But in 2019 numbers bounced back. The total is up 50%, to levels that were rarely seen before 2015, and then only when we ran something big like a national championship. We have always had to look past these occasional biggies as they create unusual fluctuations.
The figures are broken out as usual into 4 types of events. Traditional orienteering (where a range of course lengths and difficulties can be offered) attracted 637 starts to 5 events. Park/Street/Trail events with limited courses (such as summer afterwork and winter score events) attracted 351 starts to 8 events. This was once higher when we were struggling a bit as they are easy to plan; so it's a sign of success. But the afterwork events seem to have lost their zing and focus on spectacle since we pioneered O-Max.
The monthly 3hr rogaines and the all-day Big Trig counted 1284 rogaine participations -- precisely double last year! In fact from April thru August each rogaine was a record. Part of this may be due to the 90-minute half-size option, but these events continue to attract new participants from outside the orienteering community. And new course planners too. Perhaps the weeknight timing helps, though we still do an all-day event to remind rogainers what the R and the E of ROGAINE stand for! MTBO was the only category which dropped, and that can be put down to the lack of an Ak Attack - there were in fact more events. Apart from a couple of clubs which run bike-optional rogaines, we're doing more MTBO than most clubs, but we don't have a coordinator to push things along.
A total of 28 events. That's fairly normal, but pleasingly there were increased numbers per event, without this being bolstered by any unusual major event. Not counted in these stats are training and DIY events which have no results. There has been a U-Max on almost every Sunday where there hasn't been a "proper" HV or Wgtn event, and we did 7 of these. They are in fact our training platform. And members ran at least 15 secondary-school training sessions
We were at death's door 22 years ago. We've survived by adjusting the programme to suit our planners - simple no-frills events, many of them score courses which are easy to plan, and maps that are close to home. Our near neighbour Wellington OC runs a similar number of events. 50+ events a year means you can get your mapsport fix every week. And that doesn't count the other events in our region, other parts of New Zealand, and for some the other side of the world!
Here are the stats alongside previous years. And below is a list of the key volunteers who made this possible. There are nearly 30, plus probably another 30 who helped with on-the-day jobs. Thanks heaps!
| Year | Traditional Events | Park/Street/Trail Events | Rogaines | MTB-Orienteering | Total | Events | Av Particip |
| 2019 | 637 (26%) | 351 (14%) | 1284 (51%) | 225 (9%) | 2497 (100%) | 28 | 89 |
| 2018 | 413 (26%) | 161 (10%) | 642 (40%) | 390 (24%) | 1606 (100%) | 25 | 64 |
| 2017 | 508 (17%) | 364 (12%) | 1862 (64%) | 192 (7%) | 2926 (100%) | 26 | 113 |
| 2016 | 830 (27%) | 229 (7%) | 1788 (58%) | 257 (8%) | 3104 (100%) | 28 | 111 |
| 2015 | 385 (13%) | 502 (17%) | 1813 (60%) | 258 (9%) | 3018 (100%) | 34 | 89 |
| 2014 | 545 (22%) | 424 (17%) | 1289 (52%) | 216 (9%) | 2474 (100%) | 30 | 82 |
| 2013 | 488 (23%) | 302 (14%) | 995 (47%) | 320 (15%) | 2105 (100%) | 29 | 73 |
| 2012 | 524 (23%) | 301 (13%) | 1206 (52%) | 272 (12%) | 2303 (100%) | 34 | 68 |
| 2011 | 293 (12%) | 467 (18%) | 1249 (49%) | 518 (21%) | 2527 (100%) | 31 | 82 |
| 2010 | 265 (8%) | 270 (8%) | 2515 (73%) | 379 (11%) | 3429 (100%) | 27 | 127 |
| 2009 | 384 (17%) | 126 (5%) | 1433 (61%) | 384 (17%) | 2327 (100%) | 32 | 73 |
| 2008 | 276 (13%) | 196 (9%) | 1257 (60%) | 373 (18%) | 2102 (100%) | 27 | 78 |
| 2007 | 263 (12%) | 414 (20%) | 1005 (48%) | 349 (20%) | 2105 (100%) | 29 | 73 |
| 2006 | 780 (19%) | 320 (8%) | 2618 (64%) | 376 (9%) | 4094 (100%) | 34 | 120 |
| 2005 | 208 (9%) | 527 (23%) | 1327 (58%) | 224 (10%) | 2286 (100%) | 36 | 63 |
| 2004 | 569 (32%) | 414 (23%) | 502 (28%) | 314 (17%) | 1799 (100%) | 27 | 67 |
| 2003 | 374 (26%) | 390 (27%) | 433 (31%) | 222 (16%) | 1419 (100%) | 25 | 57 |
| 2002 | 220 (17%) | 422 (34%) | 425 (34%) | 186 (15%) | 1253 (100%) | 24 | 52 |
| 2001 | 611 (45%) | 404 (29%) | 44 (3%) | 312 (23%) | 1371 (100%) | 23 | 60 |
| 2000 | 97 (10%) | 383 (40%) | 317 (33%) | 153 (16%) | 950 (100%) | 19 | 50 |
| 1999 | 478 (51%) | 382 (41%) | 76 (8%) | 0 (0%) | 936 (100%) | 16 | 58 |
The fine print. A "participation" in most events is a person who starts a course. Two courses, two participations. Rogaines can be much longer than orienteering, so one rogaine "participation" is counted for each person for each 3-hour unit. (In-betweens are rounded, eg 2-4hrs is 1, 5-7hrs is 2 etc.) If we counted each rogainer at par, 2019 participation would still be over 2400 - 2444. The Ak Attack when run is counted as MTBO even though there are footies, because you don't have to declare whether you have a bike or not - we don't have the data to do otherwise. We count P-Max when run with orienteering because of its short length. U-Max and any other events without results are not counted. 2006 and 2010 were inflated by national rogaine championships and being 24hrs many participants counted as 8 units. In 2006 we also ran the NISS Champs (2 major traditional events) besides an OY. These figures may not be the same as reported by ONZ or the OHV Annual Report because of timing differences.