Marden's HillThu 30 Nov
Kent Night Cup: 7
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: Heathland
Results
Report
A cool crisp November evening saw 32 orienteers take part in our first night time event at Marden's Hill. The car parking dictated the choice of Start and Finish locations. This necessitated a 10 minute walk to the start, so we could start at the top of the hill, and give people a better chance to explore the whole area.
Everybody enjoys earning bonuses from the dumbells, and so there was a lot of choices to be made, with controls themselves scoring higher than the bonuses. It was pleasing to see six different first controls. The key to the puzzle, and clearing all the dumbells, was probably to go for control 92 first, which nobody did. That control was right by the finish, so most people left that one until last. Three experienced people did spot the significance of control 92 straightaway, and used the alternative of starting with control 97, although that probably created less of a good homeward bound finish. To prove that self satisfaction is important, another person imaginatively chose to just do complete dumbells.
The swift heeled Southdowns Orienteers contingent took four of the first six places, pushing the regular KNC attendees down the pecking order. Most people seemed satisfied with their evening, and there was a good buzz in the pub afterwards, as route choices were dissected, and retrospectively improved upon.
Thanks are due to the Conservators of Ashdown Forest for allowing us to use the area, and Richard Field for dealing with the access arrangements, and providing his local expertise to recommend some of the control locations. Our resident SI expert had coded up the formula for the bonuses, and the printout at download immediately showed people their correct tally. It was also very helpful to have eight keen volunteers to do the control collecting afterwards.
JC
Overview
Round 7 of the Kent Night Cup for 2023/4 - night-time orienteering through a mixture of heathland and woods in a charming area of Ashdown Forest.
Location Info
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Near: Crowborough Lat,Lng: 51.06407,0.14583 OS Grid Ref: TQ498322 What3Words: ///unloading.rejoiced.handbags
Open an interactive map in: GoogleMap - OpenStreetMap - AppleMaps - BingMap
Directions / Parking
Meeting point and car parking is at St John’s Car Park, St John's Rd, Crowborough, TN6 1SA Cost for parking is £2.50 for up to 2 hours. Pay by App on any of the following smartphone apps: Horizon Spaces; RingGo; Just Park; Pay By Phone; Your Parking Space. Location Code is 661122.
There is some (free of charge) on-road parking available on St John’s Road itself, and also on the adjoining School Lane. Please park considerately.
From the main A26 cross-roads in the centre of Crowborough, follow the signs to the Horder Centre (hospital), along London Road (briefly), immediately left onto St John’s Road for 0.7miles, and the Ashdown Forest car park is on the left just before The Horder Centre.
Public Transport Options
Railway station: Crowborough 2.5 miles.
Buses from Tunbridge Wells & Brighton do stop in the middle of Crowborough on the A26 near the aforementioned crossroads and The Crowborough Cross pub (0.7miles away).
Pre-event Details
Map / Terrain
1:7,500 scale map with 5m contours. Maps will be printed on A4 waterproof paper.
This area of Ashdown Forest is a mixture of heathland and woods, with a stream dividing the two main slopes, and there are some areas of marsh. The bracken and areas of gorse can generally be avoided.
The main stream bisects the middle of the mapped area. Be prepared to get wet feet, as the only advisable crossing point has an irregular set of stepping stones, although the water is relatively shallow at this point.
To reach the top of the slopes either side of the main stream involves a 75+ metre climb on either side. Thus returning to the finish will involve some climb, so please calculate that in when deciding upon your route choice.
Course Information
60 minute score suitable for all abilities.
20 controls numbered 90 – 109. 10 points per control.
Paired Controls (aka Dumbells) Bonus points: Controls 90 & 100 are paired together, as are controls 91 & 101, 92 & 102, 93 & 103 etc etc. Visiting both controls in the pair together in either sequence (without any other controls in between), will earn a bonus of 5 (FIVE) points per pair. Paired controls will be shown on the map joined by a line.
So that’s 50 Bonus points to be had, in addition to the regular 200 points, thereby a maximum of 250 points in total.
10 points penalty per minute/part minute beyond 60 minutes. Controls will be collected 70 minutes after the last start (course closing time).
Controls will be SIAC enabled. Separate/loose control descriptions will not be provided.
After your run please Download as normal (back in the St John’s Road car park). 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. The more helpers that we have for this task, the quicker it gets done, and the quicker the prizes get given out in the pub afterwards.
Read more about Course lengths and Difficulty here
Entry Details
Pre-entry only via www.racesignup.co.uk
Seniors (British Orienteering members) £5, Non-members of BO £8.
Juniors & students £3 (BO or non-BO).
Group: £10 (1 dibber; map for each participant) (BO or non-BO).
Dibber loan (non SIAC): Free.
Registration and Start times
Registration: Pre-entry only via www.racesignup.co.uk by midnight Wednesday 29 November (day before event).
This will require details for safety purposes
No Registration on the night.
The Start will be a short 5 minute walk from the car park – please be assembled by 7:20pm.
Mass Start 7:30pm
Facilities
There are NO toilet facilities on site. See next section for two possible toilet locations.
Apres-O & prizegiving: At The Crowborough Cross Pub, Beacon Road, Crowborough, TN6 1AF.
It’s a Wetherspoon pub, so it’s the usual sit-down and order on the Wetherspoon App arrangement from their usual menu. It seems the best place to park for free in Crowborough town centre is behind the Waitrose Supermarket, off Croft Road, Crowborough, TN6 1DL.
Dog restrictions
Well-behaved dogs on a lead, due to the road and stream crossings.
Contacts / Officials
Planner / Organiser: John Cross – 07594 441089 email johncross502502”at”btinternet.com.
Nearest A&E Hospital
Tunbridge Wells Hospital, Pembury, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN2 4QJ. 01892 823535
NHS Urgent care search
Safety Notes
Some sort of torch is essential, plus a small backup/reserve. We recommend a head-torch with at least 600 lumens for KNC forest events. 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
This event is taking place by kind permission of the Conservators of Ashdown Forest. Ashdown Forest itself is famous as the landscape that inspired one of the world’s best loved children’s stories, the adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh.