Discussion: Baseplate vs. Thumb

Baseplate.

Just wondering how many of you use Baseplate compass vs Thumb compass. Seems to me that all the new "cool cats" are using thumb compass however I have no scientific evidence of that.

As far as myself - I prefer baseplate. I tried thumb compasses on few occasions but I did not see big advantage for me.

Baseplate - for the rogaines only, otherwise - thumb compass.

I can't figure out how people use baseplates at any kind of speed. With a thumb compass it is always on the map right where you need it so that it just becomes second nature. Whenever you take a quick glance down at the map you see the needle and are able to make sure that your map is oriented. In any kind of race where quick navigation can mean the difference between 1st and 5th place, I would imagine that a thumb compass could make all the difference.

But then again, I don't really know much about how other people use baseplates, so I imagine that simply because I cannot use them fast doesn't mean that other people can't. I guess if you got the technique down, any method could work.

I just find it a lot easier with a thumb compass because you never have to actively use it; it is always just there.

I used a thumb compass for a while, switched to baseplate for many years, and am now in the process of switching back. Both have their adherents at the elite level, so it appears to be personal preference and not a real performance advantage.

I don't read the map and compass simultaneously. I check my compass pretty regularly and can do so with a very quick glance (regardless of whether it's baseplate or thumb). When I subsequently look at the map, I've never had any difficulty remembering what angle the needle was at. Actually, I can almost always orient the map without looking at it because I always fold at 90-degree angles, so I can feel the edge, which is pretty close to the north line.

Perhaps using such rough orientation would be a liability on more complex terrain, but around here, you just don't need to take accurate bearings. Reading the features works just fine.

The reason I'm switching back to thumb is not because I'm displeased with the baseplate as a navigation device, but because it sometimes interferes with epunching. This switch has taken some time. I started a year ago and have only been comfortable with the thumb in competition for the last few months. I think this is one of the reasons that so many are convinced the other device is inferior. It is, until you put out the effort to acclimate to it.

I used to make parallel errors (well, almost parallel!) all the time because I was too lazy to put the compass on the map to make sure that they were both pointing in the right direction (I would lets say go up the wrong reentrant). Then I switched to thumb, and having the compass right there on the map has definitely gotten rid of that problem - provided that I look at the map once in a while!

Studies have also shown that women have a harder time rotating objects in their minds than men do, making having the compass in one hand and the map in the other a bit of a disadvantage for women.

And as Eric pointed out, baseplates become a real pain in the butt with e-punch. And since in Western Canada we are strictly using e-punch (even small local events), this has became a bigger factor. As a matter of fact, when I went to the US for the US long and short champs, I hadn't used a regular punch since... hum, well, since the last event I went to in the US, 3 years ago!!!

I've used a baseplate for my entire orienteering career (31 years this month). I tried a thumb compass a few times but didn't like having anything covering up parts of the map. I have no issues using a baseplate with e-punching...never even thought about it. I just run along reading my map and glancing at my compass in my other hand. Not really a problem.

Just got myself a thumb compass and I really like it. It's pretty fast. I was just curious if there are any companies out there making a thumb with adjustable declination? You might be thinking why on earth I would want that because all o'ing maps have mag-north lines right? Well, I also do AR and we usually have maps that don't have mag-north lines and usually we get the maps right before the start, so there is no time to draw them in, so I was just curious if there was a thumb compass out there with adjustable declination?

Many compasses (including thumb compasses) have moveable casings with lines drawn on them. It is designed to allow you to take a bearing, but I imagine you could use it to set the declination before the race.

We made sure our children learned to navigate without ever going near a baseplate or taking bearings. Mpa guide compass then graduate to thumb. I watch the use of base plates in rogaines by non-orienteers and can't help but conlude that it encourages unhelpful navigation strategies.

This reminds me of an interview Pasi Ikonen gave after having won the Short Distance Final at WOC 2001 in Tampere, Finland. In the interview he said that he glanced his compass only once during the race and even that was a waste of time...

I tried a thumb compass at the very beggining, (not long ago) and i didnt understand it at all, plus i thought then that the E and W marks were backwards "this compass is stupid". Then my coach handed me a baseplate compass and told me that my aim should be not to use compass at all "If you look at your compass too much, you'll smash your face against a tree". When i got the hang of the baseplate compass my method was aligning the edge with the route of choice and keep the needle aligned to the North lines, and clamping the map and baseplate together with my hands. Then i went to thumb and never looked back. In summary, start off with baseplate until you get the hang of it, since thumb is a simplification of the baseplate method anyway.

