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Public Event at Scout-O Championships

Briones Regional Park

Date: (Sat.) Sep. 24, 2022
Location: Lafayette, CA
Event Director: - 925.934.6567
Course Setter: Gavin Wyatt-Mair
Type: B; Open Event for non-Scouts — Regular 7-course BAOC event in conjunction with the Scout-O Championships

Related Event Information

Event Announcement Concurrent Scout-O Champs


Meet Director's and Course Setter's Notes

By

We return again to Briones Regional Park for the 28th Bay Area Scout Orienteering Championships and public event!!

Note that the event is on Saturday!

All scouts and non-scouts are invited to attend, run a course, and have a generally good time! The forecast is for fine, warm weather. It is a good area for picnics, so bring your friends and your family and enjoy the park as well as the orienteering challenge. We will have some snacks for you to eat afterwards.

This year's courses are fast. Run-ability is excellent, with the lowest climb ratio we have ever had for this park. All the courses include a small Maze in the middle, with its own map​—​it should be a nice puzzle!

Note: By order of the Park District: NO SMOKING ANYWHERE. DRIVE ONLY ON ROADS.

Maps

The scale is 1:7,500, with 7.5 m contours, except 1:10,000 for the Red and Blue courses, and 1:1,000 for the small Maze.

Briones vegetation has changed​—​some map corrections have been made where the courses are impacted, but changes are not comprehensive. There are many unmapped new cow trails. Control circles and numbers are slightly reduced in size to aid with legibility in complex areas.

Courses 

                                                      Navigational   Physical
    Course        Distance      Climb      Controls   Difficulty     Difficulty
    White(1)       3.4 km     55 m, 1.6%      16      Easy           Easy  
    Yellow(2)      3.5 km     60 m, 1.7%      18      Easy           Easy
    Orange(4)      4.8 km     98 m, 2.1%      23      Moderate       Moderate  
    Short Brown    4.0 km     80 m, 2.0%      19      Moderate       Moderate
    Brown          4.7 km    100 m, 2.2%      21      Hard           Moderate  
    Green          5.7 km    145 m, 2.5%      24      Hard           Hard
    Red            6.8 km    165 m, 2.4%      27      Hard           Tough!
    Blue           7.9 km    195 m, 2.5%      32      Hard           Tough!

All Courses

The Start is about 0.85 km, with 75 m climb, from the assembly area. It takes 15–20 minutes to walk there. The Finish is at the assembly area.

There is limited water on the courses. You might want to carry your own!

Electronic punching with contactless SI-Air Beacon Mode is enabled. Please be sure to punch the CHECK unit to turn on your SI-Air (SIAC) finger stick, if you use one. The FINISH unit turns your SI-Air stick off.

Water features are dry. The star thistle is patchy, and the courses generally avoid it. Nevertheless, long pants are recommended. Poison oak is minimal. There are many cows on the courses​—​they won't bother you, but don't get too close to the calves, or mama cows will get upset. There is a short, steep, and possibly slippery ascent at the very beginning of the courses; ropes have been deployed to help you get up it if you need them.

All the courses have a small Maze in the middle​—​please do not jump or cross over fences or rails!

The Scout-O overlaps the White(1), Yellow(2), and Orange(4) courses.

Please set a good BAOC example for the scouts! Also, remember that horses have the right of way, and try not to scare them. Be polite to other park users please (this is a requirement for future permits).

Registration for this event will be open from about 9:00 to noon. The earliest start is at 10:00; the latest start at 12:30.

As mentioned above, bring water. The weather forecast calls for a high of 87°F, sunny, and no chance of rain.

Advanced Courses

The courses are very fast and open, but still require good navigation. The footing is good. The courses are designed with complex butterfly loops​—​be sure to carefully get the control order correct!

Note for the Blue Course: Make sure you use a SPORTident E-stick with a capacity of more than 30 controls. That is, do not use an SI-Card5 (serial numbers 1–499,999) or SI-Card8 (serial numbers 2,000,001–2,999,999).

Wildlife

We have seen include deer, eagles, coyote, skunks, hawks, buzzards, orienteers, turkeys, goats, cows, salamanders, and frogs.

Driving Directions

Coordinates: N37.9271,W122.1578

Registration will be at the West entrance to the park, off of Bear Creek Road. To get there, take Route 24 west from I-680 or 24 east from I-80. Exit at Orinda, and head north on Camino Pablo. After about 2 miles, turn right onto Bear Creek Road. After about 3.5 miles, the park entrance will be on your right​—​it is well sign-posted. (Don't be fooled by the parking area on the left​—​that's not it, but you could park there and walk if you like.)

Parking

There is a $3.00 park fee for parking.

The please do not park in south side of the east, dirt, parking lot. It is reserved for horse trailers.