Mike Nelson BOKTrot 2008 - Final Details

The final details for this year's Mike Nelson BOKTrot regional event are now available on the event details page.

Bristol Long O - Preliminary Flyer

A preliminary flyer for the 'Bristol Long O' on Sunday 26th October 2008 is now available.

Vehicle Management Squad needs your help at the BOKTrot!

Roger Mann writes:
In order to ensure that three road crossings are safe for all competitors, I am looking for volunteers to man these. All helpers get half price entry and can have early or late starts to suit need. Please help to make our premier event safe, by contacting Roger Mann [email] with offers of help.

British Championships - Culbin 20th-21st April

A small group of BOK enthusiasts made the long journey north to this year's Brtish Championships at Culbin on the Moray coast. There were some excellent results on both the Individual and Relay days, with 2 top-three places on each occasion. Jackie Hallett just missed out on adding the British W50 title to her JK and Middle Distance wins, finishing in what must have been a disappointing 2nd place having been 5 minutes ahead of the field until an 8 minute error at the 3rd to last control. But to clinch 2nd place under such circumstances is itself impressive. Clive Hallett finished 3rd on M45L, with Mark Saunders close behind in 8th place, while Alice Bedwell achieved 4th on W45L. Our new 'youngsters' represented BOK well in the M21E class, with Mark Bown and Tim Britton finishing within seconds of each other in 29th and 30th places. The juniors faced equally tough competition, with David and Ben Maliphant 14th and 15th respectively on M16A and M14A; Michael Hallett was 12th on M12A. In the Relays, we only had 4 teams competing, but the M40 Stingrays team of Clive Hallett, Mark Saunders and Ifor Powell secured 2nd place. The BOK Sharks team of Jackie Hallett, Alice Bedwell and Jo Foster, while not managing to retain their W40 title from last year, still achieved a podium place finishing 3rd. (Unfortunately they didn't actually make the podium as they had to leave to catch their flight home).

Mike Nelson - A Brief Resume

Following Chairman Phil Fawkner-Corbett's announcement earlier this year that the Klub's annual showpiece orienteering event will forthwith be known as the Mike Nelson BOK TROT, we are pleased to announce the availability of a brief resume of Mike's contributions to BOK and Orienteering in general. Many thanks to Mark Blackstone for producing the article in time for this year's event, which takes place on Sunday 11th May at Brierley in the Forest of Dean. Thanks also to all who sent Mark information and anecdotes about Mike, whether recently or for the special edition of BOK News that appeared last year.

Sarum Galoppen - Grovely Woods 13th April

A brief sunny interlude in this part of the country gave us favourable conditions for a change. The courses favoured the runners with many path options, but nonetheless it was a pleasant area and an enjoyable event. Kathini and George Logut took 1st place on White and Yellow respectively and Michael Hallett finished 2nd on Orange. Ben and Jack Kelsey excelled themselves on Green and Light Green, finishing 1st and 5th respectively, while Andy Creber fought off the challenge of David and Pete Maliphant to win the Blue.

British Elite Middle Distance & Sprint Championships - 5th-6th April

Yet more snow! While some members took advantage of the BOK & Avon Schools league event on the Mendips, others ventured further afield to the British Elite Middle Distance & Sprint Championships. Whatever the choice, snow was back only 2 weeks after the JK.

In the Middle Distance races at Hopwas Woods, Tamworth on Saturday, Jackie Hallett earned herself yet another W50 win while Clive Hallett finished a very respectable 10th in M21, with Tim Britton 14th. Michael Hallett was 4th in M12, Isla Simmons 6th in W16 and Charles Daniel 8th in M50.

On the Sunday at Warwick University for the Sprint races, Alice Bedwell finished 13th in the Women's B final, closely followed by Jackie Hallett in 17th and Isla Simmons in a very creditable 26th place. On the Men's courses, Mark Bown and Mark Saunders were placed 31st and 41st respectively in the B final and Charles Daniel was 8th in the C final.

JK Roundup

Apologies for a rather belated roundup of notable BOK performances at this year's JK, memorable for both its wintry weather and some excellent BOK results. A full report will appear in the next BOK News, but meanwhile the following are worthy of special mention...

