Twenty-three orienteers from nine NSW clubs took out national titles as the Australian championship carnival started with a hot, fast sprint at CSU Bathurst.
Temperatures nudged 30C at 3pm, and it was still 26 degrees at 9.30pm when the dozens of tired organisers and helpers hit the hay after a tiring Saturday.
Course setter Ross Barr loves to have an ace up his sleeve and today it was starting from inside a building, leading to some puzzled looks when runners emerged into the daylight to find their bearings.
The flat, open nature of the campus ensured many very fast times: Aston Key (Vic) won the NOL junior men's with a kilometre rate of 3m57s, and Peter Hodkinson led a NZ sweep of the senior men by running the 3.9km in 14m41s.
Aston's mum Natasha took out the senior women's elite class in the first of several family doubles on the day.
NSW winners were:
W12A Erika Enderby (NC), W20 Clare Jessup (GO), W21A Clare Murphy (UR), W21AS Kate Alborough (NC), W50A Paula Shingler (BF), W55AS Sandra Stewart (SH), W60A Debbie Davey (WR), W65A Carol Jacobson (GO), W70A Jenny Hawkins (NT), Open Easy Justine Brindley (GO).
M21A Charles Keir (GS), M35AS Mark Brindley (GO), M40A Doug Jay (SH), M45A Jock Davis (BF), M45AS Ian Jessup (GO), M55A Greg Barbour (BF), M55AS Michael Halmy (BN), M60A Mel Cox (BN), M65AS Dennis Sparling (GO), M70A Steve Flick (BN), M75A John le Carpentier (SH), M80A Lloyd Gledhill (GO), MOpenB Willam Thompson (NC).
Sunday is the Middle Distance Champs the first of three events on brand new maps at Hill End.
Click on the blue links for Sprint results, Facebook photos, Routegadget and Winsplits.
