New to Orienteering?An overview of the sport

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If you haven't tried orienteering before or are not very experienced, we hope the explanations below will answer your questions. We lay on events, and in addition you can take a look at our permanent and smartphone courses, for activities you can do at a time of your own choosing.

If you are looking forward to having a go at something local in the Cambridge area then head over to our Park-O pages.

If you have a question for us, send an email to the club chair (see the contact page for the address).

Orienteering

Orienteering is primarily an outdoor sport with events staged in woodland or parkland (or open hillsides, but we don't have may of those in East Anglia). The sport encompasses a wide range of activities including Adventure racing, City races, indoor orienteering in multi-storey buildings, MapRunning (smartphone orienteering), and walking or jogging round a Permanent Orienteering Course as a family, as well as the traditional forest-based events.

You participate as an individual, pair, or group, more or less independently. In an organised event, start times are spaced out so you can't just follow or be followed by other participants. Even highly competitive orienteers don't generally run head to head against each other, although they can compare their race time and route choices after they finish.

To find out more about the various flavours of orienteering, follow these links:

MapRun - anytime smartphone orienteering

POCs - Permanent Orienteering Courses

Events - organised meetings where a range of courses are on offer

Park-O - Events specially designed for newcomers and school age juniors

You can see a list of forthcoming events on our events page.

The basics

In any form of the sport, the aim is to navigate between control points marked on a special orienteering map and decide the best route to complete the course in the quickest time. It does not matter how young, old or fit you are, as you can run, walk or jog the course and progress at your own pace.

Control sites are marked on the ground by orange and white flags (unless you are running a MapRun course in which case there is no physical marker) and correspond to circles indicated control sites on the map. Courses vary in length from less than 2km to over 12km and some larger events also have a string course, which toddlers and young children can follow safely through a patch of forest.

Starts are typically staggered with each person/group starting at least one minute after the previous starter on that course. The starts typically operate over a two-hour period, so whilst you are actually out on your course the other competitors do not know how well (or badly) you are doing. The staggered start also helps families: One parent can take the child/children around an easy short course whilst their partner competes, and still have time to compete themselves whilst the first runner takes over the childcare.

Orienteering can take place anywhere from forest and open countryside to urban parks and school playgrounds.

To start orienteering all you need is a sense of adventure and a pair of trainers. It's a great sport for runners, joggers and walkers who want some added interest for their excursions or to improve their navigation skills, or for anyone who loves the outdoors.

Regular adult orienteers usually select a course that will take them 45-75 minutes to complete, whilst courses intended for juniors usually have much shorter winning times (15- 30 minutes).

The British Orienteering website has excellent resources for newcomers including YouTube videos like this one.

The challenge of the sport can come as a surprise even to those newcomers who are very sporty or adventurous.

Orienteering is good for you - The health benefits are detailed here.

Sport for All

Orienteering caters for everyone. Whilst elite orienteers run at speed through complex terrain, reading the map as they go, families or groups frequently tackle courses together, with the children rushing ahead to punch at the control with the adults keeping an eye on the general direction, and maybe providing the motor power towards the end of the course!

Every event has a range of courses. As well as sometimes providing a string course for the very young, there will be courses suitable for 6 year-olds and upwards to tackle by themselves. At the other extreme, there are long, technically demanding courses for fit, experienced orienteers. The older age groups are also catered for, with courses which are still technically challenging but less physically demanding.

We lay on various levels of event from informal fun events to (very occasionally) national championships. At Local and Regional events (level C and D) you can enter whichever course you choose. Larger scale Level B (National) events offer an extended range of courses and you might compete according to age and gender. In this case, for each age-group there will be male and female classes, possibly with short and long options. Courses for womens' classes are selected to give a similar winning time to the corresponding mens class.

Orienteering appeals to both men and women, with women making up 40% of the competitors, more than for most outdoor sports.

The video below shows orienteers in action.

Come to an event

Most of the events that we organise are either colour coded forest/parkland events or urban events. There is a more detailed description ofthe different types of event here.

You can find out what happens at organised events in general here, and at Park-O in particular here.

When? Where? How much?