Individual days (overall):
Clive Hallett, 1st M45L; Jackie Hallett, 1st W50L; Anne Donnell, 1st W75
Dave Parkin, 3rd M75L; Jo Foster, 4th W50L; Mark Bown, 6th M21L
Jane Stagg, 6th W35L; Alice Bedwell, 7th W45L; Alison Simmons, 7th W50L
Tony Noott, 7th M70L; Mark Saunders, 8th M45L; David Palmer, 9th M60L
Isla Simmons, 10th W16A

Sprint:
Jackie Hallett, 1st W50; Mark Saunders, 2nd M45; Ifor Powell, 9th M40

Relay:
Men's Short, 4th (BOK Falcons - Mark Bown, Keith Agmen, Ifor Powell)

Annual Klub Dinner and Awards

Sally Thomas writes:
The clock is ticking! Don't forget to reserve your place at the Klub Dinner on Friday 16th May. You'll find details and menu choices (+ enclosed booking form) in the March edition of BOK News. We have a Registered Osteopath, Alex Prince, from MOTI running shop in Bristol as our guest speaker this year. Come and hear some professional advice on all those injuries we orienteers spend hours discussing!

Walcombe - Officials' Comments

Comments from the organiser, controller and planner are now available.

SARUM Galoppen (13th April) - Grid Reference Correction

Sarum Orienteering Club have asked us to point out that the grid reference for their Galoppen event on Sunday 13th April is shown incorrectly in SINS and the BOF Fixture List (prior to correction on 9th April). The correct grid reference of the car parking location is SU005344.

Walcombe - RouteGadget

The map and courses of the Walcombe event have been uploaded to RouteGadget. You can trace your route and compare it with the other competitors.

Walcombe - Splits

Splitsbrowser and WinSplits are now available. RouteGadget to follow.

Walcombe - Provisional Results

Provisional results are now available. Splitsbrowser and WinSplits to follow.

March Committee Meeting Minutes

A summary of the minutes of the committee meeting held on 13th March 2008 is now available.

Facebook Group

David Maliphant writes:
A small number of the Klub's juniors have decided to make a Facebook Group for all BOK members, past and present. You are all invited to join, and although it will be 'maintained' by the Juniors, members of all ages are welcome! As well as being a way to stay in touch with orienteering companions between events, it could be used for posting photos (the best of which will probably end up on the BOK website) and having discussions... or anything else, really!

Grade 3 Controller's Course - 5th July 2008

A SWOA sponsored course for those wishing to become Grade 3 controllers will be held on Saturday 5th July 2008. It will take place at Priddy village hall on the Mendips, with the practical exercise at Stock Hill Forest nearby. [more details]

Items Left at the JK

Items left in the BOK tent on relay day:

• 1 pair of red gaiters
• 1 pair of grey socks
• 1 Wilf's mug - blue

If anyone would like to claim ownership of these items, please contact Jenny or Mark Selley [email].

JOK Chasing Sprint & Harvester Relay 17th-18th May

This year’s JOK Chasing Sprint and Harvester relay events will be held in the Chilterns area on the weekend of 17th-18th May. The JOK Chasing Sprint will be held on the Saturday afternoon in the runnable deciduous woodland of Bloom Wood. This event comprises two short races, with results from the first detemining start times for the chase. The Harvester relay, to be held in typical mixed woodland around Bradenham (just a few miles from the JOK event), is a multi-leg night/day event, commencing late on the Saturday evening and continuing into the early part of Sunday morning. There is a 7-leg A course and a 5-leg B course, with various classes available including a handicap. For the Harvester, please let your club captains (Chris & Helen Kelsey) know if you’d like to enter so that they can co-ordinate the team entries - the closing date is 3rd May. Further details should be available shortly on the TVOC website.

Silk Wood - Comments etc.

Officials' comments, string course results and photos are now available.

JK Relays - Teams

The BOK teams for the Jan Kjellstrom (JK) 2008 relay event on Monday 24th March at Eridge Old Park, Tunbridge Wells, have been announced by Klub Captains Chris & Helen Kelsey.

Silk Wood - RouteGadget

The map and courses of the Silk Wood event have been uploaded to RouteGadget. You can trace your route and compare it with the other competitors. There is some help and a test event if you'd like to practice before drawing today's route.

Silk Wood - Provisional Results

Provisional results (including Splitsbrowser and WinSplits) are now available. RouteGadget and photos to follow.

British Night Championships 2008 - Final Results

The organiser has declared the results "final".

Tyntesfield - Final Results

Colour standard times have been added and the results declared final. Details of the SWOA Colour-coded Award Scheme may be found here on the SWOA website.

Registration next Sunday 16 March

To save time at next Sunday's orienteering event at Silk Wood, Westonbirt, don't forget to complete a BOK Competitor Registration Form, available here or under The Klub on http://www.bristolorienteering.org.uk/ and take it with you.

