Thank you all for turning up on another cold and damp “summer” evening. I had my double thickness winter trousers on as Dave Lockwood, Roger Baumeister, Mick Poulter and I peered through our binoculars from our vantage point near the start. Dave was doubtful when I suggested a good few people would get round under the hour. No fewer than 22 of you managed to do just that, proving your fitness and navigational prowess. We watched an impressive tussle as Gavin emerged first from the plantation, pursued hard up through the bracken and boulders by Jon Coe. Jon then pulled past Gavin on the final run-in to win in 48:34 and ease ahead as series leader too. Interesting that the field seemed to reconvene around the fourth control. It seems quite a few people went way off course, not realising that white on the map means trees. No excuse though for international “orienteer” Tim Tett, who admitted afterwards that it might have been an idea to use a compass, (now, where did I put that Pertex Trophy?). I thought the control was reasonably straightforward: drop on a bearing to the highest point of the woodland, reorientate at the rocky scarp, then on a bearing again until the trees thickened. Just after that point there was a sharp drop that landed you straight on the control. If you went to the left or right, the steepened ground offered a handrail for reorientation. I expected the sixth control to be the killer, but it seems most people found this through brute determination. Those who ran round with Kinder held the ace card; from what I hear she simply followed my scent from Saturday and gave people a guided tour. Clever, these dogs. Hope to see you next month. Dave H
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