Training Archive: Ollie

Score Orienteering race (Local Event) 21:05 [4] ** 4.3 km (4:54 / km)
ahr:175 max:191 spiked:23/23c slept:7.0 shoes: £20 Lightweight Running Shoes

Launch of the Permanent Orienteering Course at Beckton District Park, set up by CHIG and sponsored by Newham Fit Club (the council's sports development programme.)

Beckton District Park is only a few miles from my house, at the other end of the Greenway cycle route, and features a nice pond at the north end, some tricky(ish) park/wood terrain in the middle, and some large fields at the south end, with, slightly surreally, a small horse-riding circuit. I wasn't expecting to find horses in London's Docklands area, but there they were.

Today's event was a mass-start score, using the 23 permanent control posts, and pencils/control cards to note down the letters on each one. The turn-out seemed to be pretty good - thanks presumably to a lot of promotion by Newham Fit Club. The event being free, with free drinks, medal and goodie bag at the end, means this was probably the best value orienteering event I've ever been to.

Field Surveying (City of London Map) 2:00:00 [0]

Walked around the Petticoat Lane area, which includes Catherine Wheel Alley (great name) and Devonshire Square, as well as the Petticoat Estate.

Turns out it's a pretty dull area, and as it's cut off from the rest of the map by Bishopsgate and Houndsditch, I would imagine only the longest courses, if any, visit it. I was disappointed that public access to both the Devonshire Sq and Cutlers Gardens developments is restricted - both of these will have to be OOB. Petticoat Estate is also restricted and is anyway a lot less interesting than the map suggests.