2024 Junior Nationals Training Day (Mar 16th, 2024)

December 10, 2023 by John Brady

Field Trip To The Gorge

The week prior to Jr. Nationals, there will be a one-day training designed to help prepare COC kids for US Jr. Nationals the following week.  If you have never raced in a venue other than WIOL, then you will not want to miss this.  The intended audience is:

• Middle School
• JV
• Varsity
• (Elementary are welcome, but all training will be at advanced MS and above, and elementary  must be accompanied by their parent unless specifically cleared with John Brady or Caroline Sandbo prior.

It is expected that all who attend arrive on time (meaning early) and are capable of paying attention and not being a distraction.  Parents are encouraged and welcome to attend and participate alongside their children.  Parents are expected to provide the appropriate level of safety for their own child/children.  There are dangerous elements in this area, as there are in all of orienteering locales, and include hazards such as:

• Cliffs
• Rattle snakes
• Cold / Heat extremes
• Higher potential to become very lost

Logistics:

• Practice will start at exactly 1000.  Exactly.  Do not be late.  Once we start, we will leave from the parking lot and not be back.  Showing up late will require you to figure out where we are in the forest, inserting yourself into a group that has already been given instructions and essentially causing chaos.  Please do not do this, but if you find yourself a little late, I still would rather you cause a bit of chaos and get some training in, more than I would prefer you turn around and go home.  Just know I will give you grief and be prepared to deal with it:)
• Training will not finish at a specific time, but it is expected to last approximately 5 hours.
• Bring a backpack with water and snacks and other items you feel are useful in the outback.  We will have a lunch break.
• There are no bathrooms in the immediate location we are gathering.  The closest bathroom is 1 mile away from our start location.  Ensure you go to the bathroom prior to arriving to the start.  It is advisable to also pack in supplies for such on occasion should it arise once we are in the field and even further away from a restroom.  I will try to bring something “rudimentary” for emergency purposes that we will keep near the parking lot.  This will not be great though:(
• Bring a thumb compass (baseplate acceptable, but not preferable).
• Recommend bringing a control description sleeve, but not required.
• Wear appropriate clothing for the weather.
• No one may leave the training without checking out with the instructor.

The training:

• Expect to be broken up into groups according to skill level and perhaps age.  Instructors will choose the groups and size.
• We will follow a crawl-walk-run mindset.
• Expect to do a few of the following events:
  • Compass training / verification
  • Handrails
  • Contours
  • Simplification
  • Control Circle Clarification
  • Full Course
  • Course Pickup

The location:

NOTE:  You may not enter ANY area other than the area provided by the instructors.  Entering into any area embargoed for the US Jr. Nationals Championships will lead to a disqualification from competition the following week.  Just stick with the instructors and you will be fine.

• The name of this location is called by COC Frenchman Springs.  It is part of the Quincy Lakes Wildlife Area.
• Meeting location: Here.  This will take approximately 2:15 minutes to get here from I-90 / I-5 interchange with normal traffic.
• Bathrooms are located here.  They are on the way to the training.  They are not great, but they are cleaned daily.
• You will need a discovery pass to park in this area.

RSVP:

• In order to attend this training, you must RSVP to cascadeOtraining@gmail.com by March 11th to allow for proper coach support and printing of maps.
• Cost is free to all COC members and their families

More details will be added as they become available.