KNC 3 - Coombe Hole DoverThu 31 Oct
Kent Night Cup
Local level event
Explanation of event levels
Local events are usually low key and in the 'localised' area, ideal for newcomers to try the sport and Training events are non competitive and used for training and coaching, aimed at members of the club, but they can attract people from neighbouring clubs, and are often ideal for newcomers to try the sport. Regional events attract participants from around the local Region, National events are high quality competitions that will attract people from far away, Major events are Major Events such as a British Championships. Virtual events are where there are no physical controls being used. Your presence at a control is registered using an App on your mobile phone, normally the free MapRun App.
Terrain type: Urban & Parkland & Woodland
Results
Organiser Report with additional photos
Report
Orienteering at the Top of the World
Those who missed the Coombe Hole KNC missed a chance to sample a gem. New to orienteering, this is an area split into 3 distinct sections. The central chalk downland commanded excellent views down to Dover and beyond. On one side you had Dover Castle looking elegant and strong too. At the foot of the escarpment was a park and up on the plateau was a soldier housing estate for many Gurkha soldiers. As it was Halloween and Diwali, there was a lot of people out and about socialising, trick or treating, etc. The dew on the grass was thick making 'elephant' track following easy - when you weren't being blown away by the view. Fireworks were kicking off in the lower park by the end of our 60 minutes making it even more special. Well done to Brian Henry and others for getting all the permissions in place and making it happen.
[with thanks to Nick Barrable for the report. Nick being too modest to mention his own result, of course, but being the British Night-O champ and KNC founder amongst many other things, it’s a small addition to his impressive palmares. Read more of Nick’s writings in Compass Sport Magazine https://www.compasssport.co.uk/]
See Results and the Series scores after 3 events. Series scores now include organiser points shown as "O+40".
Overview
This Halloween themed event will cover a unique orienteering area, combining the open runnable chalk downland of Coombe Hole, with the formal Connaught Park and urban night O in the Burgoyne Heights housing estate. All with the majestic Dover Castle lit up at night as the backdrop for your run and with one of the most spectacular starts of the KNC season.
Be prepared for spooky control locations and to celebrate Diwali with your head torches lighting up the hill side.
New venue not previously used for orienteering, by kind permission of The Land Trust, White Cliffs Countryside Partnership and Dover District Council.
Location Info
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Near: Dover Lat,Lng: 51.13342,1.31810
Open an interactive map in: GoogleMap - OpenStreetMap - AppleMaps - BingMap
Directions / Parking
Off road parking will be via the entrance road to Fort Burgoyne off the Dover Road, CT15 5FN. W3W ///stacks.loser.seat Please park where instructed by the parking marshall.
Turn northwards off the A258, slightly further up the hill from Dover Castle.
Public Transport Options
Railway station: Dover Priory 2km, 30min walk or taxi. Unfortunately, there are no buses at that time of the evening.
Pre-event Details
Map / Terrain
1:5,000 scale map with 5m contours. Maps will be printed on two sides of A4 waterproof paper. The two maps show slightly different parts of the area to enable full use of the whole site, but 80% of the maps directly overlap.
Open runnable grassland, formal parks and urban
Course Information
60 minute score suitable for all abilities. 20 controls numbered 90 – 99 on one side of the map and 100 - 109 on the other. Start with either the controls numbered 90 - 99 or 100 – 109. Then turnover to the other set of numbers when you like, but no going back to the ones you started with! 10 points for each control found, -10 points for each full or part minute late back.
For those not wanting to go down to the bottom of the steep slopes, the majority of the controls are on the higher flatter part of the course. There is one road to cross on the course, please cross cautiously and directly at the gates marked in the fence. Running back to the finish down the road is forbidden and out of bounds.
Controls will be SIAC enabled. Separate/loose control descriptions will not be provided.
After your run please Download as normal. Timing printouts will be provided and the results will be available on the website.
If you are able to help collect controls in afterwards, please do volunteer.
Read more about Course lengths and Difficulty here
Entry Details
Pre-entry only via www.racesignup.co.uk
Entering as an Individual (take part on your own)
Seniors (British Orienteering members) £7, Non-members of BO £10.
Juniors & students £4 (BO or non-BO).
Entering a Group (going round together)
1 dibber. Includes a map for each person in the Group:
£12 (British Orienteering members), £15 (non-BO), covers all in the Group
Dibber loan (non SIAC): Free.
Juniors (age 15 or younger) are welcome to take part but must be accompanied by an adult (condition of British Orienteering insurance for Street events)
Registration and Start times
Registration: Pre-entry only via www.racesignup.co.uk by midnight Wed 30th October (day before event).
This will require details for safety purposes
No Registration on the night.
The Start is a short walk from parking. Please aim to be ready by 7:15pm
Mass Start 7.30pm
Facilities
The nearest toilets are at Shell Garage A2 Guston Rd, Guston, Dover CT15 5FA
Apres-O & prizegiving: At the Rock Rose pub, Gordon Rd, Whitfield, Dover CT16. Food (entirely optional) is available for pre-ordering on the day prior to the start. See the menu. Please then pay for your own food on arrival at the pub.
Dog restrictions
Sorry no dogs allowed at this event
Contacts / Officials
Planner / Organiser: Brian Henry 07976600478, email email hidden; JavaScript is required
Nearest A&E Hospital
William Harvey Hospital, Ashford TN24 0L. AED (Defibrillator) located at Connaught park, Dover, CT16 1HB
NHS Urgent care search
Safety Notes
Coombe Hole has steep slopes and care will need to be taken running/walking down the bank or avoided through careful route planning. Trail shoes or studs are advised.
A headtorch is essential plus a small backup/reserve. Carrying a whistle is mandatory (as a casualty, blow six short blasts, wait 1 min, repeat). A cagoule may be required in inclement weather. You will need to look after your car keys yourself (eg carry in zipped pocket or waist strap).
An emergency contact number will be printed on the map. Carrying a mobile phone is strongly recommended and mandatory for newcomers. You can let us know if you are lost or late, and we can contact you if you have not returned.
Miscellaneous
For more information about the area, please refer to the following websites:
https://thelandtrust.org.uk/space/fort-burgoyne/
https://www.whitecliffscountryside.org.uk/visit-us/fort-burgoyne-and-coombe-hole
https://www.dover-kent.co.uk/connaught_park.html
We will have access to the beautifully restored West Wing Battery (of Fort Burgoyne)