FINAL DETAILS

All Competitors should read the information below prior to participating in the event.

Information was correct at 12.00 on 9th March 2022.

Any further updates before the event will be dated and detailed in the Updates section immediately below.

HALO looks forward to welcoming you all on Sunday and wish you a safe journey to and from the event.

Any changes to the information below after 9th March will be detailed in this section.

March 10th 19.35:  Updated Start Times in the Start Times section.

March 11th 16.50:  A link to the Event Specific Risk Assessment (v2) added to Acknowledgement of Risk section.

British Orienteering guidance to clubs and participants remains in place and the Participant Code of Conduct must be followed for this event.

An event-specific risk assesment has been carried out and is available here.

Safety information related to the risk assessment is provided in the Safety and Terrain sections below and may also be provided at the Starts.

Participants in this orienteering event and those accompanying them to the venue, do so at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety

The location details above are for the entrance to Duncombe Park. From the A170 in Helmsley follow the brown signs for Duncombe Park and Bird of Prey Centre. When turning onto Buckingham Square from A170, keep left and stay on Buckingham Square (green Bird of Prey Centre sign), to the park entrance.

Upon entering the park, follow the 'O' signs to the parking area. Be aware that it is open to the public on the event day and there will be pedestrians and other vehicles on the Park roads. A 20mph speed limit is in place throughout the park, which you are required to observe as a condition of our permission to use the site. At the entrance to the parking and Assembly area follow the directions of the marshals. 

Only cars are permitted in the event parking area. Anyone traveling by coach, minibus, camper van or vehicle of similar size must contact the event Organiser by email in advance to reserve a parking place at an alternative location close to the parking field and Assembly.

N.B. there is no overnight camping/parking available in Duncombe Park either prior to or after the event. The Park closes at 17.00 and all visitors and vehicles must leave the site prior to the gates closing.

This is a closed event and only open to members of the competing clubs.

Competition Courses:

Entries have been made through Club Captains to the Event Entries Coordinator, Neil Harvatt (neilharvatt1@live.com). All entrants must be members of BO and the club for which they are competing.

All Club Captains have a spreadsheet with their runners allocated start times.  We will endeavour to accommodate any last minute emergency changes up to March 6th, but cannot guarantee this.

There will be no entry on the day for any Competition Course.

Non-competition Courses:

White, Yellow and Light Green will be available for entry on the day, subject to map availability. Those wishing to run one of these courses are strongly advised to reserve a map by emailing the event Organiser, advising Name, Club, required course, BO number, SI card No. (or request hire), before midnight on 6th March.

Anyone new to orienteering should make this clear at Registration. If you are intending to bring a school group or similar, please contact the Organiser by the 6th March.

Entry Fees & Payments

Competition Courses: Adults £12; Juniors/Students £6

Clubs will be invoiced for their entries on or before 6th March.

Non-competition Courses: Adults £8; Juniors/Students £4

Fees must be paid, in cash, at Registration on the day in exchange for a Start Voucher which must be presented to the marshals at the Start. Correct money appreciated.

SI Card / SIAC Hire:

If you wish to hire a dibber from HALO, these should be requested during the pre-entry process for those entering the Competition Courses. For non-competition course competitors, they may be hired at Registration.

Hire fees for SI Cards are £1 for adults and 50p for juniors/students, with a £30 fee for a lost SI card.

A limited number of SIACs are available for hire; £3 with a fee of £65 for a lost SIAC.

Assembly will be located in a field that may also be used for car parking, subject to weather and ground conditions.

Registration, Enquiries and Download will be located in a gazebo identified by a HALO flag banner.

Portable toilets will be located on hard standing to the west of the Assembly area.

A First Aid kit and Defibrillator will be available at Enquiries and, if required, information and directions to the nearest A&E facilities.

A large area in the Assembly field will be designated for Club Tents. There is ample space available and Clubs must not erect tents outside this area.

Water will not be provided at the Finish.

The Competition Area borders the north, south and west of the Assembly (and car parking) field. To avoid entering the Competition Area when not running their courses, everyone should stay on the Assembly field (it's approx. 10 Hectares / 25 Acres) and do not stray from the taped routes to the Starts. 

The Finish for all courses will be in the Assembly field.

Shadowing of younger and/or less experienced orienteers is not permitted on CS Competitiion courses.

To be competitive on Competition courses, a person shadowing someone on a Non-Competition course (White, Yellow, Light Green) must complete their Competition course before shadowing someone else.

There will be two Starts, referred to as Near Start and Far Start. The Near Start will be a short walk from Assembly along a taped route. The Far Start is 1.6km (with 50m climb) from the entrance to the Assembly field along a taped route.

Competitors should be clear as to which Start they should use by referring to the Courses section below.

Starts are from 10.30 - 12.30.

Courses (Competition and Non-Competition) will close at 14.30. Collection of Controls will begin at 14.40 prompt and all competitors must ensure that they return to Download by 14.30.

For Competition Courses start times have been allocated to all competitors. If a competitor misses their start time, they will have to wait until there is an appropriate slot available, in accordance with the CS Competition Rules. This may involve a long wait.

There will be a -4 minute call up and entry to the start lanes.

Loose Control Descriptions will be available in the start lanes.

SIAC will be enabled on course Controls, but all competitors must punch the Start and Finish boxes.

SIAC battery tests may be carried out at the Near Start or Registration. There will be no battery test at the Far Start

All courses (Competition and Non-Competition) will Finish in the Assembly field.

