTEER
Saturday, March 11 at Luther Burbank Park (north entrance) in Mercer Island, WA
Meet Director: Amanda Dabbs
Orienteering after dark! The 3rd event in the Ultimate Series is Night-O at Luther Burbank Park on Mercer Island. Get out your headlamps and join us for this fun event.
Parking
Registration/check-in and Finish will be at the north parking area, so that’s where you’ll want to park. There should be plenty of parking in the north lot but if it fills, overflow parking will be in the south parking lot.
Remember to go to Registration/Check-in before you start, even if you park in the south lot.
COURSES
Course designer(s): Kean Williams
Beginner – 0.9 km, 7 controls
Intermediate – 3.0 km, 16 controls
Advanced – 3.6 km, 19 controls
How are courses measured?
Courses are measured as the crow flies, in a direct line from control to control. Unless you have wings, you will travel farther than this distance! Courses are measured in kilometers, so a good rule of thumb is to simply round up to miles to estimate how far you will go. So in a 5 kilometer race, you’ll likely travel up to 5 miles.
COURSE NOTES – FROM THE COURSE DESIGNER KEAN WILLIAMS
Greetings Orienteers!
The Night-O is approaching and will be held at Luther Burbank Park on Mercer Island. It’s time to bring out the headlights or flashlights, check the batteries, and navigate once darkness begins.
On the courses, expect to encounter various surfaces underfoot at this park. There will be street crossings as well on the Intermediate and Advanced courses so be careful crossing the streets. Please be aware of possible runners when entering and leaving the parking areas. Also, I have a few headlights available should anyone be interested in borrowing one.
See you there!
Kean Williams
SCHEDULE
Registration: 6:15-8:15pm
Start: 7:00-8:30pm
Course closure: 9:15pm
Newcomer instruction: 6:30-7:30pm
PRICES
PRE-REGISTRATION PRICES
$17 base price
– subtract $5 for CascadeOC members
– subtract $5 for using your own e-punch
DAY-OF-EVENT REGISTRATION
$20 base price
– subtract $5 for CascadeOC members
– subtract $5 for using your own e-punch
What’s an e-punch?
An e-punch records your race. At each control, you’ll dip the e-punch into an electronic box, which will beep and flash as confirmation. After you finish, you’ll download the e-punch at the download tent and get a receipt that show which controls you visited and how long you took between each; these are your “splits.”
Part of the fun of orienteering is comparing your splits with people who completed the same course, and discussing the routes you took!
SIGN UP
Online pre-registration closes: 9:00 pm, Thursday, March 9
Day-of-event registration is available by cash or check, made payable to Cascade Orienteering Club.
LOCATION
PARKING
Registration/check-in and Finish will be at the north parking area, so that’s where you’ll want to park. There should be plenty of parking in the north lot but if it fills, overflow parking will be in the south parking lot.
Remember to go to Registration/Check-in before you start, even if you park in the south lot.
CARPOOL
Looking for a carpool? Join the Yahoo listserv and share your request to find a ride.
THE MAP
Luther Burbank Park is a long, narrow park with a number of different micro-areas. At the south end is a grassy area, beach distinctive landform sculpture, and parking area. To the west, connected only by trail, is a campus and garden areas. To the north, through the woods, is another parking area and playground, and another open area. And further north is a dog park and yet another open area.
Together, these form a lot of open, grassy areas, but because they are compartmentalized, the park feels bigger than the 1:5,000-scale indicates, and it is feature-rich for city park course design.
Read more on the map pageSAFETY & ETIQUETTE
Return to the Finish
All participants MUST return to the finish and download their e-punch or turn in their punch card.
Even if you have not finished your course, you must still return to the the finish and confirm with event staff that you have returned safely.
Out of Bounds
Some areas may be marked out of bounds. It is imperative to respect these boundaries to maintain our relationships with land managers. Participants MUST NOT go out of bounds. Any participant caught going out of bounds will be disqualified.
Course Closure
All participants MUST return to the finish by course closure time. If a participant does not return by course closure, event volunteers will begin coordinating a search party.
If you need a long time on the course, start as early in the start window as possible, wear a watch, and be prepared to cut your course short to make it back by the course closure time.
Whistle
All participants MUST carry a whistle on the course. Complimentary whistles are available at the start tent (please only take one).
If you are injured on the course and need assistance, blow three long blasts to call for help.
If you hear a call for help, abandon your course to find the person in distress.
Voices
Part of the fun and fairness of orienteering is navigating your own course, so please be polite when you find a checkpoint and don’t holler that you’ve found it.
