Latest ONSW News
Canberra has certainly turned on some fantastic weather for the group of juniors training in Canberra this week. The NSW training squad have been treated to some cool nights but glorious days, and have had the wonderful opportunity to be involved in a variety of training activities, both technical and physical, and have gained tremendous insight from some of our finest orienteers, Rob Walter, Shannon Jones and Lizzie Ingham (yes we'll claim her!!)
Karen Blatchford sends an update of the training the squad have been undertaking supported by international elites.
Orienteering NSW regrets to advise members that Maggie Jones will be stepping down from the Communications Officer role in the near future. Whilst the decision to step down by Maggie has not been an easy one, recently taking on a full-time position plus juggling numerous volunteer roles has made life just too busy to also continue with the part-time Communications role.
Maggie has been in the role for two years and, over this time, has made an outstanding contribution to orienteering. As it was a new position, Maggie has developed the Communications role from scratch. She has been busy writing articles for the website and the Australian Orienteer magazine and has also been instrumental in establishing the weekly E-Bulletin plus Orienteering NSW's Facebook and Twitter presence. Her broad awareness of developments within NSW, across Australia and internationally has given us all a greater insight into what is happening in orienteering. The ONSW Board would like to publicly congratulate Maggie on the outstanding work that she has done. Always cheerful and helpful, Maggie's 'can do' attitude has been greatly appreciated and has been a major part of the growth that orienteering has achieved in recent years.
Orienteering NSW Communications Officer - appointment of replacement
With the resignation of Maggie, there is now an opportunity for another person to join the Orienteering NSW team and help orienteering in NSW continue to develop. The ONSW Board would like to appoint a new part-time Communications Officer. The position is the equivalent of one day (8 hours work) per week with some flexibility in timing and work location. It is a paid position.
Applicants who are keen to write articles and disseminate information to members and newcomers plus further develop Orienteering NSW's social media presence are encouraged to apply.
Whilst Maggie has very generously offered to continue on in the role whilst a replacement is found, ONSW is keen to make an appointment asap. Training and a managed transition with Maggie is available. It is expected that the initial appointment will be made until the end of calendar 2013. After this time, an ongoing role is likely however the precise job description may vary depending upon the development of the Orienteering NSW strategic plan that is happening over the remainder of 2013.
Interested applicants, should please contact the ONSW Promotions Director, Barbara Hill (
The Uringa hosted competition on Sunday 21 April was eventful and not just because there were well over 200 orienteers who turned out on a gloriously sunny morning (following a day of downpours) for round 2 of the MetrO League and round 1 of the Sydney Junior League.
If round 1 at Mitchell Park was physically challenging, then Callan Park provided an altogether different test as experienced runners made basic errors and our good hosts from 2012 club of the year Uringa were beset by technical gremlins.
18 women descended on Belanglo Hut last weekend to improve their skills in orienteering. They came from Dubbo, Orange, Canberra, Sydney and Central Coast. Under the expert guidance of NSW head coach Nick Dent the group participated in a series of training exercises in Belanglo State Forest on Saturday. Sunday morning all took part in a star relay and then drove to Soapy Flat to put their new skills to use thanks to SHOOs local event. The weather was kinder this year with bright sunshine and warm temperatures. This was a great weekend for making new friends, learning new skills and getting some quality practice in the bush with challenging exercises set by Nick.
The weekend was a big hit. One participant said ' I had thought about orienteering for years, and last winter I did some midweek lunchtime courses which I enjoyed. I did not do any over the summer as times clashed with other commitments so I was hesitating about re-starting as I didn't have any confidence and was loathe to ask for help (again). Now I have got the bug to get going again thanks to your weekend help. And having the opportunity to be 'shadowed' as a real event was particularly useful to practice some of the lessons.'
If you missed out this time, watch the calendar in 2014 - the girls will be back!
