Key Orienteering Terms for Landowners

Key Orienteering Terms

Coloured course names – Organisers may refer to the courses by colour. This indicates the difficulty and length of the course. Coloured courses aid participants to choose a course suited to their experience level.

Control – The checkpoints that participants navigate between are called controls. During events, these are marked with a white and orange flag (see an example below).

Dibber– A dibber is a small piece of equipment worn on the finger. When reaching a control, participants ‘punch’ the electronic box by inserting the dibber to record their visit.

Electronic control box – A small device placed at each control that allows participants to register their visit electronically.

Event assembly – The central hub of an orienteering event, where participants register and access facilities such as toilets.

Line Course – Participants navigate the course in a specific order shown on the map. These courses are usually timed, with participants placed based on the time taken to complete the course by reaching all the controls in the correct order.

Marshal – A volunteer stationed at key points (e.g at road crossings or out-of-bounds areas) to ensure safety and compliance.

Orienteering map – A specialised map, which is highly detailed showing specific features such as water, forest density and buildings. On an orienteering map, areas can be highlighted as out of bounds and prohibited to enter.

Permanent orienteering course – A course that remains in place permanently, typically marked by wooden posts with coloured plaques. These plaques are shown on a map, which can be accessed online or at a designated location such as an information centre.

Score course – Participants can navigate the controls in any order and earn points for each one visited. A score course will have a time limit, with points deducted for exceeding it.

Virtual (GPS) Orienteering Course – Often referred to as Maprun. These courses are digital and accessed via a mobile device or tablet. Relying on GPS data to confirm location, they do not need permanent infrastructure. Maps are available to download via the free Maprun app direct to a device, or paper-based versions for use with the app via Go Orienteering and Club websites.