| August 2002 Newsletter |
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Truckin' at the Rogaine
Katie Stettler and I won the 6-hour category (all comers, 8 teams)) in the recent Connecticut Hill Rogaine (July 22) with 900 points. The next team had 610 points, and we even beat all the 12-hour teams (11) in half their time. As you know, Katie is in great shape and was actually ready to trust me not to lead her astray in the woods. Despite the hot day and the fact that it was her first-ever off-trail experience, not one peep of complaint (and did I detect genuine enthusiasm?) as we bushwacked through dense undergrowth, foot-sucking mud, near-vertical slopes (hint: wear something substantial on your posterior) and other fun stuff.
In case some people don't know what a Rogaine is, it's very simple: - Eric Smith puts out a large number of control points (64) over a huge area (all of Connecticut Hill and Newfield State Forest) and plots their position on the standard USGS topographic map.
- All controls are off trails, some quite far off. Some are easy to find (e.g. junction of two big streams) but some are more difficult (e.g. top of small rise in the middle of a forest)
- Teams of two runners (for safety) try to visit as many as possible within the time limit, using only foot power, compass, and map. The route is up to you. Teams get the map one hour before the start, to plot their best strategy. Late arrivals back to camp are severely penalized.
- Each control has a point value from 20 to 70.
- Add up the points, high score wins.
- Eat a huge quantity of trail food and drink (remember Ed Hart's instructions) before, during, and after.
Central NY Orienteering does this every summer. My last one was just before I moved to the Netherlands in 1997, with Barb Bellows in Danby State Forest. We won that one too, the 12-hour event. I am beginning to detect a pattern.
-- David "Dump Truck" Rossiter
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