Mapping is the one of the most rewarding and enjoyable roles. Not only does it improve your navigation skills, but it can also provide you with a different and new type of orienteering challenge.  

The British Orienteering E-Learning Mapping Courses, Introduction to updating Forest Mapping and Introduction to Sprint and Urban Mapping , developed with the expertise of David Olivant (Nottinghamshire Orienteering Club) and the educational robustness  of Pauline Olivant (Nottinghamshire Orienteering Club) .

Both courses are based around learners having access to either of the two most widely used mapping programs, Open Orienteering Mapper and OCAD.

We strongly advise that you seek an experienced mapper as a mentor to support you through your journey towards being a competent mapper.

Both courses are based on updating an existing map and rather than creating a new map from a previously unmapped area.

Course objectives

• To provide an introduction and basic understanding of the processes involved in how to update and amend an existing Orienteering map.

The course content is designed to only address the course objective rather than attempting to cover the full scope of Mapping. As we recognise that Mapping is a skill that takes much time and practice to hone.

The course should only take around 45- 60 mins to complete and for the whole of May is only £6.00

To access the course and find out more information about our other E-Learning courses, please visit the E-Learning homepage.

Interested in learning about our other E-Learning courses on offer? Visit the E-Learning homepage and access information on all the other resources we provide.

AIRE and CLARO look forward to seeing you all at the British Middle Championships this coming weekend. 

You have entered in greater numbers than we anticipated, but we have adapted to cater for you all as best we can.  Both Danefield and Kilnsey Moor is a lovely places in the Spring sunshine and we really hope the weather is kind so that you can enjoy it at its best.  The technical woodland of Danefield is in sharp contrast to the fast open areas of Kilnsey.  You should enjoy some great orienteering on both days.  Str8 compasses is sponsoring a lot of prizes for the Northern Championships and the British Middles so run well and good luck.

Start times and final details are published, maps are printed and lots of equipment is ready to move.  No controls are out yet, but we have been busy at Kilnsey as you may be able to see from a picture.  There are a variety of crossing points on Kilnsey Moor – many of you will only encounter this one.  There are no stiles to cross at Danefield you’ll be relieved to know.

We will be able to accommodate you all in the parking areas for both events, but as always, it would help if you car shared as much as possible.  The Danefield field has remained in good condition throughout the winter, but as some rain has been forecast over the coming days we will have some tracking available.  Kilnsey has the delight of hard standing in the quarry.  We can’t promise that you will keep your feet dry, but at least cars should not get stuck in the mud as might have happened at some recent events.  We’re hoping that’s true for Danefield.  Definitely true for Kilnsey!

Anyone wanting to carry a club tent to Danefield, could reduce the distance to carry the tent by 800m by using the drop off point suggested in the event details.  It would need to be a rapid drop-off as there are often no parking bays available. They are all quite uneven, and the road is very narrow.  To get back to the parking field it is best to not attempt a 5 point turn but to drive in an anti-clockwise route with LH turns for 2.5k to get back to the parking field.  This should take no morfme than 5 minutes.

Have a great weekend.

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Full details on the British Middle Championships are available via this link. Visit the CLARO website for more details regarding the Northern Championships. Good luck to everyone taking part!

As agreed at the AGM 2023, from 1 May 2024 British Orienteering would like to offer an exclusive part-year Membership to new members.

New members are individuals who have not been members of British Orienteering in any of the previous four calendar years.

Part year membership fees 2024

Seniors – £10

Young adults – £7.50

Juniors – £3.00

Families – £25.00 (all members must be new members and not on the database to take up this offer).

No memberships will be merged with existing memberships.

Please note from 1 January 2025, any “new” members will need to renew their membership for 2025.

Find out more about how to join online today. 

Over the weekend, the final events of the European Orienteering Championships took place in Estonia.

On Saturday, the Middle Final took place where GB had one male and four female athletes in the final and once again all athletes had their ability to fight their way through the dense Estonia forest, east of Rakvere tested. The terrain was tricky and caused many time losses among the runners and heavy rain pouring down during the race did not help the athletes visibility.

After a near flawless race Simona Aebersold (SUI) won her first individual championship winning with a big margin, with Kassiku finishing second- her greatest international result so far and Venla Harju taking third place.

The British team were led home by Grace Molloy who just finished in the top 20 (20th position), followed by Megan Carter-Davies in 39th and Fiona Bunn in 56th place.

In the men’s it was a clean sweep by the Swedish team with Albin Ridefelt taking the win and Anton Johansson in second, and in third place Gustav Bergman finishing 37 seconds behind Ridefelt.

GB Ralph Street was the only individual representing GB in the final and a great race to finish just outside the top 10 in 13th position.

In the B Final GB Sasha Chepelin took the win, followed by Joshua Dudley in 4th place, Ben Mitchell in 7th, Peter Taylor-Bray 38th and Peter Molloy 55th.

In the women’s B Final, GB Rachel Brown was first home in 14th, Jo Shepherd in 17th, Cecilie Andersen in 21st, and Chloe Potter 36th.

The European Orienteering Championships finished with the Forest Relays and after thrilling races in the Middle and Long events, the Forest Relays were no exception. After the heavy rain yesterday, the sun was shining as the forty-one teams lined up for the women’s race. In the men’s there were fifty-two teams and the leading teams were making mistakes. Eventually, the races concluded with the Swedish women taking gold and the Norwegian team winning gold in the men’s race.

The GB Relay team of Grace Molloy, Fiona Bunn, and Megan Carter-Davies finished in 18th position (10th Nation) with the second team finishing in 29th. In the Men’s Relays, the teams came 34th and 36th.

Find out more about this international event here.