Interesting discussion. I am surprised about so many different opinions regarding this subject. I have been doing orienteering for 20+ years, few years I was very, very dedicated to say at least. There was times when I was 16, 17 years old and I was pretty good technically and I felt that I could go through the course without help of the compass and I did even I always carried the compass. Before spiking the control I always new the angle coming in and I always knew angle I need to go out. However here and there I would make crucial directional mistakes out of fatigue. After analyzing few “stupid” directional mistakes I made I concluded that I could have avoided them if I used compass a little bit. I don’t rely on compass exclusively for directions. I am still very aware of all the angles going in and out of controls. I use compass for re-assurance that I am going into right direction. I don’t see compass as distraction during regular O-courses. I don’t know about others but to me compass is more reliable and more precise directional tool/gadget then my own sense of direction. Compass is not going to get tired of finding magnetic north pole after “running” 10+ K course.

I have not had much experience on Sprint courses however I can see that reliance to use compass on Sprint courses might be lot less then on longer courses since it is more compact and more intense course and in order to win Sprints you must keep all your O-senses sharp entire course.

I used a thumb compass for many years, but I was having a horrible time running on rough compass bearings. Last fall I switched to base plate and I find it much easier to follow a rough bearing. It does take a lot of getting used to, but now I feel more confident with a base plate than I do with a thumb compass. The one exception is in sprints - I still use a thumb compass in sprints. I am typically not running long distances on my compass during a sprint and so don't have the opportunity to get too far off :)

I started out many years ago with a baseplate, but since I was using it the same way you'd use a thumb compass, I switched to a thumb compas because it was more convenient to hold. I virtually never "set a bearing" (haven't in about 20 years) except in some cases like night Rogaine legs through bland areas, where there's nothing useful to look at on the map anyway, and I want to check my direction frequently.

I use a thumb compass. I started with base plate but when I heard about the thumb compass development (my coach knew Arne Yngstrom that developed the 'Nor Compass' ) my Father and I took a saw to my baseplate and converted it into a thumb compass. I used that modified baseplate until I could buy a real thumb compass.

But I prefer using a baseplate in AR for those long rough compass bearings. I have never owned a compass that has declination on it (or a mirror for that matter) and I have never hung my compass around my neck. ;-)

And if you are insecure and slow like me, you set bearings on your baseplate so you can easily see and follow the bearing without using your magnifier........but I still use the thumb on sprints.

I thought the string on the baseplate was to hang it around the neck like a necklace and the mirror to make sure it looked good.
Being the Barbie girl that I am, I would waste way too much time with that type of compass trying to look pretty.

lol, barbie!!

Re: "using a baseplate like a thumb" - does that mean (e.g.) holding both in the left hand with the baseplate in the direction of travel, and using it to keep the map oriented? I seem to be doing that more frequently, so maybe I should try a thumb. However, 2 things that I think I like about baseplates are the magnifier for certain areas of those 1:15 maps (even though I think I still see well), and the ability to easily take measurements on the run (OK: "my name is Mike and I am a pace counter" - have I completed step 1?).

You can purchase thumb compasses with magnifiers (Scarborough O' with glass or Gale's O' with plastic and therefore less expensive). You can swing the magnifier out of the way when you don't need it (but these days, I need it all the time, and especially with 1:15000's!).

I've been using a thumb compass ever since I tried it--I rely more on the map and land features than on bearings except in extremely bland areas (my technique is pretty much exactly like J-J's). In rogaines I rely on my partner/husband to follow the precise bearing (since he does that skill better) while I read the features to be sure he's not going too far off line. :-)

A thumb compass 'felt right' the first time I tried it after discovering oreinteering at age 41. With the compass on the map, I tended to check both more frequently.

My technique is much better when I keep the map and compass level in front of me much of the time. When I just set a rough bearing and run normally, I veer a lot. (In the 90's, I saw a Swedish training video and I was impressed by the fast junior's style. The following year, I ran a leg with Brad Whitmore (GO RAAM BRAD!), and saw him effectively using that technique - smooth! As usual, he scorched me.

At the Team Trials, I feel that the Hawn and S-F terrain,light green vegetation, and courses (good job Eric!) really invited and punished crude compass work.

"using a baseplate like a thumb" in my case means that I had the baseplate compass on a short leash that I attached to my watchband. Then I held the compass against the map, and used the needle to orient the map without fiddling with the capsule housing. (In my case, watch, compass and map all go in the right hand, as I'm very right-handed.)

My feeling is that if you want a magnifier, you should get a real magnifier (either on your hand or on your face) that does the job right, instead of the joke magnifier on a baseplate compass.

I have to say that the magnifier on a baseplate comes in handy for emergency eyebrows tweezing just before running down the finish chute.

I have always used a baseplate... in fact I've had the same compass for my entire 13 years of orienteering. Like JJ, I will often use the baseplate compass held against the map 'like a thumb' to take rough bearings, but sometimes also will take more precise bearings and hold the compass in my right hand opposite my map in the left. I also often have a problem with drifting left if don't use a precise bearing and carefully keep track of where I am. (My right leg is stronger than my left... it's like paddling a canoe on one side)

I've never had any problems with it interfering with my ability to e-punch... though my e-punch lives on my left hand, the compass in my right. One thing I've never understood is the majority of thumb compasses being left handed... I was surprised to learn that most people do not use their dominant hand for the compass as I do.

