Entries are open for Garingal's innovative Goanna 'goat race', which this year wil be held on the fiendish Clay Pan map at Beacon Hill on the northen beaches.
The event is on Sunday May 8, with a mass start at 10am for the 3 moderate courses.
Goat races are a wacky form of line orienteering in which:
* there is a mass start (10am)
* following is allowed (this is usually a no-no)
* you may skip a control (yippee!)
* there are forked controls (you go to 'a' or 'b')
* in the boxed section you visit the controls in any order
This novelty event is the brainchild of GO member and ONSW marketing and communications officer Ian Jessup, who wanted to offer something unusual but still an O challenge in its own right.
There are 3 course lengths (GeckO 3.8km, DraGOn 5.3km and GOanna 7.2km), with the standard varying from moderate to hard depending on where you are on the course.
Have a look at a previous Goanna to see what you are confronted with.
Tactics have to be made up on the run - which control will you skip?, which fork will you take?, and in which order will you do 'the box'? The first two Goannas generated a lot of discussion about strategy, and great enthusiasm for the format. A 'fun' run in its own right.
Entries close midday on Fri May 6. Please note the Very Easy and Easy courses are Enter-on-Day and will have a start window of 10.15-11am.
