Sat-Sun 6-7 Nov Scout-O Details

6 Nov Saturday: Individual meet

As you're all probably aware, CNYO is organizing the Fifth Annual Central New York Scout Orienteering Championships. This event is growing in popularity each year -- the first four years were held at Pratts Falls, and this year we've moved to Highland Forest, where there's more room. The "Scout-O" name doesn't restrict participation to Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts. What it means is that the primary focus is on youth groups, as a way of introducing orienteering to school-aged kids, and this year, especially, with Bob Ireland's new concept for the second day being a team score-o (instead of a simple repeat of the first day as in past years), it will encourage groups to camp over and have something different to do on Sunday. However, individuals and families are welcome either one or both days -- Saturday's regular White, Yellow, Orange, and Brown courses will be left up for those coming Sunday only (not doing the score-o). There are already reservations for almost 300 camping overnight at Highland Forest the weekend Nov 6-8, plus I know from the reservations and phone calls I've been getting that there will be lots of additional groups for Saturday or Sunday only. Think A meet numbers!

6 Nov Saturday: Night-O Cancelled

7 Nov Sunday: Patrol/Team group meet

Recreational courses for individuals will be the same courses as Barb Sleight set up for Saturday.

The group competition will go like this:

• Summary:
  Groups will sign in for Sunday's patrol/team meet on Sunday before 10:30. By the time they sign in, groups will have divided themselves into teams and will get one blank map and one master "punch" card for each team in the group. At 10:35 on Sunday morning, group leaders will meet to get one master "punch" card and one marked map for their whole group. After the meeting the leaders will go back to their group to plan how they are going to get as many controls as possible in the 90 minute time limit and mark each team's map with that team's controls. The group will start together but the teams will go after their own controls. On each control will be a 2-3 letter code separate from the control number that each team will write onto their "punch" card. At or before the time limit, each group of teams will hand in one master "punch" card with the whole group's control codes written on it. Groups turning in their master card late will be penalized one correct control for each minute late.

• Starts
  Starts will be at the Valley Camp.

• Sign in
  Groups will come sign in on Sunday morning, 7 November, before 10:30. Groups that have not pre-registered will register then as well. It may be possible to pick up blank maps and punch cards and/or register a group on Saturday, but due to the activity and confusion that will surround the Individual meet on Saturday, don't count on it.

• "Groups" and "teams"
  By the time they sign in, groups will have decided how to divide themselves into teams. (This will determine how many blank maps and "punch" cards they receive when they sign in; see "Maps and 'punch' cards" below.) Groups can go out as one team or as many teams so long as there are 2 or more people on each team. (Any teams with only 1 person will have his/her entire group disqualified.) Thus a group of 6 can go out as one team of 6, two teams of 3, or three teams of 2.

• Maps and "punch" cards
  Each team will be handed a blank map and a "punch" card at sign in. How many maps/cards can a whole group get? To comply with the "at least two people to a team" rule, at sign in a group of 5, for example, would be given at most 2 maps and 2 punch cards (two teams, one with 2 people and the other with 3), a group of 8 would be given at most 4 maps and 4 cards (four teams, each with 2 people), and so forth.

  Sunday morning at 10:35 group leaders will get together with the meet director. The director will explain how the meet will work (essentially going over in detail what you're reading now), and will had out to each group leader a marked master map and a master "punch" card. After the leaders' meeting the leaders will go back with their master maps to their teams and they can decide what control circles to put on each of the teams' maps.

  The master "punch" card is the one they will hand in at the end of the 90 minutes. The other cards are so that each team can keep track of the codes for the controls they are looking for. What should happen is that sometime before the 90 minute time limit the group should gather together, copy everyone's control codes onto the master card and the leader will turn the master card in. We will only accept these master cards at the finish area. And the sooner they get their card in the better the chances of winning. They can turn in their master card at any time.

  As far as the codes go. I won't be using punches as these are difficult to copy over. What I will be doing is on each flag there will be the number of the control and just below that a 2 or 3 letter code that the kids can write down on their cards.

• Penalties
  There will be a one correct control per minute late penalty.

I'm sorry if this sounds somewhat confusing and if anyone thinks it should be changed in any way, let me know. Maybe I'm just wishful thinking and we should just have an individual Score-O event. I'm open to suggestions, however I think this will work.

Bob Ireland