Cotswold Way Relay - Saturday 28th June

Ashley Cooper writes:
The Cotswold Way Relay runs from Chipping Campden through to Bath Abbey using the waymarked route of the Cotswold Way. The race comprises 10 back-to-back races starting each stage with a mass start at the expected arrival time of the 1st runner from the previous stage. The route is over 90% off-road, taking in many hills, woodlands, fields and tracks, all offering spectacular views of the countryside around. The stages vary in ascent and length, to offer a differing flavour for each runner in the team. There are no marshalls on the route, so route finding is all part of the spirit of the event. BOK usually enters 1 or 2 teams (more would be welcome) and this year the race date is Saturday 28th June. The final details for 2008 haven't been announced yet, but to get an idea of the event, take a look at http://www.cotswoldwayrelay.co.uk/. If you would like to take part, put the date in your diary and let Ashley Cooper know by email, stating any preference for running a particular stage.

Press Coverage - Primary Times

Primary Times, a magazine distributed free in primary, junior, infant and middle schools throughout the former Avon county area, recently featured an article about Avon Schools Orienteering. You can read the article here (PDF, 598kb), or via a link on our publicity page.

Mike Nelson BOKTrot 2008 - Flyer & Entries

The flyer for this year's Mike Nelson BOKTrot regional event is now available on the event details page. Entries may be made from today via Fabian4.

Area Embargo on New Beechenhurst

Howard Thomas writes:
Please note that there is an embargo on the area known as New Beechenhurst in the Forest of Dean, grid ref SO612146, as BOK will be holding a National Event at this location in May 2009.

British Night Championships 2008 - Badge Times and Ranking List Scores

Badge times and ranking list scores have now been published.

Last Date for JK Relay Entries - Friday 7th March

The last date for guaranteed JK relay entries is Friday 7th March. We have 13 teams entered so far and also one late entrant hoping to run. So if you want to enter, please let Chris or Helen Kelsey know now. The fees are now £14 for seniors, £9 for juniors.

British Orienteering Coaching Award Courses

Mendip Outdoor Pursuits [Jim Hayward] is organising two British Orienteering Coaching Award courses in March. A level one course is scheduled for Thursday 20th March at the YMCA Bristol. This is followed by a level two course on Friday 28th March at Lyncombe Lodge. [flyer]

British Night Championships 2008 - More Results & Comments

The results of the string and candle courses are now available, as are the officials' comments. Badge times and ranking list points to follow - hopefully next week.

British Night Championships 2008 - RouteGadget

Due to an error, the course 4 on RouteGadget was in fact course 3. This has now been corrected. Unfortunately, it has been impossible to replace the course within the "British Night championship" event. So a "British Night champs - Course 4" event has been created. The orienteers having run course 4 should use this event. The others should use the original event.

Course 4 RouteGadget
All other courses RouteGadget

Sorry for the inconvenience.

British Night Championships 2008 - Splits

The splits of the British Night Championship have been uploaded to RouteGadget, Winsplit and Splitsbrowser.

British Night Championships 2008 - Provisional Results

Provisional results are now available. Splitsbrowser, WinSplits and RouteGadget to follow - hopefully this evening.

January Committee Meeting Minutes

A summary of the minutes of the committee meeting held on 24th January 2008 is now available.

British Night Championships 2008 - Updated Start List

An updated start list for the British Night Championships at New Beechenhurst on Saturday 23rd February is now available on the event details page. This version of the list was compiled on Wednesday 20th February.

Tyntesfield - WinSplits, Photos

WinSplits and photos are now available. We regret that it has not been possible to upload the results to Splitsbrowser on this occasion. Christophe has decided not to provide RouteGadget for this event as there was little route choice. A further results update is probable, but it will most likely be next week.

Tyntesfield

The Tyntesfield event must have been one of the more remarkable events that our Klub has organised. We had a total number of competitors of circa 410 - this being for a local colour coded event! We were delighted to welcome 78 scouters in this number. The support of the scouts, the new site of Tyntesfield and the magnificent weather on the day all contributed to making the day so successful. The real succes, though, was owed to the Klub volunteers, who kept the whole show on the road - organising the parking, looking after registration, recycling maps galore and those who copied maps up, re-issuing SI cards, managing 'Ask Me' for so many new comers, the First Aid team, manning the computers, the planner, the organiser, the controller, the start team, the results team for not only collating the first runners, but also the secondary runners on the re-issued SI cards. To those that I have forgotten to mention - my apologies - but the Klub's appreciation is passed onto you all. Thank you !

THE MIKE NELSON BOK TROT

It is with great pleasure that I write this announcement to record that our annual showpiece orienteering event will now be known as the Mike Nelson BOK TROT.

We are so endebted to Mike's immense contribution to the orienteering world and particularly to our Klub. The renaming of the BOK TROT in honour of Mike in perpetuity is just so appropriate. The decision was taken at the last committee meeting in January and I would particularly like to thank Tony Noott, David Palmer, Trevor Griffiths and Mark Blackstone for presenting this excellent proposal.