Most organised Orienteering takes place on Sunday mornings during the autumn winter and spring. The calendar is organised to avoid clashes so we can attend each other's events. WAOC aims to put on an event every 4-6 weeks in the winter season and neighbouring clubs do about the same, so if you are willing to travel around East (and West) Anglia, you can find a suitable orienteering event most weekends. For a list of forthcoming fixtures, see our Fixtures list.

If you become hooked on the sport, there are events held all over the country, and many WAOC members frequently travel to places like the Lake District, the Peak District, the Yorkshire Moors, Scotland and Wales to compete on top quality terrain, or to city centres including London for a "City Race".

There are also some big festivals of Orienteering: two, three, or four day events at the major bank holidays; and a week-long event in Scotland, Wales or the Lake District during August. WAOC members will be seen at all these events.

Most Local (Colour-coded) events cost about £10 - £12 for an individual adult, with individual children and students at about £3 . Regional events often cost £12 - £15 for the adult entry fee. Adults who are members of British Orienteering obtain a £2 discount off most entries. All the events are put on voluntarily by orienteers for orienteers, but the price reflects the costs of producing the special maps, land access fees, and provision of facilities on the day.

What do I need?

All you need to start Orienteering is some sensible outdoor clothing, not shorts (unless it is an urban course), and a good pair of trail running shoes, walking shoes or trainers. If the weather is cold or wet, make sure that you have adequate protection. Maps are almost universally printed on waterproof paper nowadays A compass is useful, but not essential, and you can always borrow one at the event.

When you get more involved, you'll probably consider buying a good compass and orienteering shoes (similar to fell-running shoes). For a forest event, most orienteers wear tracksters with optional "bramble bashers" to protect the lower legs, a long sleeved top and perhaps additional layers according to the weather. WAOC has its own very stylish long and short-sleeved club tops made from hi-tech breathable fabric.

There is one UK-based orienteering trader, CompassPoint, who tend to have a pop-up shop at larger events where you can browse their selection of kit. They also have an online store: compassPoint-Online.

If you become a regular orienteer it probably makes sense to invest in your own electronic punch device (called an SI-card or "dibber"), but these can always be hired on the day if you do not have your own.

Competitions

You do not need to be competitive to enjoy orienteering, but most orienteers take a great interest in how well they get on relative to their peer group, whether this is fighting for podium places or further down the field.

Most orienteering events are competitive with results based on finish times. Orienteers who are members of British Orienteering will automatically earn ranking points at each event they take part in, which allows comparison with others in the same age class in the whole UK or in the local region. WAOC has its own club league which operates on a similar basis but is just for club members, and where the best performers each year receive a trophy at our annual prizegiving. In addition we organise a League for our midweek evening MapRun events.

The East Anglian Region (EAOA) also organises leagues for urban and forest orienteering, with awards for the best performers amongst the clubs in the region. There are national leagues for urban events (SEOUL, Nopesport league), and general events (UK Orienteering league).

Some events are also competitions in their own right such as the annual East Anglian Championship with trophies on offer to the winners in each age class, and WAOC members are eligible to compete in the Midland Championships. National events such as the British Orienteering Championships, the JK, and the biannual Scottish 6 Days all provide awards to podium places, but most people attending these big events are there to enjoy the event rather than win their class.

WAOC competes in inter-club championships (the CompassSport Cup or Trophy, and the Yvette Baker Trophy for Juniors) where all participating club members can earn points for the team. Relay events provide a chance for small teams of orienteers to combine their talents and compete for their club at relay events such as the British Orienteering Champs and the JK, the Harvester night relays, and the Peter Palmer night relay for juniors.

Improving

Orienteering is a sport where technique and experience counts for a great deal, and there is always something to learn from orienteering in a new area or on different terrain.

WAOC provides training for adult club members in the Cambridge area, in weekly mid-week training sessions, and we provide training for juniors by licenced coaches within the club and, as they progress, as part of the East Anglian Junior Squad.

For juniors in particular, there are award schemes for successfully completing courses of different levels (see colour coded courses). The badge scheme provides actual badges you can sew onto clothing etc, and in addition British Orienteering issues certificates to members for progress in navigation and speed.

You can find some tips on improving your own technique here on this website: here.