Experience some exciting urban orienteering in Milton Keynes. This event will take place in Howe Park Wood and MK South West.
This event is part of the East Anglian Urban League and the Southern England Orienteering Urban League.
Why not make a weekend of it? On the following day our friends at LeiOC are holding a regional urban event in nearby Wellingborough. Find out more.
Beginners welcome. There will be people on hand to help with getting started.
Online entries will be available through Fabian4 from 1 July and will close on 13 August. Fees as follows:
| Up to 31 July | after 1 August and on the day (subject to map availability) | |
|---|---|---|
| Adult British Orienteering members (courses 1-5) | £10 | £12 |
| Adult non-members (courses 1-5) | £12 | £14 |
| All adults (courses 6-7) | £5 | £7 |
| All juniors | £5 | £7 |
| SI dibber hire | £1 | |
Free parking at Westcroft District Centre, Barnsdale Dr, Westcroft, Milton Keynes MK4 4DD. Park at the south corner, which is closest to the event and usually less popular with shoppers.
What3words: ///bolsters.bonkers.hobbies.
Assembly and Start at Howe Park Wood, MK4 3GG. From the south corner of the car park, cross the access road just west of the bus stop, turn left and follow the path round the Nut and Squirrel, take the underpass after 200m, then turn left and follow the path back to the cafe, crossing the car park access road. Please do not attempt to cross the grid road. Assembly, registration and enquiries will be just south of the cafe. Start, if pre-registered with your own dibber, is just east. Toilets (including accessible) are available near Assembly.
Milton Keynes Central station is on the West Coast mainline. It is located approximately 5k from assembly. Local buses run to the Westcroft local centre on a regular basis. Bus 8 will drop you at Westcroft. A tent will be provided for rucksacks.
If you are taking part in the EAUL/SEOUL you will need to enter the correct course for your age category. Otherwise, adults are free to choose any course, and under 16s can choose between courses 6 and 7. Competitors under 16 on the day of the event must not enter courses 1-5.
All course lengths are 'Optimal route' lengths (i.e. the shortest route the planner thinks you could take to complete the course), not the straight line distances between controls.
Note that course 6 has two timed-out road crossings. All information subject to final controlling.
Maps are 1:5,000 ISSprOM.
| Course number | Classes | Length (optimal route) | Climb | Number of controls | >Map size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mens Open (M18-M35) | 9.9km | 80m | 23 | A3 |
| 2 | Men Veteran (M40+) Women Open (W18-W35) | 7.6km | 70m | 18 | A3 |
| 3 | Men Super Veteran (M55+) Women Veteran (W40+) | 6.3km | 60m | 17 | A3 |
| 4 | Men Ultra Veteran (M65+) Women Super Veteran (W55+) | 4.9km | 55m | 15 | A3 |
| 5 | Men Hyper Veteran (M75+) Women Ultra Veteran (W65+) Women Hyper Veteran (W75+) | 4.1km | 35m | 13 | A3 |
| 6 | M/W16- | 4.3km | 40m | 19 | A4 |
| 7 | M/W12- | 2.3km | 25m | 15 | A4 |
The Milton Keynes grid roads have heavy and fast-moving traffic. They are marked as out of bounds on the map. Do not attempt to cross any road marked out of bounds other than by the underpasses or bridges marked on the map. Traffic on other roads is generally light.
All courses, including the walks in and back, have possible routes along some of the Milton Keynes redways. These redways are used by pedestrians, cyclists, electric scooters, delivery robots and occasionally horses. Please be careful of the fast-moving bikes and scooters, and be courteous to all users.
Map and courses from the 2016 Howe Park Wood event are available on Routegadget.
Please be aware of the following Out Of Bounds symbols:
Any competitor found to have crossed any area marked by one of these out of bounds symbols will be disqualified. You must use marked crossing points for fences marked with the Uncrossable Fence symbol.
The Milton Keynes grid roads have heavy and fast-moving traffic. They are marked as out of bounds on the map. Do not attempt to cross any road marked out of bounds other than by the underpasses or bridges marked on the map. Traffic on other roads is generally light.
Some of the alleys behind houses are narrow, intersecting at right angles. Please be careful when going round corners to give space to people who may be travelling in the opposite direction.
Please be aware that there may be uneven surfaces, including uneven paving slabs and curbs. Please take care.
Orienteering is an adventure sport. You take part at your own risk and are responsible for your own safety.
Please take extra care to be courteous to other competitors and members of the public at all times. Follow the British Orienteering Covid-19 code of conduct: if you are unwell on the day of the event, do not attend.
Competitors under 16 may only enter junior courses (6 and 7).
Please keep dogs on leads at all times around the assembly area. Dogs are not allowed to accompany competitors on courses, except courses 6 and 7, where they are permitted if kept on leads and under close control.
Full results will be published on www.smoc.info after the event.
Toilets are available close to the assembly area in the cafe. These will include an accessible toilet.
First aiders will be in attendance at the assembly area.
There is a cafe at the assembly area. Supermarkets and food outlets are available in the Westcroft local centre.
Organiser: Dorien James smoc@dorien.me.uk
Entries: Helen Nisbet entries@smoc.info
Planner: Ros James
Controller: Roger Edwards (LeiOC)
SMOC members are encouraged to help out and earn a discount on their run. If you'd like to volunteer, please contact Dorien for the helper discount code before entering.
We want everyone to feel safe and welcome at our events. As a club, we support and follow British Orienteering's safeguarding policies, which can be found via the links below:
Safeguarding Adults at Risk Policy
Find out more on our Safeguarding and welfare page.
A risk assessment is carried out by the organiser in advance of each event, but participants take part at their own risk and are responsible for their own safety during the event.
If you have participated in three orienteering events/activities and not joined an orienteering club that is affliated to British Orienteering then you are not covered by our public liability insurance.
In line with the policies of British Orienteering, the organisers of this event request that any person wishing to take photos or videos showing children other than members of their family should register their details with event volunteers before taking any such photos or videos. The event organisers reserve the right to ask people to refrain from taking photos or videos and may, if such warnings are ignored, refer the matter to the police.