Jack of Herts – Whippendell

Sunday 17 November 2024

Whippendell York House , York House School, WD3 4LW

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Nov 14: These are now final details.

Summary

  • Event Centre at York House School off Sarratt Rd, Croxley Green WD3 4LW.  Grid Ref :  TQ064970. What 3 Words  author.chops.jacket
  • 1km walk to start, including minor road – young juniors should be supervised. There will be an unsupervised clothing dump.
  • Starts 10:30 to 12:30, courses close 14:00.
  • A 10km race with approximately 300 competitors is on the same day. The bulk of the runners will pass through the finish (and near the start) between 10:50 and 11:10. Please choose your start time to avoid clashing.
  • White course has 2 taped routes, several paths are indistinct with recent leaf fall.
  • SIAC enabled, with punching start and finish
  • Sorry, no dogs in the event centre
  • The forecast is for cool weather, possibly wet, please come prepared.

Welcome to our Jack of Herts, a regional orienteering event with courses for everybody. This is the first time we have used Whippendell Woods for orienteering since 2015 so it should be new to many.

Location Whippendell Woods
Parking and Event Centre
 York House School, Sarratt Rd, Croxley Green, Rickmansworth WD3 4LW.  Grid Ref :  TQ064970. What 3 Words  author.chops.jacket
Access to the parking will be signed off Sarratt Road.
Public Transport Croxley Metropolitan Line station is 3km from the school. There is no bus that helps significantly.

W1 from Watford Junction train station to Croxley Green (Bateman Road) and then walk 2.4km to York House school.  Unfortunately, the 352 which stops at the school doesn’t run on Sundays
Terrain Deciduous contoured woodland with good path network.
Courses Courses for everybody from beginners of any age to experienced orienteers.

Course Distance / Climb Difficulty
White 1.6 km / 50m 1: Easy – all along paths, control flags whenever you need to decide to turn.
Yellow 2.4 km / 55m 2: Fairly easy – navigate along line features such as paths, walls, streams. Some turns with no control flags.
Orange 2.9 km / 75m 3: Moderate – start cutting across country, some controls a bit away from line features.
Light Green 3.5 km / 85m 4: Harder – a range of navigational skills needed to find controls on any mapped feature.
Short Green 3.7 km / 105m 5: As hard as we can make it on the area.
Green 4.3 km / 120m 5: As hard as we can make it on the area.
Blue 6.4 km /155m 5: As hard as we can make it on the area.
Brown 9.7 k / 240m 5: As hard as we can make it on the area.
Course Notes Full leg-covering is required for Orange and above courses (no shorts or vests).

There is a 10km running race (approx 300 competitors) taking place in the woods on the same day.  Runners are expected close to the start and running through the finish between 10.40 and 11.15am

Recent leaf fall has obscured many paths. The White course has 2 legs which have red and white tapes to make the route clear.
Maps 1:7500 pre-marked maps with 5m contours for all courses on waterproof paper.  This is a new map  created 2024 by Simon Errington. For the old map see Routegadget

Loose control descriptions will be provided in the start lanes.
Starts Start and finish are a 1km walk from the event centre (15 minutes). Follow the taped footpath through the woods and do not walk more than say 2 abreast and take care when passing, the landowner is concerned about damage to path edges. The route crosses a minor no through road, check for traffic. Younger juniors should be accompanied.

Starts will be in blocks:

  • Very early 10:30 – 11:00
  • Early 11:00 – 11:30
  • Middle 11:30 – 12:00
  • Late 12:00 – 12:30

Please try to start within your block so as to reduce queuing. At certain periods, notably very early, helpers will have priority. There will be no starts before 10:30 due to the 10k race. Your start time on the start list is the beginning of your start block.

SIAC will be enabled. Punch the start and finish; other controls will be in dual contactless / punching mode.

Courses close 14:00. Please start in good time to finish by then.
Entry & Fees Entries now open via SIEntries. You can enter up to 12:00 on the day but only online.

Entries up to midnight on Sunday 10th November:

  • BOF members: Seniors £10, Young Adults £7, Juniors £4
  • Non-members: Adults £12, Young Adults £9, Juniors £6
 Entries from Monday 11th November:

  • BOF members: Adults £12, Young Adults £9, Juniors £6
  • Non-members: Adults £14, Young Adults £11, Juniors £8
We are using the British Orienteering definition of Young Adults as 21-25.

If you are running as a pair or group you only need to enter once. You’ll get one timing card. Please give all names in the free text “additional runners” box. If you want extra map(s) so that you don’t have to share they are £1 each.
Punching SIAC (contactless) will be enabled for controls on the course. The start and finish controls will be in punching mode: ensure that you punch the start and finish.

If you need to hire a SIAC (timing chip) the cost is £2.00 and this must be ordered via SIEntries as part of your entry.

Charge for lost SIACs £65.
Results Live information will be available from your smartphone / tablet at https://www.herts-orienteering.club/hh_results/whippendell-17th-november-2024/:

  • List of pre-entered competitors so you can check your entered course, start block and the dibber number you entered with.
  • Live Results and splits updated every few minutes.

Full results will be published to the same page and to Routegadget as soon as possible after the event. We aim to do so on the evening of that day.
Dogs The event centre is a school, so no dogs allowed.
Facilities Toilets at event centre, unsupervised clothing dump in woods.
Safety Orienteering is an adventure sport. You take part at your own risk and are responsible for your own safety. A full risk assessment will be carried out and mitigations put in place.

The area is popular with cyclists, dog walkers and horse riders. Please show them due consideration.

Oak Processionary Moths are present in the area. Please avoid handling them as they can cause skin irritation and asthma.

All competitors are advised to carry a whistle. In the unlikely event of extreme weather on the day, cagoules may be compulsory and you will be informed by car park marshals. Come prepared.

You must go to Download (in Event Centre) even if you don’t finish your course. We need to confirm you’re back safely.

First Aid will be available at the Event Centre.

Competitors travelling alone are advised to leave something of value that they will not forget at Enquiries (e.g. car keys).
Officials
Planner David Heale
Organiser Jacob Sharpe
Controller Helen Marsden (with help from Ian and Susan of that ilk)
The small print

This event is registered with British Orienteering, number 84570.

Orienteering is a great sport for youngsters. If you bring children, please help us to keep to our safeguarding policy and British Orienteering’s photography policy.

Your personal data is used for results and insurance, see our privacy policy.