British Night Championships 2008 - Start List

The start list for the British Night Championships at New Beechenhurst on Saturday 23rd February is now available on the event details page. This version of the list was compiled on Friday 15th February; we expect to publish an update on Thursday 21st February.

BOK Event Features on BBC National Radio

The upcoming BOK British Night Championships were featured at length in today's Stuart Maconie Show on BBC Radio 2. You can 'listen again', until 23rd Feb, using the BBC iPlayer. The orienteering chat starts 15 minutes into the programme (you can use the +15 button to get there quickly) with event controller Allan Williams (WCH) and continues for quite a while between tracks.

British Night Championships 2008 - Control Descriptions

Control descriptions for the British Night Championships at New Beechenhurst on Saturday 23rd February are now available on the event details page.

Tyntesfield - Updated Provisional Results

Updated provisional results (revision 1) are now available. Also string course results and officials' comments. Splitsbrowser, WinSplits, RouteGadget and a few photos to follow in the next few days.

British Night Championships 2008 - Final Details

Final details for the British Night Championships at New Beechenhurst on Saturday 23rd February are now available on the event details page.

BOK Competitor Registration Form

For those who haven't made contact yet, please do let me know if you have had any difficulties, however small, with completing and downloading the Bristol Orienteering Klub's Competitor Registration Form, on the BOK website, for the Tyntesfield event last Sunday and I will try and resolve these for you for future BOK events.
Contact me via my personal email listed in the manual BOK membership list or the Help/Contact Us on the website

Tyntesfield - Provisional Results (incomplete)

Provisional results are now available. Due to an unprecedented turnout of runners and the pressure on BOK equipment (notably the Klub dibber collection), the results are currently incomplete. We hope to be able to publish updated results (plus Splitsbrowser, WinSplits and RouteGadget) by Thursday evening. In the meantime, competitors are requested NOT to submit queries about the results.

Website News - Orienteering Video Clips

The website now has a page of orienteering video clips, accessible from the Orienteering page. A broadband connection is recommended for viewing the clips. Following David Maliphant's rallying call in Junior BOK News, I am hopeful that we will soon have our own BOK video. Watch this space!

JK Relays - Entries Are Due Now!

We need your entries for the JK relays by Tuesday 12th February at the latest for the first entry deadline. Entries received after this date (up to the end of February) will be subject to a higher entry fee of £14 for seniors and £9 for juniors. Please e-mail your club captains (Chris and Helen Kelsey) now if you haven't yet entered but want to.

BOK Organiser's Manual

Updated in February 2008, this now links to a new Bristol Orienteering Klub (BOK) Competitor Registration Form (CRF) which appears on the BOK website under 'The Klub'. This replaces all previous CRFs. It should allow most people to complete and download it prior to a BOK event and bring it with them, thus saving time at registration.

BOK Junior Training Sat 9th Feb & Sat 23rd Feb

BOK Junior Training days will take place on Saturday 9th February at Stock Hill (joint with the SW Junior Squad) and Saturday 23rd February in the Forest of Dean (joint with the Welsh Junior Squad). Contact Jackie Hallett for further details.

Lift Share to Devon Galoppen

If you are interested in sharing transport to the Devon Galoppen on Sunday (3rd Feb), please email me - I currently have two places free. The BOK Lift Share Group maintains an email list through which members can arange to share transport to orienteering events. Contact the Group Coordinator (Christophe Mutricy) if you would like to join the list.

JK2008 First Entry Deadline

The first closing date for entries to JK2008 is on Thursday 31st January.

Mountain Bike Orienteering - Sunday 2nd March

Chris Porter has contacted us about a mountain bike orienteering (Trailquest) event he is organising on Sunday 2nd March: "We will be using Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 maps, with punches, and it will be a 3 hour score event. It is based at Hawkesbury Upton parish hall. All profits will be donated to the County Air Ambulance." [more...]

BOK News collection available at Devon Galloppen

BOK News and SINS can be collected at the Devon Galloppen event this Sunday.
Boxes with the enveloped magazines will be available near registration for collection by Klub Members.

Please take your own copies and any of your near neighbours that may not be there. Not only do you get to read them quicker than others, but you also save the Klub significant sums in postage.
If the weather is foul, then please try to keep the remaining copies as dry as possible.

Mark Blackstone HON Editor BOK News.

