Wild Flowers Along the Stoney Stumble
TrailCross Spring Lake
Spring Lake Regional Park
Date: (Sat.) May. 4, 2013
Location: Santa Rosa, CA
Event Director: Judy Koehler - 707.778.1604
Course Setters: Bill Cusworth (NAV-X), Heidi Cusworth (NAV-X)
Type: C; 5 km, 10 km, and 10-mile trail runs with twists! Find your way with a map.
TrailCross comes to Spring Lake!
Spring Lake Regional Park in Santa Rosa will be the second stop for BAOC's 2013 TrailCross Series. This new format for trail runs and orienteering has checkpoints along or close to the trails. Your task is to find all the checkpoints, in order, as you wind your way alongside a beautiful lake and through the gently rolling terrain, meadows, and forest cover. The "Stony Stumble" label for this event comes from the remains of the cinnabar mining that occurred here in the late 1800s.
About the Courses
There are three course options to tempt you—5 km, 10 km, or 10 miles—all with a mass start at 10:00 AM (you can start later if you miss the mass start).
Note that these courses are not just for runners. You may jog or walk as well, just so you are back by 2:00 PM.
Run on or off trail—going cross country is permitted in this park—but take care not to enter one of the areas marked with red hash marks on your map, as these indicate out-of-bounds areas (entering those areas can jeopardize our use of the park in the future). You can take whichever route you think will get you to each of the checkpoints the fastest. Kinda like the original Dipsea (except that there are no major hills to climb on any of the courses!).
You will be given a course map just before the start to find marked checkpoints along the trails. You can follow someone, but beware that they may not be taking the best route! Reading the map will not be difficult, but it will be important to follow the map carefully to stay on course. While it's unlikely that you will get lost, facing the unexpected is part of the challenge! When in doubt as to where you are, just orient yourself to the lake. You do not need to be an expert navigator. However, the better you navigate, the faster you finish. You can cover most of the courses by sticking to trails, but if you figure out the shortcuts, you'll triumph over your less-navigation-savvy friends. You can bring your GPS, they are allowed, as are altimeters and any and all additional navigational aids that you desire. We will have compasses available at registration, but it won’t be necessary to use one if you are not comfortable with them.
There are no major hills to climb on any of the courses. Spring Lake Park is very popular, so be sure to give right-of-way to vehicles, bicyclists, etc.
At each checkpoint, there will be an orange and white 1-ft tall "control" (marker) with an electronic box to record your visit. Similar to a chip timing system, the runner will carry the "chip" attached to a finger strap and will "punch" the electronic box at each checkpoint. This will record (i.e., "prove") your visit to each checkpoint. You must visit the checkpoints in the order indicated on your map to complete the course successfully. All of the above will all be covered in the pre-race instructions.
The courses are designed in loops. The 5 km runners will complete one loop, 10 km runners two loops, and 10-mile runners three loops. For the 10 km and 10-mile courses, you will pick up a new map at the Finish before going out on the next loop. The Finish/exchange area (which is 100 meters from the registration area) will have an aid station stocked with snacks and water, similar in design to the Annadel Loop de Loop.
Here are the details of the loops:
- Loop 1: 5 km, 70 m climb, 14 controls
- Loop 2: 5 km, 100 m climb, 15 controls
- Loop 3: 6 km, 110 m climb, 13 controls
Therefore the courses have these climbs:
- 5 km course = Loop 1 = 70 m climb, 14 controls
- 10 km course = Loops 1 + 2 = 170 m climb, 29 controls
- 10 mi (16 km) course = Loops 1 + 2 + 3 = 280 m climb, 42 controls
The distances are based on actual running distance, not straight-line distances. (The straight-line loop distances are 4.4, 4.5, and 4.9 km, but those numbers will not appear on the maps or descriptions.) You may cover slightly less or more distance, depending on your route choices.
Some controls are used in more than one loop; the total number of unique controls is 29. All controls are located next to trails. The technical level of all three courses is easy (White to Yellow), with loop 1 being somewhat easier than loops 2 & 3.
The maps are printed at 1:7500 scale with 5-meter contour intervals.
Are you up for the challenge?
Event Schedule
Registration will open at 9:00 AM at the Oak Knolls Picnic Area in the south end of the park. After registering, anyone not familiar with our maps or should take the free clinic in map reading. A course briefing with more information will be provided at 9:45 AM. A mass start will take place nearby at 10:00 AM. All participants must be back by 2:00 PM. Registration will stay open until 12:00 noon for those who miss the mass start.
