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My time at the East Midlands Champs (20 March) - by Emma Monkman, Access and Environment Officer

I was left feeling so impressed by my time at the East Midlands Championships on the 20th of March 2022.  As a nemophilist I am very happy among trees, and I wondered if there was an equal term for being amongst Orienteers?!  An Orienphilist perhaps?  I arrived early with Sal Chaffey from Derwent Valley Orienteers, and I witnessed the teams of volunteers setting up the event and the organisation was astonishing.  People arrived, went straight to their area, and got stuck in.  Fantastic!  I spent the day taking photos and videos, chatting with members, and mostly being impressed and inspired by the Orienteering community.

My role is as Access and Environment Officer for British Orienteering.  I hugely enjoy my work and the internal conflict it brings.  I am passionate about the environment to the point of obsession – In terms of rewilding, I’m at the wolves’ end of the argument!  However, I am equally consumed with access to outdoor areas for sport and recreation.  Hence the internal conflict.  Which is why I was so impressed by the East Midlands Championships.  Stanton Moor is an area of historic significance.  The best-known monument on the site is the ‘Nine Ladies Stone Circle’ which attracts many visitors around the times of solar equinox.  The Spring Equinox occurred on the same weekend as the East Midlands Champs and people had gathered to celebrate.  Absolutely no problem for Orienteers, of course.  All runners were briefed before they set off, Sal and her team introduced themselves and explained the event and the site was shared and respected.

It isn’t true to say that we left no trace, a dibber was lost on the course!  Other than that, we left absolutely no trace, and I have photo evidence to prove it which was the purpose of my attendance.  I will be using this event as a case study for future access negotiations.  The event exceeded my, very high, expectations and it obviously had the same effect on the landowner as he has approved the site for the JK Relays in 2024.  An enormous well done to Sal and her team at Derwent Valley Orienteers and a huge thank you to everyone who treated the site with so much respect.  If anyone is anxious about the lost dibber, worry not.  We attended the site two days after the event to do a litter pick and it was found perched on one of the Nine Ladies, which is a poetic note on which to end my report.

Litter pick post event on Stanton Moor (Derwent Valley Orienteers)

Read the full report about East MIdland Championships at Stanton Moor here.

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