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It was another top day out for the Sydney North schools champs at St Ives Showground on Monday.
Around 200 students enjoyed a map walk with a coach, then an age race, then a three-person relay. They had so much fun exploring the bush and track network on a cool but fine winter's day.
Champion primary school was Mona Vale for the first time, while Galston defended their crown as champion high school.
Galston have been wonderful supporters of this day since its inception in 2012 and bring a busload of eager students.
A huge thanks to co-ordinating teacher Peter Annetts, and event organiser Barbara Hill and her team of volunteer helpers.
Our NSW schools champs are on the weekend of Sep 7-8 in the Southern Highlands. Entries close August 28 - click here for details.
Around 80 participants enjoyed a gloriously sunny day at Pyrmont Bay Park as our Sydney CBD lunchtime series welcomed loads of newcomers to urban orienteering.
We had runners from 14 companies and five ONSW clubs take in superb views of the city and harbour. These events are aimed at beginners and we had some rookies clear the 20-control score course in less than the 30 minutes allowed.
Best of these was Richard Banks, who perhaps appropriately works for the RBA, who finished in just over 20 minutes.
The fastest person was young Scotsman Finlay Todd who sped around in 15 minutes. Finlay is out here on a year's uni exchange and ran for Great Britain at JWOC in Denmark last month - with our recent scholar Grace Molloy who starred with a gold medal and two bronze.
Thanks to our helpers: Liz Bulman (pictured), Andrew Wisniewski, Johnny Petersen on SI, Saacha Donaldson and Paula Shingler.
Next week: same spot, different course. Tell your friends who work in the city to come along. See the flyer for details. Barangaroo is full, but weeks 2 and 4 we have plenty of spots free. Pre-entry is preferred (members via Eventor, non-members via email to
Our Newcastle club has a treasure trove of great bush maps and at the weekend added two more as the State League came to the Hunter.
Redgum Ridges (at Freemans Waterhole) on Saturday for the Middle distance had the usual myriad of tiny watercourses that are so prevalent on Newcastle maps, while Stockrington West (also near the M1) on Sunday for the Long featured a lot more green - often big clumps of Gymea lilies.
Colin Bailey ran the Hunter schools champs for many years and gave his rivals a lesson in M55AS with two impressive victories in his first SL outings for 2019.
Clubmate Katherine Dynnon took out W35AS on both days, while Joy Guy won W55AS on Sunday, and we noted rookie Ginaya Dunn - who has come across from MTBO - winning W Open B on both days on her SL debut.
All participants are asked to fill in the very brief Course Setter of the Year surveys for each day.
All results are linked on our SL web page. A big thank you to Newcastle for another lovely weekend.
And a reminder that entries are also open for our next two State League weekends - the ACT champs on August 31-September 1, and the NSW schools champs in the Southern Highlands on September 7-8.
Tim Doman has had a rough introduction to elite mountain bike orienteering with mispunches in his opening two events at the world championships in Denmark.
Our Newcastle rookie - who only took up MTBO last summer - was faring creditably on his international debut in Sunday's Sprint but made a massive noodle en route to #19, ended up at #21 and was then bamboozled. He backtracked to #20, returned to #21 but forgot to go to #19.
The race was in a very complex map of the old city of Viborg. They closed the whole city for this event which offered up cobblestones, alleys, stairs, archways, stone walls and more.
Kiwi and training partner Tim Robertson cost himself a likely medal with a mispunch early in his race to add to the woes of the Oceania touring party.
In Tuesday's intricate Middle race (31 controls), Doman went to nearby #4 a second time instead of #26. We've all been there at some stage!
To his credit, Tim has shown in Denmark that for such a newbie he's by no means outclassed against vastly more experienced rivals.
WA veteran Ricky Thackray loved the Middle: "It was one of the most navigationally challenging Middle distance races I've done.
"There was an extremely dense network of single track throughout the course with the southern part of the map being a mountain bike park before we crossed a paddock into the northern section, also laced with twisty single track although not sanctioned so not as clear as the earlier section.
"Riders on the M21 course were thrown straight into the deep end with a long leg to the first control with several route choice options."
You can follow the action on the event website here and via the Australian team Facebook page here. Wednesday evening AEST is the Long Distance race.