Overpayments for Compass Sport Cup Qualifier

Due to a further misunderstanding of the fees for the Compass Sport Cup qualifying round at Sallowvallets, BOK senior members have unfortunately overpaid by £2 (in addition to some of you also paying £1 too much due to the initial price change). This second misunderstanding has arisen because of the £2 discount normally given to BOF members. We had earlier been advised that the discount would not apply to this event as all competitors would have to be BOF members to be eligible. However NGOC has since advised us that the advertised £7 fee was intended for non-BOF, non-competitive runners only – so the fee for competitive runners should have been £5. Thank you British Orienteering for making our lives so simple!
To avoid the complications of paying everyone back individually, the BOK Committee has proposed that the surplus funds now held by BOK should be used to subsidise our entries (or possibly a coach) to the Compass Sport Cup Final to be held on October 19th at Sutton Park. If anyone objects to this proposal, please let your club captains know and we will arrange a refund. If anyone has views on whether a coach would be a good idea (assuming it doesn’t break down next time), please also let us know.
We apologise for what’s happened – but perhaps you can now think of it as a little extra incentive to support the club in the final!

JK and British Relays

This year’s Jan Kjellstrom Festival of Orienteering will be held over the Easter weekend (21st-24th March) in the South East region. The format will be as last year, with a Sprint race at the University of Guildford on the Friday, two Individual competition days on Saturday (Leith Hill) and Sunday (Ashdown Forest) followed by a team relay event on the Monday at Eridge Old Park near Tunbridge Wells.

The British Orienteering Championships will be held on 19th-20th April at Culbin Forest on the Moray coast. This excellent area is similar to that used for Day 4 of the Scottish 6 Days, offering technical forested sand dunes. The Individual day on the Saturday is followed by the relay event on the Sunday. Although this is a long way to travel, a number of BOK members have already indicated their intention to go.

Both the JK Relays and British Relays must be entered via your Club Captains. Entry forms need to be submitted to Chris and Helen Kelsey by 8th February for the JK Relays and by 14th March for the British Relays – but the sooner the better. Both of these events are fun and sociable, and are suitable for orienteers of all standards.

One Day in History - Sunday 27th April

Following its inaugural 'Blaise Battleships' event in July 2007 at Blaise Castle (won by David Hunt of BOK), EventHead has announced that its next 'mental racing' event, 'One Day in History', will take place at the same venue on Sunday 27th April 2008. Further details on the EventHead website.

BOK Organiser's Manual

Updated in January 2008, this now links to a new Bristol Orienteering Klub (BOK) Event Flyer proforma which appears on the BOK website under 'The Klub'. If all BOK organisers now use this proforma, we will present a consistent club image.

Compass Sport Cup - Results

BOK is through to the Compass Sport Cup final, scoring 2367 points to secure a winning margin of 36 points over HOC. In the Trophy competition, SWOC beat SBOC by an even closer margin of just 10 points.

Thank you to everyone who turned out to run for the club - we needed strength in numbers and just managed to pull through as a result of your support, so well done to all. We can now look forward to strong competition in the Final, which will be held on Sunday October 19th at Sutton Park in the West Midlands. So please put the date in your diaries now.

A longer report will be in the next BOK News due to be circulated shortly. Full results here.

Another Galoppen Reminder

I've just spoken to someone who said 'See you at the NWO Galoppen at Everleigh on Sunday'. No you won't I said, there isn't going to be one, it's been cancelled. So just in case you're in the same situation, this is a final reminder - don't go to Everleigh next Sunday, the 20th, there's no event there.

CompassSport Cup Qualifying Round - Photos

Photos of this event have been added to the gallery.

Compass Sport Cup - Latest From NGOC

NGOC intend to use the original parking field as in the final details, not forest tracks as suggested yesterday. Cagoules will be compulsory for juniors and may also be for seniors. There will be a clothing transfer from the Start back to Assembly.

There have been so many late entries that most of the EOD surplus maps have already been allocated. If anyone is not intending to run, please let Paul Taunton (NGOC) or the Kelseys know.

Please check the NGOC website for any further updates.

CompassSport Cup Qualifying Round - Start List

The start list for Sunday's event is now available on the event details page. Queries to the Kelseys.

SWOA Galoppen - Scores Updated

Scores for the BOK Galoppen (Cannop Ponds, 25th November) have been published on the SWOA website - follow the 'current season' link in the 'related pages' panel on this page.

Bath Street Score Event - Provisional Results

Provisional results are now available. Also: organiser's comments; map; clue sheet.

Holiday Events 2008 - O-Ringen Update

Jonathan Hurford writes: BOK now have a group of 20 entered for the 2008 Swedish O-Ringen at Dalarna. If anyone else is interested, there is still a little time left to reserve accommodation and arrange entries. Please let me have details by the end of January. [email Jonathan]

Galoppen Reminders

You've probably heard already, but just in case, the NWO Galoppen at Everleigh on January 20th has been cancelled - see their website for details.
But the good news is that NGOC are offering 50p discount on each entry fee for their Galoppen at Knockall's Enclosure on 24th February, if you pre-enter online and then pay on the day. Click here if you want to do it now.

