Claro Junior League 2017/18

Information for schools and competitors

The Claro Junior Orienteering League is run by Claro Orienteering Club.

The aim is to provide participants with the opportunity to learn and develop self confidence, decision making and map reading skills while improving their fitness in a fun, competitive and challenging outdoor sport environment. The League runs from October to May.

Harrogate School Sports Partnership also run an inter schools orienteering competition for school years 4/5/6 in March 2018 details can be found here

Claro Junior League Events. 
There will be 6 events through the year.  All events will be on a Saturday afternoon in urban parks or woodland in or near Harrogate. Events will be open to all, but the league only has categories for children and young people from 8 or younger up to 14 and over. It will use the British Orienteering classes for 2018 ages, so:

• M8 & W8 for those aged 9 or younger in 2018
• M10 & W10 for those aged 10 or 11 in 2018
• M12 & W12 for those aged 12 or 13 in 2018
• M14 & W14 for those aged 14 or 15 in 2018

There will be individual competitions (male and female) for each class and two schools competitions, one for Primary and one for Secondary, for schools covered by the Harrogate Schools Sports Partnership. There will also be a (light-hearted!) open / parent’s competition. Prize giving is expected to be at the 2018 CLARO picnic event.

Registration. 
Between 2pm and 3pm.  Participants complete an entry form and receive a map with the course and an electronic chip to record their times. There will be help available to show newcomers what to do.

Courses
Each event will have four courses, which are colour coded based on the established system used by British Orienteering. In ascending order of difficulty they are:

• White for M8 & W8
• Yellow for M10 & W10
• Orange for M12 & W12
• Long Orange for M14 & W14

Start Times. 
From 2.30pm to 3.30pm.  Participants start at 1 minute intervals. Please note that courses close at 4.30pm and control points will start to be collected from this time so it is important that people start with enough time to complete their course. Inexperienced participants should arrive early so they can take the earlier start slots.

Entries.
All participants enter as individuals, but they are welcome to run with a friend. However, both must register separately and the time for each runner will count, even if they stick together throughout the course.

Cost.
Individual entry on the day to cover costs. This includes the hire of an electronic timing chip (or “dibber”).
Juniors £3,  Adults £4.
(Claro club members get discounted entry £1.50 / £2 – you can join on the day or in advance here)
Individuals can have a second run for £1 (discounted 50p) but only the first run counts for the League.

Equipment.
No specialist equipment is needed for beginners. Wear suitable footwear for running on rough ground and clothing appropriate to being outside whatever the weather – preferably clothes that you don’t mind getting muddy. The electronic timing chips (dibbers) are loaned to participants as part of the entry fee for each event. Please take care to secure these carefully to fingers using the loop as they are small, expensive items and losses will be charged for. Participants on Orange courses may want to use a compass, which can also be borrowed at registration if necessary.

Primary Age Groups.
M8 & W8 will compete on the White course; normally between 1 and 1.5 km. M10 & W10 will compete on the Yellow Course normally between 1.5 and 2.5 km. Both courses will involve straightforward navigation and are designed so that they can be completed without the use of a compass. Children can expect to take between 10 and 40 minutes to complete the White course; between 20 and 40 minutes on the Yellow course. Whilst M8 & W8 is the youngest class, those aged below 8 can take part and count in the league.

Secondary Age Groups.
M12 & W12s will compete on the  Orange course and M12 & W12s and above will compete on the Long Orange course. The Orange course is around 2.5km in length and the Long Orange course is around 3.5km. Both provide a greater navigational challenge. Skilled navigators can risk taking shorter routes away from paths and line features while there will usually be easier, safer but longer routes between controls. Very skilled juniors might complete the course in just over 30 minutes while inexperienced participants can expect to take an hour or more. Inexperienced participants should therefore arrive early so they can take the earlier start slots. A compass, and knowledge of how to use it, is recommended. Youngsters tackling the Orange or Long Orange course with no previous experience of orienteering will find it challenging, and should be prepared to be patient as they develop their skills.

Assistance out on the Course.
Parents, guardians etc are encouraged to accompany beginners on the course. In orienteering this is called “shadowing”. This is different to an adult competing as the adult will have a map but not a timing chip. Anyone shadowing a participant should avoid ‘doing it for them’ with the participant in tow in an attempt to get the participant a fast time. This achieves nothing as the participant gets no sense of achievement and learns very little. Instead, shadowers should stay back and allow the participant to do all the navigation themselves if possible, and only help out where a mistake has been made or the participant asks for help.

Parents’ Competition.
Orienteering is renowned as a family participation sport and other family members are welcome to take part. Adults may run any course on offer, and there will be a parent’s competition which will use a handicap system to allow for degree of course difficulty. Parents should not compete if they have already been around any course shadowing.

Safety.
Seriously lost children are a rarity in orienteering. However, anyone getting disorientated should not wander about aimlessly. Instead, get on to the nearest track or path and remain where you are and you will be found! If you see a control marker not on your course, remain with it and ask another passing competitor for help. Carrying a whistle is recommended. Courses will never cross or use public roads.

Timing.
Each participant is given a hired electronic timing chip (commonly called a “dibber”) at registration (included in entry). This is used to record the time taken and to show that each control point has been visited. The chip is downloaded to a computer back at registration after completion of the course.

Scoring.
Points will be awarded depending on finish position, with the winner in each year category scoring 100, 2nd scoring 99 etc.

League Table.
The league table will be updated after each event. An individual’s best 3 results will count to their overall standing. Prizes will also be awarded to individual class winners. The School Team competitions will be decided by adding a school’s best 4 scores per event from the individual results.

Results.
Results will be published on the Claro website (www.claro-orienteering.org.uk) after each event, along with detailed ’split times’ for each runner showing the time taken to each control. This makes it possible to work out how much time you might have lost through either getting lost or making a bad route choice.

Coaching.
There will always be a CLARO coach on hand at each event to help you if you are a beginner, or would like more help with orienteering techniques.

Enquiries.
More information can be obtained from:

Claro Schools & Development Officer – Jemima Parker. Email jemimap@claro-orienteering.org.uk  or phone (01423) 560896