A Bush-O We Will Go

A double-header bush orienteering weekend, with the Saturday event at Bendigo, and Sunday just outside Daylesford.

Spent the night (camping) at Mt Franklin, just up the road from a burnoff which sent flakes of burnt stuff into the campground and smoke into the air. I woke up at one point from a nightmare about an escaped bushfire which caused us to evacuate the campground. Clear skies in the morning though.


Diamond Hill

The first club event by Bendigo Orienteers held on the outskirts of the town. Did the longest course, ran nearly all of it, and found the navigation very straightforward. All my attack points magically appeared, and I hit all the controls dead on. The coaching last weekend is paying off!

I'm also starting to "see" the big stuff like gullys within gullys, and how to read the gully-spur detail properly, which has pretty much escaped me until now. *happy*

Course: A
Course length: 6.1 km
Actual distance: 7.9 km
Time: 1:38, but this included a stop to help Erin who had fallen and hurt her ankle.


Hepburn West

Vic State Series #1 with the start/finish on a private property with an amazing collection of dead vehicles lining the driveway. Most of the course was within a pine forest, which made for hard running over previous tree fellings and rough ground. Several very long legs to start with (1.3 km and 2 km) to wear us out, and I walked about 80% of the course - the body still tired from yesterday's run. Lots of deep erosion gullys to climb into and out of. Again, hit most of my controls dead on, with NO fumbling around or wandering aimlessly looking for them.

Course: 4 (W35A)
Course length: 6.4 km
Actual distance: 7.4 km
Time: 1:47, much more physically demanding than yesterday

Weight	72.0 kgs
Walking	5.7 kms
Running	31.3 kms