The weekend was attended by 15 bikers from as far afield as Auckland and Blenheim, as well as the locals from Christchurch. Exercises included compass skills, map memory, route choice and relocation and these were put into practice in two race situations; one a sprint with one-minute start intervals, and the other a wheel relay. (This refers to the shape of the course, not the mode of transport: participants go out along the "spokes", round part of the "rim" and back on another "spoke" before handing over to their partner.) The part of Hanmer Forest close to the town contains a dense network of tracks which is ideal for this sort of intense navigation. There were several discussion sessions which included what to expect in Australia, training and diet.
Here's what a couple of the participants had to say...
"Just wanted to say that the mtbo training weekend in Hanmer was fantastic. Andy and Roz did a great job and the whole weekend was a lot of fun. I feel inspired to do every mtbo event I can now! It was also good to meet lots of other keen mtboers."
(Craig Tregurtha, who as Adventure Events is organising a Trailquest at Hanmer on 4 Oct. He is also organising a free practice session at Bottle Lake Forest, Sat 13 Sep at 11am. Allow 1.5 hours)
"I attended the MTBO weekend in Hanmer and have to say it was very worthwhile. Great coaching, excellent mtbo exercises and a good group of participants. John Howard and I even managed to win the wheel relay, which was the final event of the weekend. I hope more such weekends are going to happen."
(Mondo Kopua from Blenheim.) Mondo went on to say...
"The Miry mapboard was the bees knees and worked a lot better than the Silva model, which I have as well. (My partner is now using it). I was surprised that I was the only one there to have one. There were a few people with the Silva model and a few people with home made boards but I would have to say that the Miry was the most admired. A few surprises about the cost and comparisons made with how much a home made board is to make. I had to comment to people that they readily spend thousands of $$$$ on bikes and associated clothing/gear yet they baulk at the cost of the mapboard. A few admitted agreement and I hope you receive a few enquires/orders. In my opinion the Miry is fantastic in its simplicity and handling – a winner!!!"
The NZ Orienteering Federation paid for a qualified orienteering coach, and the blueprint for the weekend is available from the Coaching Director or Roz and Andy. Details of the Miry MTBO mapboard may be seen on the Mapsport Shop website. Declaration of interest: The writer of this article runs the MAPsport Shop.
This page was written by Michael Wood and installed on 3 Sep 03.