The History Man
Active member
Here's your chance to try a great sport at locations across Sussex this summer.
Orienteering is a competitive sport which involves navigating around a pre-set course with the aid of a specially-drawn map and compass.
It can take you into beautiful countryside that, very often, is not accessible to the public. It's fun, it's healthy and it's relatively inexpensive.
Orienteering is suitable for all ages and all abilities, male or female, as competitions are usually graded by age, gender and/or ability. It's very much a sport for all the family, and children are very welcome. You don't even have to run if you don't want to, but to do well you should be able to. However, the emphasis is more on the navigation than the running, and a good map-reader who can't run that well will do better than a runner who can't read a map!
The local club is Southdowns Orienteers (SO), which has been going since 1976 and now has around 400 members including many families and children. Indeed, we have youngsters who have won national events and represented their country. We have adult internationals as well, while the oldest active participant is (about) 85!
SO is staging six summer events in public parks, the "Sussex Parks Series 2007". These events give those who might want to try the sport the opportunity to come and have a go and be shown what to do and how to navigate.
The events are at Hove Park, Lancing Ring, Horsham Park, Hampden Park (Eastbourne), Goffs Park (Crawley) and Preston Park (Brighton), and are held on Saturday mornings beginning 23rd June. Children or family groups £2, adults £3.50. Jogging clothes and trainers are suitable. Compasses should be available to borrow.
If you fancy having a go, take a look at the SO website at www.southdowns-orienteers.org.uk which has details of all the park events and the many more that we put on throughout the season (which is principally autumn, winter and spring when the undergrowth is at a minimum).
I love orienteering. It helps keep me fit, is something I can still be competitive at as I grow ever older, and has taken me to places I would never have seen otherwise, both within Sussex and beyond. It really is a great sport. Come and try it!
Orienteering is a competitive sport which involves navigating around a pre-set course with the aid of a specially-drawn map and compass.
It can take you into beautiful countryside that, very often, is not accessible to the public. It's fun, it's healthy and it's relatively inexpensive.
Orienteering is suitable for all ages and all abilities, male or female, as competitions are usually graded by age, gender and/or ability. It's very much a sport for all the family, and children are very welcome. You don't even have to run if you don't want to, but to do well you should be able to. However, the emphasis is more on the navigation than the running, and a good map-reader who can't run that well will do better than a runner who can't read a map!
The local club is Southdowns Orienteers (SO), which has been going since 1976 and now has around 400 members including many families and children. Indeed, we have youngsters who have won national events and represented their country. We have adult internationals as well, while the oldest active participant is (about) 85!
SO is staging six summer events in public parks, the "Sussex Parks Series 2007". These events give those who might want to try the sport the opportunity to come and have a go and be shown what to do and how to navigate.
The events are at Hove Park, Lancing Ring, Horsham Park, Hampden Park (Eastbourne), Goffs Park (Crawley) and Preston Park (Brighton), and are held on Saturday mornings beginning 23rd June. Children or family groups £2, adults £3.50. Jogging clothes and trainers are suitable. Compasses should be available to borrow.
If you fancy having a go, take a look at the SO website at www.southdowns-orienteers.org.uk which has details of all the park events and the many more that we put on throughout the season (which is principally autumn, winter and spring when the undergrowth is at a minimum).
I love orienteering. It helps keep me fit, is something I can still be competitive at as I grow ever older, and has taken me to places I would never have seen otherwise, both within Sussex and beyond. It really is a great sport. Come and try it!