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Point Pinole Regional Shoreline

Date: (Sun.) Mar. 27, 2022
Location: Richmond, CA
Event Director: - 925.862.2978
Course Setter: Steve Gregg
Type: C; Our annual visit to this fun, fast park. White, Yellow, Orange, and Long Orange courses for beginner through intermediate (and advanced) orienteers

Please note that fees and time limits apply. Events are typically not canceled due to bad weather.


March 25th Update

I still need volunteers for these tasks: Early Starts, 9:30–11:00 (need 1); Control Pick-up, 2:00– (need 2); and Breakdown & Cleanup, 2:30– (need 2).

March 25th Update

I am looking for help running E-punch on Sunday. I will take the first shift and handle the bulk of the registration. I'd like to go out after registration is closed, so most of the second shift is just making sure that everyone downloads okay. It would be great if someone who has done it before volunteers, but I'll also accept trainees.


We return to Point Pinole Regional Shoreline (http://www.ebparks.org/parks/pt_pinole/) for our annual event. This year we have reserved the Palms Picnic Area as our event center. (This is the location we have traditionally used.) As a condition of our (pending) permit, all participants must park at the Giant Highway Parking Lot. Please do not park in the Atlas Road lot. The Palms Picnic Area is a short 5–10 minute walk along a paved walkway from the parking lot. A flyer for the park, which includes an overview map, is available here (1.5MB PDF) (https://www.ebparks.org/sites/default/files/Point-Pinole-map_0.pdf).

What is Orienteering?

An adventure! Discover the outdoors and discover yourself! You can explore a course by yourself or go as a team with your friends. You will get a highly detailed orienteering map, probably unlike any map you have seen before. The map will have a lot of detail on it, such as fences, boulders, lone trees, vegetation boundaries, and anything else you might see. Your course will be printed on the map.

Orienteering is easy to learn, a challenge to master, and incredibly fun! You can read more about orienteering here.

COVID-19 Precautions

With COVID-19 still an issue, please observe the following:

We will monitor any relevant regulations from the EBRPD and Contra Costa County, and announce them here if they impact our event.

Schedule

9:00 AM – 11:59 AM: Registration open
9:30 AM – 10:30 AM: Beginner clinics instruction (free)
9:30 AM – 12:30 PM: Starts are open for all the courses
                2:00 PM: Courses close, checkpoint control pick-up begins

At registration, all juniors must be accompanied by parents or legal guardians, or bring with them a waiver signed by their parent or legal guardian. (The registration form is available here (12KB PDF).)

Note that you can register and start on the courses anytime during the open times above. Thus, for example, you do not need to be "punctual" at 9:00 (but you can if you want, but please don't show up earlier and expect to be served).

Beginner clinics are 15–20 minute, repeating sessions that introduce the sport of orienteering, and provide enough instruction to be able to complete the beginner (White) course.

Note that you must return to the Finish by 2:00 PM, and then go to the download tent, even if you have not finished your course. Please do not leave without checking in! If there are unaccounted people after 2:00, we must initiate a search for them.

Costs

The following fees apply for this event:

  $3 for each junior on beginner (White) and advanced beginner (Yellow) courses
  $8 for each adult on beginner and advanced beginner courses
  $5 for each junior on intermediate (Orange and Long Orange) courses  
$15 for each member on intermediate courses
$20 for each non-member on intermediate courses
  $1 for a compass rental (optional)  
  $5 for an electronic fingerstick rental (if you don't own one; each group will need one to complete their course)
$15 for the lowest-cost individual one-year BAOC membership (optional)  

More information about event pricing is available in the club FAQ. All the prices are also shown on the standard entry form (12KB PDF), which you can print and fill out in advance to save some time at the event. (You will need one entry form for each group of people going on a course together.)

Notes:
  • There might be a park entrance fee, but only if the Kiosk at the parking lot is open. Typically, it has not been open during our past events.
  • At the event, we can accept payment by cash or check (but no electronic payments).
  • Juniors are age 8 through 20 (under age 8 is free).
  • There is no charge for a second course (but you must end up paying for the more expensive course​—​e.g., intermediate after beginner).
  • Members of other orienteering clubs can pay the "member" fee. (We hope your club would do the same for our members. 🙂)

Registration

Online registration has closed. You can register at the event.

You can see who has pre-registered here (https://eventreg.orienteeringusa.org/eventregister/a40/reglist/home/pointpinole2022) (but keep in mind that others will register at the event).

