Intermediate Skills Clinic

REI Saratoga
Wednesday, May 3, 2000
6:30-8:30 pm

by Aileen Abernathy, 408-979-1735

While BAOC offers beginner's clinics at nearly every meet, our intermediate clinics have fallen by the wayside. That's a shame, because I found them invaluable when I was an Orange orienteer trying to improve my skills. I attended two of these clinics a year apart - one taught by Tom Strat (his swan song) and one by Nick Corsano - and really learned a lot about orienteering strategy and technique.

Nick has his hands full with Juniors these days, so I am stepping into the void (if not into his expert shoes). The clinic I held during our holiday event at Stanford went over pretty well, so I have negotiated with REI to let me use the nice meeting room at their Saratoga store for an Intermediate Skills Clinic on Wednesday, May 3.

Details

If you are a Yellow or Orange orienteer and want to improve your navigational skills - perhaps in preparation for trying the advanced courses - this clinic is for you. We will cover effective map reading, route choice, navigation strategies (attack points, handrails, catching features, aiming off, etc.), compass use, pace counting, error detection and correction, and other techniques.

The clinic is 6:30-8:30 pm, and is free. Please e-mail me by April 30 if you plan to attend, so I know how many handouts to prepare. If you have a compass, please bring it for our compass practice session.

The clinic will be held at REI's Saratoga store in the South Bay. The meeting room is at the rear of the store, near customer service. Ask for the orienteering clinic when you get there, or just stroll to the back. I will start promptly at 6:30, so if you are late and the doors are closed, come on in.

Directions

From Highway 85: Exit at Saratoga Ave. and turn northeast. After about 1 mile, cross Lawrence Expy and turn right into the El Paseo de Saratoga shopping center. REI is next to Office Max.

From I-280 North: Exit at Saratoga Ave. and go southwest. Cross Prospect and turn left into the El Paseo de Saratoga shopping center. REI is next to Office Max.

From I-280 South: Exit at Lawrence Expy. Head south and turn left on Saratoga Ave. Then turn right into the El Paseo de Saratoga shopping center. REI is next to Office Max.