Orienteering

1
Orienteering

• Orienteering is a sport that requires the
  participants to navigate with a map through
  unknown terrain with the purpose of finding
  certain checkpoints marked with an orange and
  white flag.
• Think of a mixture of a scavenger hunt, and a car
  rally on foot through the wilderness.

• The sport involves a large mental element. The
  participants make many decisions every race.
• Foot O is the most popular form of the sport.
• Orienteering is a tremendous aerobic activity.

2
Origins of O

• Orienteering was fully established in Canada
  during the early 70s.
• The annual national championships attract between
  300-500 participants.
• Every province has a provincially funded
  governing body except for P.E.I., and
  Saskatchewan.

• The sport was originally designed for military
  purposes in Sweden.
• The sport is very popular in the whole of Europe,
  especially in the Scandinavian countries of
  Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland.
• Mass events in these countries attract more the
  10,000 participants. Imagine that!!!

3
Equipment What is needed

• Clothing you need to wear something that will
  keep you feeling comfortable throughout the
  activity. A lightweight, stretchy suit that
  allows for maximum movement even when wet is
  ideal.
• Shoes light strong shoes with a non-slip
  gripping are ideal. Cross-training type.
• Map a detailed topographical map is needed so
  you know where to go!! These are provided for
  you at the events

• Compasses there is a wide variety to choose
  from. Orienteers use either a thumb, or
  base-plate compass.
• Control card to prove you have been to each
  point, you will use the punch on the flag
• to leave an
• Impression.

4
Orienteering Controls/Flags

• The orange/white controls are located in the
  middle of the circles on your map.
• Each control has a number or letter code that
  distinguishes them from one another. This will
  tell you whether or not you have found the right
  one!!
• They are usually hanging between 2-5 feet off the
  ground from a tree or on a pole.

• On the
• flag you will
• notice a punch
• that you will
• use to show
• you have
• been to the correct location.
• Smaller versions for school events can be made
  very easily using construction paper.

5
School Applications

• Orienteering is an excellent lifetime
  sport/activity that all students should have the
  opportunity to try.
• Competitive orienteering is all individual, but
  when starting with young children it is a good
  idea to use partners.
• Grades 4-8 great age to begin to introduce the
  sport/activity. Students at this age learn very
  quickly how to start.

• Senior at this age the students are quite
  capable of finishing lengthy courses (5-10KM.) in
  forest terrain. They can also organize their own
  courses.
• Orienteering has obvious P.E./H.E. connections,
  but is also closely tied to Math, Geography,
  Science.

6
How does this all work?

• One of the drawbacks of organizing this type of
  an activity in your schools is the time/leg-work
  the teacher needs to put in.
• Before you start an introductory course you need
  to do the following
• Find a suitable area to Orienteer (inside of
  school, school grounds, city park, mapped areas)

1. Find an accurate Map of the area you would like
   to use.
2. Do some field work to ensure the map is to scale,
   and is accurate.
3. Set out the controls/markers in the area, and
   mark them on your master map.
4. Draw/Copy the appropriate number of maps for your
   students.

7

• Once you have everything in place you need to
  make sure that all of the controls are still in
  the correct places.
• Start!!! The student should go in partners the
  first time, and should be staggered about 2-3
  min. between each group.
• Make sure you time your students so they can
  compare results with each other.

• At the end of the event you need to retrieve all
  the controls, and ensure that the area you are
  using is looking the same as when you got there.

8
Strategy/Technique

• The object of the orienteering is to find each
  control in the correct order in the shortest
  possible time.
• To do this you need to make smart route choices.
• The route you should take is not marked on your
  map. You need to decide where to go!!
• Remember the shortest route is not always the
  fastest.

• Map contact is key. You should always have a
  rough idea of where you are on the map.
• Look out for key features. Keep your eye out for
  certain landmarks such as fences, trails, large
  hills, boulders that will assist you in finding
  the control.
• Dont give up.frustration is inevitable!!