All competitors must report to Download immediately after their run or if they retire or do not complete their course.

Competitor Start Times ( as on 10th March ):      by Club        By Course   

Course information is available here. 

It is not practicable to have a String Course at this event, but there will be a Maze on the Assembly field with courses for all ages and abilities! It will be free and managed from Enquiries where competitors can Register, Clear & Check, pickup a map and download. SI cards will be available, if required.

The map has been updated (2022) around the planned courses by Brian Slater (HALO).

Map Scale: Courses 1,2,3 & 4  1:10,000

                 Courses 5, 6, 7, 8A, 8B, 9A, 9B & 10  1:7,500

                 Courses White, Yellow, Light Green  1:7.500

Contours: 5m

Size:  approximately B4 (~257mm x ~364mm) for all Competition & Non-Competition courses.

Control Descriptions are printed on the front of all maps and separately on waterproof paper in the Start Lanes.

Maps are printed on Pretex waterproof and bio-degradable paper which is not recyclable as paper. 

Special Symbols used for this event

On the map: (all black except root stock which is green)

On Control Descriptions:

                                         X   is a concrete base

Maps from previous events

                                              Duncombe Park

                                              Windy Pits

The area is split into two by the River Rye. To the north is Duncombe Park where central fields are surrounded by woodland which drops steeply in the south to the river. The area was used for military training during the Second World War and features various remains, including concrete bases. Most of these are inches above ground. It is runnable woodland but with areas of brambles.

To the south is Windy Pits, so named because of the natural shafts in the limestone which apparently have warm air coming up through them. They are fenced off and competitors should not go near them. There are four deep gorges lined with crags which competitors must not attenpt to cross. Even where no crags are marked, these valleys have steep sides, so please take care if you cross them. The forest varies from runnable deciduous to young conifers with brambles. There are lots of tracks but many do not appear to be used. To the south west is an open area of heather and bracken. To the north east of this open area is an area of cultivated land which is out of bounds and must not be crossed. However, competitors may use the grassed area around the field edge, as indicated on the map.

The fields next to the river are out of bounds (overprinted on the map with purple hashing) apart from one track across them.

The fields in Duncombe Park have fences across and around them which may only be crossed at the marked gates. On the map, these are overprinted with purple crossing point symbols, except on courses where the crossing point is used as a control (White, Yellow and Orange) - see diagram below. In the example shown, competitors go through the gate to use the path. On the Short Green courses, there is a length of fence marked with a purple line - this is to emphasise that there are no crossing points in this area. It does not indicate that other fences may be crossed anywhere. Please ensure that Juniors are aware of the need to use crossing points.

Some controls are close together so you are advised  to check codes. The White course has two controls very close together, and the Yellow and Orange courses each visit just one of these controls.

As the event is taking place, live results will be availble online (details to follow). 

Full results will be published on the HALO website as soon as practicable after the event ( www.halo-orienteering.uk/results/ ).

1. Whistles are mandatory and must be carried by all competitors. If require, assistance should be summoned with periods of 6 short blasts;

2. Full leg cover is manadatory and long sleeved tops are strongly recommended. Ticks are know to be present in this area and may be active at this time of year. Information about ticks is available here;

3. Cagoules/waterproof tops may be mandatory if the weatherconditions are considered to warrant it. If this is necessary, competitors will be advised as early as possible, though this may be as they arrive at the event;

4. The roads in Duncombe Park and the forest tracks in Windy Pits competition areas will be very quiet, though competitors on their courses or on their way to the Starts must be alert to vehicles and members of the public, walking (posibly with dogs), cycling or on horseback. It may be necessary for the Organiser to operate a vehicle on these roads and tracks for safe and efficient management of the event.

5. There are numerous crags, pits and concrete platforms in the competition area which are marked on the map. Some crags are deep and competitors must not attempt to cross them. A small number of pits are brick-lined with vertical sides. They are distinguished on the map by a 'V' in bold type. A small number of deeper pits are fenced off. Some concrete bases are well above the surface of the surrounding terrain and care should be taken if running over these.

6. Competitors must not enter areas marked Out of Bounds on the map indicated by purple hashing. The River Rye is also Out of Bounds and must only be crossed at one of the two bridges marked on the map.

7. Club Captains and competitors should ensure that Club Tents are erected in accordance with manufacturer's instructions and avoid obtrusive guy ropes.

8. Dogs are welcome, but must be kept on leads and under close control at all times. Dogs are not allowed in the Competition Area and should remain within the Assembly field.

There is a procedure which all competitors should follow if they feel that the Rules are not being followed. Any complaint should initially be discussed with the Event Organiser. If the complaint is not resolved satisfactorily then a protest can be lodged with the Controller. The Controller will then, if necessary, convene a Jury in accordance with BO Rules.

Organiser: Ken Hutson (HALO, ken.hutson@gmail.com, 07748 763368)

Planner: Helena Crutchley (HALO)

Controller: Mike Edwards (CLOK)

HALO would like to thank the following people and organisations:

Hon. Jake Duncombe, Helmsley Estate, for granting permission to use Duncombe Park for Assembly, parking and orienteering;

Forestry England for permission to use Windy Pits;

Eborienteers for loaning the area to us and providing support before and during the event;

Yorkshire 4X4 Response for their support on the day;

Brian Slater for updating the map and invaluable support;

........ and finally, to all those from HALO and other YHOA clubs who have volunteered to help and without whom the event would not be possible.