New Running Shop Grand Opening, 12th January

Sarah Herbert, manager of Bristol's 'Up and Running', emailed us as follows:-
'I just wanted to get in touch and introduce myself and the new running store which I manage in Bristol - Up & Running. We are located just off the Downs and are having a Grand Opening on the 12th January, when we're giving away £40 worth of goods with every pair of shoes bought. All your members will also qualify for a standard 10% discount with their membership card. You may have heard of former Olympian Nick Rose - he owns the store with Rick Wallis, another keen local runner and coach. In store we have RAM gait analysis for shoe fitting, as well as offering a wide range of running and orienteering shoes, thermal wear and other clothing and accessories. We are looking to appeal to people of all fitness levels, and encourage them to reach their fitness goals. Please come in and meet our staff at any point, we'd love to get aquainted.'
The 10% discount mentioned will apply for BOK members at all times, not just on the 12th.

Website News - Discounts Available to BOK Members

A new Discounts page, accessible from the Klub page, lists shops and organisations that offer a discount to BOK members. If you are aware of any errors or omissions, please inform the Webmaster.

Holiday Events 2008

Have you made plans for holiday orienteering in 2008? The latest issue of CompassSport magazine contains a three page "Holiday O Guide", which may give you some ideas. Tricia Walker has recently updated her article about the World Master Orienteering Championship (WMOC) on our own Holiday Events 2008 page. If you would like to share your own ideas/plans, please contact the Webmaster [email].

Penpole - Report and Photos

Katy Dyer's report is now available. Photos.

November Committee Meeting Minutes

A summary of the minutes of the committee meeting held on 15th November 2007 is now available.

Press at Penpole

Martin Helfer writes: The Evening Post will be sending a photographer to the Christmas Novelty event at Penpole on 16th December hoping to get some good pictures of primary school children enjoying orienteering. There will (hopefully) be an editorial feature on Orienteering published in the Primary Times to be distributed next February. This publication has a circulation of 72,000 so this is an opportunity for stardom for some of our junior runners.

DVO National Event - Longshaw, 9th Dec

A handful of BOK members competed in this event in what were presumably less than ideal weather conditions. Clive Hallett won his M40L class by an impressive 8 minutes, while Jackie and Michael finished 3rd in W50L and 11th in M12A. David Maliphant was 8th in M16A, only 4 minutes down on the leader; and Pete Maliphant was 14th in M50L, closely followed by Charles Daniel in 18th. Nicola Johnson finished 9th inW18L. Full results here.

Website News - BOK Kit (Tops & Trousers)

Information about how to order BOK kit (tops and trousers) has been added to the website. A link can found on the Klub page.

Cannop Ponds - Final Results

Colour standard times have been added and the results declared final. Details of the SWOA Colour Coded Award Scheme may be found in the November 2007 issue of SINS.

New Chairman for ASO

Jo Foster writes: At the ASO AGM on Thursday 29th November Pete Foster stepped down as Chairman to be replaced by Martin Helfer. Martin has two children at Cotham and a third at Westbury Park, all of who are keen orienteers. He can often be seen helping at Registration at BOK events.

Compass Sport Cup Qualifying Round - 13th Jan 2008

The qualifying round for the 2008 Compass Sport Cup is on Sunday 13th January. It is now confirmed that BOK will compete against DEVON, NGOC and HOC at the NGOC event at Sallowvallets in the Forest of Dean. This event is pre-entry only via your club captains - an entry form is available in the November BOK News and via the Hot Links on this website. Latest information on entry fees is £7 for seniors and £2 for juniors, so please use these fees instead of those on the entry form in BOK News if possible - but don't worry if you haven't, we'll sort it out.
We need as many BOK members as possible to enter the qualifying round to ensure we get through to the final, which will be held on 19th October at Sutton Park, Sutton Coldfield. So please put 13th January in your diaries now and get your entries in as soon as possible but no later than 28th December.

