orienteering.......oh bugger!

[RAPPLEBY2000]

:***:

HELP

ok i'm in a sticky one here... :-?

next week i have an NVQ assessment (teaching a group) on Orienteering.

i'm ok with basic navigation/map reading etc......but..... :yikes:

i have never ever even been on an orienteering event.


i don't have a problem teaching people basic navigation, or more technical stuff like handrails aiming off etc, but i have no knowledge of "orienteering" as a sport, due to my rather busy schedual on my outdoor-ed course i have had no spare time to try orienteering.


so this is the task:


teach a group (unknown to me) the principals and practicalities of orienteering, including a practical demonstration in the local woods!!

HEEELPP!!!!! :?: i need to learn the sport by monday evening!!! :shock:

as i say it goes towards my NVQ qualification so aaany hints, tips, areas to stear clear of, technical info, web sites, anything, just anything please!

(p.s. i woulden't normally be this desperate but i missed that tutorial lesson due to a job interview.)

 

[sargey]

orienteering? only done it in the military.

lot's of little orange and white three sided flag things. the flags have a clip with a pattern of nine or less spikes making each flag and clip on the course unique.

the participants have a detailed map 1-12,500 scale or better, marked with a cirular route. there are a number of different routes, you send the participants off at timed intervals, they don't know which route the person in front had so no good just following them. they navigate from marker to marker clipping the route card at each flag marker thingy. when they get back you note the time taken and check that the sequence of clip patterns corrsponds to the route they were to do. lots of work for the organiser.

if the group has zero map skills, teach them the basics, and then walk round the course as a group working map to ground as you go. it would probably be worth enlarging a map on a photocopier so you have an A3 version of an A5 map that everyone can see. tape it to a lump of cardboard, and point out things like "that sharp bend in road over there is this bit on the map, bearing, back bearing" and "that footbridge over there is this bit here" and so on.

depending on the size of the group you could get each person to navigate (leading the group) from one flag to the next. or have them do it in pairs.

failing that try a google search. bound to be an association of orienteers out there, with rules, explanations, tutorials or whatever.

good luck.

cheers, and.

ps, how'd you get on with that mountain marathon?

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

as well as the job interview (monday), on the same week we moved house(tuesday) the marathon was due on thursday, by which time, i was concentrating on other things, i bareley scraped together my kit in time but didn't get to the meet up point in time, (7am in kings lynn which involved leaving norwich at 6am with wife and child)
to be fair i am relived to have had the extra couple of days after moving house to settle in a bit.

i have seen the guys since aparently it was very boring, not technical, just up and down hills in pretty much a straight line, only a couple of people actually bothered to run(very tireing), nothing at the start or finish either, no awards, just a pick up by a mini bus... :-? did i really miss much?
not to say i did want to do it, but i know there are better aranged events.

apart from the bown side i did manage to get 2 days gear into a 40 litre bag! (not bad for me!).
i have since used my newly made coke can meths cooker and it works a treat!

oh by the way thanks for the orienteering advice! i am sort of up a well known creak with out a paddle if you get my meaning :shock:

 

[Viking]

Movies about how to use a compass http://www.silva.se/movies/compass/index.htm

How to read a map

 

[chris chris]

post removed

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

:rolmao: :biggthump
chears for the input, i'm back off tomorow(monday) to try my hand at teaching orienteering! :-?

your suggestions really have given me ideas!
i shall tell you how i got on!

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

): ): ): :rolmao:

................ ......... :rolmao: :rolmao:

hey guys i just blagged a ...get this....3 hour orienteering session!

you were meant to do 45 mins to 90 mins, as i was being interviewed on the morning i was not able to get into a group so i was left with a pretty lame guy (who incidentally has failed most of the course) so i was not surprised that he was not taking part.

so join a group and do a 45 min session, or a 3 hour full on tutor session?

hey why not!

i took on the challenge, with pretty limited knowledge, my assecor was impressed that i would try it!


so heres what happened:

we were given the Sandringham estate (Norfolk)as the area to use.

i had a group of 5 "child care" students each looking like they just walked off the street, wearing jeans, office shoes, chewing gum etc.

i set up a couple of tarps to make a "camp " to work from.

did a saftey talk(never miss this one on assessment!!!)

talks on:
clothing, kit, food, maps, compasses(and types), setting a map,
pacing, handlebars, attack points, aiming off, contours,

also a:
follow the leader string course through a patch of scrub
a couple of ice breakers.
two 5 min fag breaks
a home made plastic cup collecting game.
and a full on orienteering course involving 10 controls(kites)

oh and i'd jollied it up by doing some cartoons on a A2 paper pad with diagrams.

plus a bag of jelly babies and toffees(always works!!)

i'm sure i haven't got top marks but, i have walked away thinking:
"wow i just taught a session i don't know much about for 3 hours!"

a winning result however i look at it!

 

[Adi007]

Nice one! Well done! :-D

 

[Ed]

Well done mate When do you find out if you passed?

Ed

 

[RAPPLEBY2000]

not really a fail or pass thing,

my NVQ requires:

3 sessions (1) canoe/kayak (2)team building(3) orienteering.

there are about 60 criteria for each e.g

did i say hello?
did i mention health and safety?
did i follow a plan?
did i answer questions?
did i ask questions?


at the end of each you get a tick or cross, combine the three sessions and you should have a total of 2 ticks in each box to pass.

we have another week to pad out bad areas a fortnight from now, by doing mini sessions just covering the bad areas..

yeah, i know...that probably didn't mean a thing to you, i can barely keep up with the idea myself!

doing summer mountain leader next week!
the padding week..
then Single pitch training.

that's about it for my course! :-D
i am confident in my pass rate being good!