Tilgate ForestSouthdowns Christmas Night-OSat 18 December, 2021

Report

Thanks to everyone that supported last night’s event. We were hoping for 40 entries, so were delighted that we had 54 sign up.

I have been back to Tilgate this afternoon and had a chat with the young guy who lives in the woods and apologised for disturbing him. His English is very poor, but it was clear he found our presence distressing. I’m so sorry that he frightened a number of competitors during the race. The idea of the event was to promote night orienteering, so I do hope it hasn’t put anybody off! Thanks to those who have put their routes into Routegadget; it’s always fascinating to see how people tackle the courses.

I guess I should make a gentle reminder that it really is important that people download after events and adhere to the course closing time. We did become a little worried after the event when people had apparently (and actually) not returned by 8pm

It was tough out in the terrain last night especially with leaf-fall on the paths, so congratulations to everyone that made a decent fist of it. Great that the juniors on Orange all appeared to have had a positive experience. Thanks to those who have put their routes into Routegadget; it’s always fascinating to see how people tackle the courses.

And so to thank all of those who helped out at the event. It would not have been possible to get the event off the ground without the help of my friend Luke Corkill who checked control sites and helped with the hanging and collecting yesterday. It was a significant time investment and was very much appreciated. Thanks to Nick Jarvis, Nick Barrable, Edward Lines and Gary Greenstreet for collecting controls. To Joe Barrett for SI and Neil and Sue Crickmore for staying late after course closing in case a search party was required.

Thanks to Karen Ashworth and Peter Chapman for all their work in achieving permissions for the forest and park. Thanks also to Vince Joyce for controlling the event, and Alexander Lines for checking the control sites, and Karen for her advice and work on the Risk Assessment.

Looking forward to the next Night-O already

Rob.

RouteGadget

Is a web app for sharing and comparing orienteering routes. You can draw your own route or upload a GPS track from your watch. It also allows you to watch an animated replay with a simulated mass start.

Pre event info

Welcome to Sussex for a Regional Night Orienteering Event. Prizes are on offer for the male and female winners of each course. Entries open at RaceSignUp.

Location Info

Nearest town: Crawley

• Postcode: RH105PQ *
• Lat,Lng:51.09603,-0.17875
• Grid Ref:
• Google Map
• Streetmap (OS 50k)
• Bing Map (OS 50k)
• OpenStreetMap

* Postcodes are not very precise in some areas, so don't rely on them for an exact location.

Directions / Parking

Parking is in the main Tilgate Park car park (RH10 5PQ) which is free after 16:00. Enter via Titmus Drive, as other routes are closed at 16:00.

Assembly will be at the Eastern end of the car park, with the Start immediately to the south at the 10m-tall Christmas tree. The finish is also close to the car park, just south of the Smith & Western bar/restaurant.

Public Transport

Nearest bus stop is a 12-minute walk away. Use Google Maps to plan your journey, with Tilgate Park as the destination.

Course Information

• Brown (7k), 23 controls, 160m climb
• Blue (6k), 20 controls, 140m climb
• Green (4.2k), 14 controls, 110m climb
• Orange (2.4k), 10 controls, 55m climb
• Orange (Groups or Junior accompanied by parent/carer) (2.4k), 10 controls, 55m climb

Juniors U16 to carry a mobile phone. All competitors to carry a whistle, and a main and spare torch. Cagoules may be required in the case of bad weather.

Entry Details

All entries are online via RaceSignUp.

Entry fees:

Adults £10

Juniors and young people U26 £5

SO Juniors should use the Helper’s Discount Code.

Chip hire £1, Contactless chip hire £2

Minimum age for unaccompanied juniors M/W14. Juniors on the Orange course may be accompanied by an adult (no additional fee). All juniors M/W16 and below will be required to carry a mobile phone and whistle in case of emergencies.

Registration

In advance online only at RaceSignUp.

Start Times

17.00 - 18.00

Map Details

1:10,000

Terrain Description

Good quality runnable forest.

Dog restrictions

Dogs allowed.

Facilities

The Start/Finish is close to the Smith & Western bar/restaurant which will be open for post-race drinks.

Public toilets at the car park will close between 16:00 and 16:30. Jacob (behind the bar) is happy for us to use the toilets in the Smith & Western. Alternatively, on the way to the event: the K2 Leisure Centre (RH11 9BQ) is 1km away on foot, 3km away by car; Asda 3.4km (RH11 7AH); and Tesco Extra 4.3km (RH10 1GY) all have toilets.

Miscellaneous

Prizes for the M/W winners of each course. There will be no formal prize-giving ceremony, but prizes will be distributed as soon as it is clear who has won each course.

Contacts / Officials

Planner: Robert Lines (SO)

Organiser: Luke Corkill (SPOOK)

Controller: Vince Joyce (SO)