Discussion: Those darned 1:15000 maps

In analyzing my problems at the Billygoat, one issue that clearly stands out was my inability to read any sort of fine map detail at the speed at which I wanted to be moving. Part of this is just due to my inexperience in this sort of complex New England terrain (as a California boy, the vast majority of my orienteering experience has been west of the Rockies), but the 1:15000 scale had a major impact too, I believe.

All our local BAOC maps are now in OCAD and virtually all of our local meets are now run on 1:10000 maps. Almost all of our club members agree that we would rather carry large maps around with us than smaller, 1:15000 maps that are more difficult to read. So I don't see many 1:15000 maps anymore and am not used to the extra strain involved in reading them.

And yes, at 48 years old my deteriorating vision is an issue too. But at the Billygoat I was wearing my reading-glasses-attached-to-a-headband contraption (although I probably do need to upgrade to a stronger magnification), and also have a magnifying glass attached to my thumb compass. But it didn't help enough. Even here at home looking at my map on my kitchen table, it isn't easy for me to quickly pick out all those little trails between the start and control #1, for example. I certainly couldn't do that at the actual event, which turned me into a "jockstuffer" for large portions of the first half of the course (more comments are in my training log)

So short of refusing to run at events using 1:15000 maps in the future, can anyone give me more advice? Surely I am not the only middle-age orienteer out there who can't see the maps quite as well now as when they were younger. Although I must say that even when I was in my mid-30s with absolutely perfect vision, 1:15000 maps still posed a problem for me.

I've been dealing with this problem since WOC 93 - I remember well the first time I saw the Surebridge map. I've tried reading glasses, bifocals, the headband with the reading glasses on a hinge, and one contact lens. None of these is satisfactory. I've stayed home from meets I know are going to be on 1:15000 (but not from the Billygoat). It really got me this time on Billygoat #7. The bifocals worked well in Wyoming, but get way too foggy in other places - I lost 1/2 hour when I fogged them and then temporarily lost them at the US Champs. For now I'm wearing the contact, but it's not enough. I sure like the 1:5000 maps at sprints. Now just don't fill them up with extra detail.

Train to use magnifying glass attached to your compass. You need to TRAIN yourself to use it. Otherwise, using magnifying glass will create negative experience. Just take it on your regular runs and try to 'read' 1:15000 maps and courses.

I strongly prefer 1:15 000 for classic distance races, even at places like Surebridge. When you can't fold the map easily to keep a 2-3km route choice leg all on the front easily, it is irritating. I do not mind (obviously) if courses shorter than Blue (and probably Red for F21) are printed at 1:10 000, but I do not want this discussion to get towards a consensus that life would be easier at 1:10 000.

I realize this was not the direction Steve wanted this thread to go, and I don't think we should have much of a discussion of it here, but let's keep long distance maps at 1:10 000.

er, 15?

Yeah, what he said. Sorry.

Steve, at the ripe age of 55+ I use contacts very successfully to read fine map detail. One eye is set for distance (better than 20/20) and the other eye is strictly for reading. The key here is to take a complex o-map (Surebridge works well) with you to the eye doctor and let them try to read the map. They then are willing to crank up the reading correction to maximum clarity. I had no trouble reading the small trails going to #1 at the Billygoat. Other troubles, yes, but not seeing the details.

Real men don't run on 1:10,000 maps or admit to not being able to read 1:15,000 maps. Well, at least not often. ; )

I noticed that one pint of beer clears it enough for 1:15,000, however, two make even 1:10,000 unreadable. Go figure! May be that depends on the beer used (ex., german vs. irish).

Does wearing two different lenses make you feel like an iguana?

My vision is 20/30 (has been since childhood) and I run without glasses. I find that using the compass magnifier, I can get through most 1:15 maps without difficulty. For really complex terrain, I recommend a thumb magnifier, but they are very hard to find in North America. The one I use is actually a thumb compass with a magnifier, but I cut the compass off because I always prefer a baseplate.

What works best for me is using two contact lenses to have good vision in the distance and wear the reading glasses low and have the correction overcompensated. The glasses are further away than what they are built for, this is what works best. My reading glasses come straight from the Dollar store, so when I trash them, it doesn't matter. And yes, I know the reading glasses at the point of the nose look stupid, but at least I can read the map. - By the way, I am not so sure how many of the blue runners read the map between 6-7, I was in the same pack as you. I felt they were rather a herd of broncos trashing through the woods (or lemmings) and quite a bunch of them blew #7 because they didn't have a clue where they were. I stopped too early, because I didn't see the fine trail right under the printed circle of the control (well, the reading glasses...), so I thought I had overrun the control and was already at the trail behind the control.

I had a magnifier attached to my Mosco Compass last year at Oringen. One of the Mosco Compass representatives was selling magnifiers on the way to the competition center one day, and he even drilled it into my compass for me. The terrain around Gothenburg was so detailed in some areas that I coldn't read it on the run even when it was a 1:10,000. The magnifier made all the difference and certainly raised my confidence in the terrain. I agree with Sergey about practicing with it first though. I made some mistakes when I first got it that were completely due to my inexperience with the magnifier. You have to learn to compensate for the difference in scale when the map is enlarged in the magnifier window. But with some practice it becomes a great asset. It is set up on my compass in such a way that I can easily turn it out of my way when I don't need it. I highly recommend having a magnifying glass attached to a thumbcompass for Orienteers of all ages. If you can learn to use it efficiently, it can benefit you in any techinical terrain.