BOK Galoppen - Cannop Ponds 25th Nov

This combined SWOA Galoppen and ASO event saw an encouragingly large turnout on a fine November day, with over 100 runners on the Blue course and over 90 on Green (not so many on Brown though - are we all getting too old?). The planning and organising team of Duncan Innes and Christine Farr provided everyone with an excellent day out in fine runnable terrain, with courses offering good route choice. There were some excellent junior results, in particular from Tom Helfer who was 5th on Blue and Isla Simmons who won Green, ahead of Ralph Eliot in 5th, Alex Russell-Bates in 6th and Ben Maliphant in 8th. George Hurford and Luke Grenfell-Shaw finished 5th and 6th on Light Green; Cameron Davies, Jack Stuckes and Michael Hallett were 2nd, 3rd and 4th respectively on Orange; James Helfer was 3rd on White and Kit Benjamin 4th on Yellow. On Blue and Brown it was the usual candidates in the top BOK places - Pete Maliphant was 2nd on Blue; and Clive Hallett saw off Pete James to win Brown. Full results on this website. Apologies to those juniors missed out of the original report - and we'd welcome any other schools juniors who may wish to join BOK.

Veterans Home International - 17th-18th Nov, Scotland

A belated report on this as information seems to be lacking (or hard to find) on the British Orienteering website - thank you Jackie for providing feedback. BOK had 5 representatives at this 4-nation event, comprising a relay at Faskally near Pitlochry on Saturday and the individual day at Errochty, Calvine on the Sunday. After the first legs of the relays, England were well down - careful navigation was needed not to overshoot controls on the 1:7500 map. But England finished well and most of the BOK members had good runs - Mark Saunders was in the winning Welsh team and Jackie and Clive Hallett were in the 3rd and 4th placed English teams respectively. On the individual day in a very technical and physical area, Clive won M40 and Jackie was 4th in W50 (after a 10 minute error) for England; while Alice Bedwell, Mark Saunders and Trevor Griffiths were 2nd in W40, 3rd in M45 and 8th in M55 respectively for Wales. Although Scotland won the individual day, England capitalised on their lead from the relay day to win overall. The chocolate cafe in Pitlochry was a welcome retreat after a wet and cold event. Full results here.

Go Local This Weekend! (1st/2nd Dec)

There are no major (level 3+) events in the UK this coming weekend, but plenty of local fixtures to keep you busy should you need an excuse to avoid the Christmas shopping crowds. Saturday sees day-time events at Wenallt (South Wales Orienteering Club, SWOC) and Painswick Beacon (North Gloucestershire Orienteering Club, NGOC), followed by a night event at Webbs Wood (North Wiltshire Orienteering Club, NWO). On Sunday there are day-time events at Webbs Wood (again) and King's Cliff (Quantock Orienteering Club, QO).

NGOC's Saturday event at Painswick Beacon is the third round in their Mini League competition and BOK's Duncann Innes, Kelvin Davies and Christine Farr will be hoping to consolidate their positions near the top of the Blue division. This year's NGOC Mini League events boast SI punching and pre-printed maps. The senior entry fee is a bargain £3 for members of SWOA clubs (£4 for non-members). Last month's event at Mallard's Pike attracted an entry of nearly 120 and results and split times were available next day on the NGOC website. Highly recommended.

Cannop Ponds - Comments

Comments from the organiser, controller and planner are now available.

Cannop Ponds - RouteGadget

The map and courses of the Cannop Ponds Galoppen have been uploaded to RouteGadget. You can trace your route and compare it with the other competitors. If you're not familiar with RouteGadget, you can find some help and a test event to practice before drawing today's route.

Cannop Ponds - Provisional Results, Photos

Provisional results (including Splitsbrowser and WinSplits) are now available. Photos.

British Schools Orienteering Championships - Prize Draw

John Lewis writes: Discover Adventure have made the draw for the mountain bike. The winner is George Ronson of Bristol Grammar School (and BOK).

Bristol Orienteering Klub has a new Chairman

Robin Walker writes: It is a pleasure to report that Philip Fawkner-Corbett has agreed to be co-opted onto the committee and to act as BOK Chairman with immediate effect. So now the committee once more has its full complement of Officers - Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and Captain(s) - and the Klub has a new hand on the helm.

Website News - Publicity Page

The website now has a Publicity page, accessed from a link on the Klub page. This page is the responsibility of our new Publicity Officer, Jonathan Hurford [email]. On the page you will find links to a number of publicity documents that Jonathan has recently produced. Members are encouraged to print and distribute the documents to suitable venues and organisations.

Southern Championships (Sun 11th Nov) - Report

Dudley Budden writes:
The Southern Championships 2007 were held at West Woods, near Marlborough last weekend the 11th November 2007. The event was hosted by North Wilts Orienteers which has a link to the full results. The terrain was a mixture of mainly fast runnable terrain, with courses giving opportunity for both direct and some complex route choice.