Event Facilities, Recommended Gear
Picnic tables, piped water, and flush toilets are available. It is recommended that you bring a hat, sunscreen, your own water bottle, comfortable shoes with good traction, and a watch. If you have a compass, bring it, otherwise you can ask to borrow one of ours when you check in at Registration. A whistle is always a good item to carry with you, and we have free small plastic whistles if you need one. You are responsible for your own safety, so bring with you what you think you need (you can bring a GPS if you desire).
Refreshments and Results
After you complete your course, have some snacks and swap stories from your adventure! We will recognize the top male and female participants for each of the three distances, plus the top Masters (40 years of age and over) and the top Juniors (20 years of age and younger) in each gender.
Registration
Secure registration is open through Event Register by Orienteering USA (https://orienteeringusa.org/eventregister/). You might need to scroll down the page, and note that there is a separate link for each course—5 km, 10 km, or 10 mile. You may also register at the event, but it's easier overall to do it online, especially if you prefer to pay by credit card. (Also, it's very helpful to the organizers to know how many people to expect.)
Please note that even if you register ahead of time, you will need to check in at the event, to pick up your SPORTident (if you don't have your own) or to register your personal e-stick, so we can enter you in our results system.
If you are unable to attend the event, we will transfer your fees to a future TrailCross event. Unfortunately we are unable to give refunds.
Costs
The event fees listed below include use of a SPORTident electronic e-stick to "punch" at each control, the use of a compass (while supplies last), and a small plastic whistle. Please bring your own compass if you have one. Snack food and water will be provided free of charge at the Aid Station, which will be located near the Finish. Also included in the cost is a clinic on map reading using maps from prior years (you don't get the actual course maps until 10:00 AM).
You may go as a group (or follow someone), but each person will need to register and pay separately.
Technical, short-sleeve TrailCross Series T-shirts are $7. They can be obtained only with event registration.
Lastly, please note that if you don't have a Sonoma County Regional Park pass, there is a $7 entrance fee per vehicle payable at the kiosk.
Member of BAOC, GCO, or any other Orienteering USA club
Regular Event-Day
(before or on (on or after
Course Category Tues 4/30) Wed 5/1)
10 mi Adult $23 $28
Junior (*) $8 $8
10 km Adult $18 $23
Junior (*) $5 $5
5 km Adult $13 $18
Junior (*) $3 $3
(*) Juniors are age 20 and younger.
Non-member
Regular Event-Day
(before or on (on or after
Course Category Tues 4/30) Wed 5/1)
10 mi Adult $28 $33
Junior (*) $8 $8
10 km Adult $23 $28
Junior (*) $5 $5
5 km Adult $18 $23
Junior (*) $3 $3
(*) Juniors are age 20 and younger.
BAOC membership will be available at the event, or you can join by submitting the BAOC Membership Application before the event.
More Information
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions on TrailCross and a list of the remaining four TrailCross events are available here.
If you're interested in events that are more off-trail, please check the Bay Area Orienteering Club schedule to see upcoming events. Also check out the BAOC Wilderness Scramble Series for events where you pick your own route.
Driving Directions
Take Highway 101 north toward Santa Rosa. Once in Santa Rosa, exit onto Highway 12 going east. Follow Highway 12 for 1.5 miles to where Highway 12 makes a left turn at Farmer's Lane. Do not take this turn, but instead, continue onto Hoen Ave. Go 1.5 miles to the traffic light at Hoen and Summerfield. Continue straight on Hoen, then take an immediate left onto Newanga Ave. Newanga leads into Spring Lake Regional Park. At the ranger's kiosk, make a right and go up the hill to the Oak Knolls picnic area.
If you don't have a Sonoma County Regional Park pass, there is a $7 entrance fee per vehicle payable at the kiosk.
There's a map here that shows the location of the event.
(Note that there are two entrances to the park, and they are not connected inside the park. If you go in the "wrong" entrance, you'll have to walk farther to the registration area.)
Public Transit
The closest bus route to this entrance of Spring Lake Regional Park is Santa Rosa City Bus #2 (Bennett Valley), which has a stop at the intersection of Summerfield and Hoen. Please check Transit.511.org (http://transit.511.org/schedules/index.aspx#m1=S&m2=bus&cid=SR) for details.