I use my dominant hand too, and since I'm left handed, the thumb compass works out real well. I found it faster than a baseplate, which I was always afraid of dropping. With the thumb compass I use the tip of it to keep track of where I am while also keeping a rough bearing. I do admit, I tend to drift right or left a bit, but this year my new training technique is to really try and read the contours (which I successfully ignored in my first year of orienteering!) and rely less on the compass. I haven't been brave enough to leave the compass in the car yet though. With the stress fracture still healing, I haven't run a course since February :(, but hopefully I will be able to start training again by August. It's been a big bummer, I have a lot of running work to catch up on.

I started with a baseplate, and always held it in my right (dominant) hand and thumbed with my left. I usually stopped (or walked) to bring the compass to the map, set it, and then separate it from the map.

When I switched to thumb compass I preferred thumbing with my left, so I bought a left-hand thumb compass. I saw a documentary about handed-ness, and, if I remember it correctly, they said the non-dominant hand is often used for fine positioning skills where the dominant hand is using a tool.

I have several thumb compasses, including types with turning capsules and fixed capsules. For most navigation, I just eyeball the map and the compass. I prefer a turning capsule for everything. I'd only use a fixed for a sprint. Unlike J-J, I set my compass roughly to the line on medium to long legs mostly for the visual reference that everything is okay (e.g., that I'm not turned 90 or 180 degrees). It's a crutch, but it works for me.

I am glad somebody is bringing up the handedness into this discussion.
I too am left handed and prefer to have the compass on the left. The reason for that is my dominant eye is also the left one, meaning that I line things up with my left eye. It makes no sense to me to try lining things up with your non-dominant eye - it's recipe for a disaster isn't it?
Some common explanation to that was from the old punching system people felt they were too clumsy to handle the punch with their non-dominant hand, so they would carry their map and thumb compass on the left side. Now that we have e-punch, I guess nobody questions that habit they have, but to me it only makes sense to line things up with your dominant eye, hence carrying compass on your dominant side.

My dominant hand is my right hand however I hold my base-plate compass on my left hand, map on the right hand. Based on conversation so far I gather that everyone have their own habits. I think that there is no wrong way regardless of your habits as long as you feel comfortable.

Orienteering is somewhat similar to golf. Everyone has the same starting point and ending point. What happens in the middle - it does not matter. What counts is that you make it to the end fastest (in orienteering) or with fewest strokes.

I don't play golf and I have no intention of learning to play golf in near future however I like watching Golf channel (go figure that out), particularly when golfers explain why they use this particular club, what are they thinking, aiming, etc. When you watch game of golf it seems that everyone does the same thing. However I am fascinated how different every golfer is regarding their preparation and execution of the shoot. However regardless of their technique, approach, club used, club manufacturer, sponsor, age, etc - most of them will make par-3, par-4, par-5 unless they mess up particular shoot and get bogie or make a good shoot for birdie.

I feel it is similar in orienteering where it does not matter as much what kind of technique you are using. It is more about execution and not making bogies.

I would like to point out that a non-settable thumb compass is FAR easier and better for teaching beginners. It avoids all that confusing stuff about setting and forces tham to use the compass and the map together to keep the map properly oriented. (It also forces them to ignore everything they've heard about setting declination.) I wish the manufacturers would make an inexpensive non-settable thumb compass.

With regard to the discussion about not using a compass at all, I think that might work in terrains where there is an abundance of map detail, but for Americans who often have to run on map areas with little detail or poorly mapped detail, and for us elders who can't see the map detail anyway, ignoring the compass is an invitation to error.

Personally I chose to use a nonsettable thumb compass years ago and have not regretted it.

All I have ever used is a baseplate compass. Because everyboby has their own preferences, I am going to try a thumb compass and see if it works for me.

I started out with a left thumb compass for 4 years and recently switched out the plate to a baseplate. I always seemed to have problems because the natural angle that I would hold the compass line-of-travel and therefore the map would be (10-20? degrees) east of my direction of travel. Maybe it would have worked if I had selected a different thumb compass with a different angle between the thumb and line-of-travel. When I temporarily lost/dropped my compass in a parking lot and it got run over overnight, the thumb plate broke and capsule survived. That finally gave me the push to replace it with a baseplate. Incidently, before the replacement baseplate came, I used just the capsule as a thumb compass pinched on the map and didn't have the same problem.

Having both 1:15,000 and cm scales on the baseplate is a big plus for me. I wasted too much time translating the 1:15,000 tick marks on the (moscow) thumb to 1:10,000 in my head.

Using the baseplate, I found that I much prefer holding the compass with my right hand. I am right handed, but I use my left hand for the computer trackpoint/mouse and wear my watch on my right wrist. So far using it as a thumb compass on my right side seems to work well. I don't have the same alignment problem that I had with the left thumb compass. The lanyard gets looped around my wrist a few times. I am also trying out map on the left, compass on the right, and setting the capsule (trying out the technique of a fast guy where I live).