Venue Facilities

The event center will be at the Palms Picnic Area. Registration, E-punch sign-in/download and the Start/Finish for all the courses will be located here. This is the same location we used for our 2020 event, for our inaugural 1997 event, and for almost every event in between (i.e., our standard location). Driving directions are provided below.

Picnic tables, piped water, and toilets are available, so please feel free to bring along a picnic lunch to enjoy after you finish your course.

Note: We will not provide food or water at the event. So, bring any snacks you will want to eat after your run. You can either bring your own water or fill your water bottle from the taps.

What to Bring

For the beginner (White) course, comfortable outdoors attire and shoes are fine.

Hiking boots or sturdy running shoes are recommended for the Yellow, Orange, and Long Orange courses. Long pants and/or gaiters are suggested for the Orange and Long Orange courses.

A compass is not necessary, but can be quite helpful. We have compasses available at Registration for a $1 rental fee.

We time the courses with the SPORTident system, so each entry/team needs to have a SPORTident fingerstick. If you don't have your own, you can rent one at registration for $5. (Use of the "E-punch" system is easy. You can learn how at the event, or read about it here.)

All participants should plan to carry their own water when running a course. There will not be any water at control locations. Piped water is available at the event center.

Courses

The preliminary course statistics are below. Be sure to read the Course Setter's Notes for more information.

    Course        Distance   Climb  Controls  Navigation
    White          3.1 km     45 m     10     Beginner  
    Yellow         3.5 km     50 m     11     Adv. Beginner
    Orange         3.3 km     55 m      9     Intermediate
    Long Orange    6.5 km     90 m     17     Intermediate

Beginners should be aware that the distances shown are the cumulative straight-line distances between controls. Your actual distance will be somewhat longer and will depend on your route choices and any errors you make. For a rough estimate of how far you might actually go, mentally change "km" to "mi" (e.g., for a 3.5 km course you might travel 3.5 miles). The climb numbers represent the amount of ascending that would be done on the "optimum route" (in the Course Setter's opinion), without regard for any descending.

Since Point Pinole is one of our flattest BAOC venues, while still providing some forested navigational challenge, it is a very appropriate place for beginners to receive their initial introduction to orienteering.

Hazards

Poison Oak: Participants on all except the beginner (White) course will encounter some poison oak, which you will want to avoid. It looks like this. Washing clothes and shoes and bathing exposed skin with dish-washing soap or a commercial product such as Tecnu is recommended to remove the irritant oil.

Ticks: Ticks are found in this area and may carry Lyme disease. Be sure to check yourself after completing your course.

Possible Hazards

A herd of goats is used at this park to control vegetation. They were present in January when the course setter was on site, but were gone at the end of February. If they return, the courses will be adjusted to avoid the goats. (When the goats are present, they are moved from place to place without prior notification, and are contained using high-powered electric fencing. If you encounter such a fence, please do not attempt to cross the fence or disturb the goats.)

Horses are occasionally present at this park. Horses always have the right of way. If you encounter a horse, you must stop running and respond to the rider's direction.

A paved park roadway runs from the parking lot, past the event center, and on to a fishing pier at the northwest end of the park. In the past, there has been a Park shuttle making periodic trips from the parking lot to the fishing pier. It has been temporarily shut down due to COVID, but might be running again when our event takes place. Please yield the right-of-way to the shuttle. Do not congregate on the shuttle roadway near the event center. While walking/running along the roadway, please keep to the edge of the pavement and be aware that the shuttle could come up behind you unexpectedly.

Request for Volunteers

We can't make this meet happen without your help! Please help make this event a success by volunteering — even helping for part of a shift listed below will be helpful.

Please contact Gary Carpenter, the Event Director, if you can help (, 925.862.2978).

Driving Directions

Note: You want the Giant Highway park entrance, not the Atlas Bridge entrance, which we are not permitted to use.

The approximate coordinates for the parking lot are 37.992,-122.356. (Note: If you look for the park by name in Google Maps, you'll get wrong final directions. Instead, use the address 5551 Giant Highway, Richmond.)

To get there, take the Richmond Parkway exit off Interstate 80 in Richmond, and go west for 1.3 miles. Shortly after the stoplight at San Pablo Avenue, turn right at the next light onto Atlas Road. After 0.8 miles on Atlas, you will cross over a set of railroad tracks and encounter a stop sign. Turn left onto Giant Highway at this intersection (do not go straight). You will pass a detention center on your right, and the park entrance will be immediately after that, also on your right.

There is an entrance kiosk at the parking lot, but they might not be there to collect the $3 fee.

Please carpool if possible, since parking might be limited.

From the parking lot, walk up the hill, over the railroad bridge, and follow the paved path to the staging area.