85 members of BOK attended with 73 competing on championship courses, of these 17 were junior members. Notable winners were, Abigail Jeffery W10 (closely followed by her sister Jessica), David Maliphant M16 (27 seconds ahead of the field), Jackie Hallett W50L, Katy Dyer W55L, Sally Thomas W60L, Anne Donnell W75L, Clive Hallett M40L, Christine King W55S, and Clare Fletcher W65S. One other performance of note was David Palmer 2nd on M60L.

British Night Championships 2008 - Flyer and Entry Form

The flyer and entry form for the British Night Championships at New Beechenhurst on Saturday 23rd February 2008 are now available on the event details page.

November Classic - Sun 7th Nov

The November Classic is one of my favourite events of the year, with the New Forest displaying its best autumn colours and often enjoying good weather. This year's 40th anniversary event at Lucas Castle and Highland Water was no exception, attracting a large entry in perfect weather. The courses were fast and enjoyable, mostly on open heathland, and BOK members took home prizes in several classes. Angharad Jones was 1st on JW2; Clive Hallett 1st on M40L; David Palmer 2nd on M60L; Jackie Hallett 1st on W50L; Katy Dyer 2nd on W55L; and Anne Donnell and Pat Grenfell 1st and 2nd on W75L. Full results here.

British Orienteering Club Conference and EGM - 27 Oct 2007

Robin Walker writes: A report of this day is now available by clicking here

BOK News closing date for articles

Closing date for BOK News in November is Friday. If you have material, let me have it by email asap.

YHA Group Membership

The club currently has Group Membership of the YHA, which offers groups of 5 or more the advantages of member rates for Youth Hostel accommodation. If anyone wishes to make use of this, please contact Chris or Helen Kelsey for further details.

Compass Sport Cup - Survey

Clubs have been asked to comment on the current format of the Compass Sport Cup competition, so if anyone has any views (or is happy with the way it is), please tell Chris or Helen Kelsey (or any member of the committee) by Wednesday 14th November if possible.

Tyntesfield - Flyer

A flyer for the district event at Tyntesfield on Sunday 10th February 2008 is now available.

Christmas Novelty Event, Penpole - Flyer

A flyer for the Christmas novelty event at Penpole on Sunday 16th December is now available.

OMM Report - Lowther Hills 27-28 Oct

I think it's fair to say we got off lightly with the weather. The forecast was for gales and rain on Saturday, but fortunately the worst of it didn't arrive until mid afternoon, so only those out later suffered unduly - for most of the day it was only the higher hills that stayed in the mist and offered little shelter from the wind. The night was wild, with continuous wind and rain; lying there listening to it, I suspect everyone was dreading having to get started on Sunday in those conditions. But again fortune was with us as by 6am the rain had stopped and by 8 am it had turned into a fine sunny day.

The Lowther Hills provided a pleasant change from some of the more physical areas typically used for the OMM, offering excellent runnability on mostly short grass, though with some steep slopes. The midcamp, used for all courses, was unusually close to the start/finish, which enabled plenty of route choice for the Score classes as well as an easy way back for those struggling after the first day. Indeed the Score classes were excellently planned, with a variety of competing options available from the start, plenty of on-the-fly route refinement needed and the all-important temptations for those extra few points. Reports seem to suggest that the B and C classes were quite tough this year, particularly as they took in some fairly high ground in the poor weather on Saturday. In fact there were 45% drop-out rates on A and B, with 30% on C.

A number of BOK members competed across most classes, although unfortunately Ifor Powell wasn't able to defend his Elite title this year. Mark Saunders and John Darby finished an excellent 6th in the A class, having been in 3rd place overnight. Alice and Tom Bedwell were 34th out of 224 starters on B and Chris Johnson and Dave Palmer were 109th out of 289 on C. In the Medium Score class, David Hunt and Chris Kelsey had an excellent second day to finish 5th overall after lying 41st overnight; Charles Daniel and Dave Kingham also had a good second day but could only rise to 32nd after incurring big penalties on Saturday; Pat and Louise Benjamin came in 85th out of 265 starters; and Martin Longhurst and Jonathan Hurford (not fully recovered from a pre-weekend cold) were 90th. On the Short Score, Alan Honey and Vince Grealy finished 14th out of 187 teams; Ashley Cooper and Steve Darling were 38th; and Helen and Ben Kelsey (following in his parents' footsteps in his first OMM) finished a very respectable 86th, despite Helen's shoe falling apart early on Day 1.

After a perfect day's weather on the hills on Sunday, the weather broke again just as most people were leaving the event - the rain was torrential by the time we'd reached the M74 and continued as far south as Kendal. All in all an excellent weekend in a fine area. Many thanks are due to Jen Longbottom and her teams for the usual efficient organisation and to the planners (including our own Andy Creber) for some excellent courses. Full results here.