Scouts event at Frenchs Forest
The Bennelong organised Scouts event on Saturday was the most-attended orienteering event in the whole country last week! Quite a gathering and quite an achievement. There were 114 results, mostly newcomers, with another 20-30 Scout leaders and parents at the assembly area.
Thank you to our volunteers: Melissa & Ryan on control placement; Terry on Results, Ryan A on Rego, Rachael & Nick on Coaching.
The event was a success with 100+ juniors and parents introduced to the sport, with many smiling faces passing through the results area. While the event was a success, there were many learnings that would improve subsequent Scouts events, mainly organisational, which I’ve written down and shared with ONSW and interested parties.
The key challenge was not knowing how many people would turn up. The Registration Desk was chaotic, with 56 entries on the day, and over 100 hire sticks to be allocated. We ran out of hire sticks and waterproof maps. We didn’t have enough volunteers to deal with the numbers efficiently or effectively (5 total, 2 on Rego, 2 on Coaching, 1 on Results). I sent the map to the printer on Tuesday, Eventor had 32 entries, I asked for 100 maps which seemed excessive at the time, but I didn’t want to restrict participation. I printed a further 20 at home on the morning of the event with 74 Eventor entries.
Alice Martin, Paul Marsh and Nick Barlow are collaborating on a strategic plan to engage Scouts and will have more to share in the coming months.
Richard Pattison - Bennelong Northside Orienteers Member
