Spring Lake Regional Park
Date: (Sun.) Sep. 17, 2006
Location: Santa Rosa, CA
Event Director: Judy Koehler - 707.778.1604
Course Setter: Dwight Freund (GCO)
Type: C; National Orienteering Day "Come and Try It" event for beginners; White, Yellow, & Fog-O courses
Event Write-Up
By Judy Koehler, Event Director
Fun was had by all at the Spring Lake Come and Try It event. Dwight Freund's courses were a hit. They were fun and interesting and did not require trudging around the lake, which we have done many times before. Times were reasonable and there was no one who did not successfully finish their course or who came in late (thanks, Jennifer, for making the course closing time clear in the clinics). Weather was sunny and warm. The park is people friendly and parking was not a problem, particularly since the Montgomery High Schools kids carpooled or were dropped off.
Thirty-seven tried the White course, with Selma Blanusa of Sonoma having the fastest time. Selma had such a good time that she then went out on the Yellow course. The majority of the entrants on the White course were from local schools, particularly Montgomery High School. Healdsburg High and Brookhaven also had representatives. Apparently their math teachers think that orienteering is good for their students. We also had 4-Hs come. One of those told me he was working on his camping badge.
Forty-three tried the Yellow course, with Joe Martindill of Montgomery High School having the fastest time. Most of those on the Yellow course were from the hiking group calling themselves the J A M E R S. They certainly enjoyed the event and stayed for their own social hour in the group picnic site. Our most represented family group was the Brand family who split up so each could do their own course. Sawyer Brand was an enthusiastic winner of one of our National Orienteering Day (NOD) prizes.
Compass reading was critical for the 5 who tried the Fog-O course. Although the controls were of Yellow level difficulty, and the terrain could be considered easy, having large sections of the map blank made it a challenge to those who tried. The best time was turned in by Joe Miller of Santa Rosa. In fact, all of the times on the Fog-O course were within 13 minutes of each other.
I was encouraged that the turnout included people from Vacaville, Glen Ellen, and Redwood City — areas normally beyond the reach of this event. It was helped, no doubt, by the article by Angela Borchert in the Daily Republic (a Solano County paper) the Thursday before the event. Angela not only promoted this event, but also our other two NOD events. Thanks Angela.
While the turnout may seem low compared to other events, it is actually within our range of prior September events in this park. But encouraging to me as Event Director is that, other than the volunteer crew, only a few had orienteered before. The 2 large groups that came, the J A M E R S hiking group and the Montgomery High School kids, were exactly the target audience for NOD. They expressed interest in the sport, other North Bay orienteering opportunities, and helped themselves to our handouts, schedule, old bulletins, and took in our map board and photo display. And, of course, the NOD prizes and snacks were a hit. I had a great day. I hope you did too.
Thanks to an Excellent BAOC/GCO Crew
Thanks to Scott Aster and Gary Kraght for being my mentors in my first adventure as an Event Director. They patiently answered my questions and gave me a lot of good advice in the weeks prior to the event. Scott and Gary also served as course vetters. I really appreciate Scott getting the permit and insurance when he was Event Director at the March Spring Lake event. Also, thanks to Scott for picking up the tents from the DeMosses, and to Gary for handling equipment, registration, and for suggesting the Fog-O course.
Thanks to my friends from the Gold Country Orienteers club for traveling long distances to support this event. Dwight Freund made multiple trips to get the courses just right. Thanks to Jennifer Kerr for ably handling the clinics for 2-1/2 hours virtually non-stop, and for helping with control pickup.
Thanks to Martin Taylor and Jim Hayes for helping with set-up and early starts and finishes. Thanks to Heidi Whelen and Greg Logan for handling late starts and finishes. Thanks to my parents Dick and Bette Koehler for coming by and for staying to help with the breakdown.
Thanks to my friends Becky Lofton and Phyllis Whearty for helping with publicity tasks prior to the event.
Thanks to Bob Cooley for creating the Fog O course from Dwight's yellow course, and for printing the maps before he left for Europe.
And thanks to ranger Jill Meuchel for her help and guidance to Scott and myself.
Results
Spring Lake Regional Park
Santa Rosa, CA
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Pl Name(s) Time
White Course (2.3 km, 45 m climb, 10 controls)
1 Selma Blanusa 26:10
2 Kathryn Cook, Sarah Farkas, Sara McGee 37:12
3 Maura Raffatto, Karin Dove, Emily Wei,
Nicole Brooke, Matt Klekman 38:18
4 Amber Brodie, Matt Wright, Kyle Fritz, Ben Carter 39:13
5 Mike Picazo, Rick, Denny & Nicky Tompkins 40:12
6 Mark Shealon, Alexa & Jordan Jayne 41:10
7 Sawyer Brand, Janice Sinclaire 42:08
8 Jusbaren Saquia, Sophia Trimboli, Ryan Chodora 42:18
9 Carla Lycette, Laura Lightfoot 44:04
10 Analisa Mandoli, Becca Cox, Rafael Escobar 46:32
11 Maggie McManus, Maddy Sweeney 46:53
12 Alex & Evan Coombs 47:45
13 Karen & Scott Miller 48:15
14 Halley & Jonathan Guild 52:42
15 Theresa & Murray Kay 1:03:42
16 Madison Leonard, Dana & Mikenna Martin 1:42:15
Yellow Course (3.6 km, 65 m climb, 12 controls)
1 Joe Martindill 33:10
2 Heidi Whalen 41:15
3 Jill Schaeter, Shannon Dejong, Martial Junquas 49:18
4 Langston Brand 51:12
5 Mark Burchill, Sharyn Belon, Nel & August Konrad 54:10
6 Dave Cordel, Kathy DeYoung, Ann Stillman 1:04:17
7 Liz Snyder, Judi Rummel, Will & Kathy Patten 1:08:12
8 Carson Brand 1:10:13
8 Rick Scripture, Jan Jensen, Lynn Morton-Weil 1:10:13
10 Gail Ross, Randy Luce, Bill Trowbridge,
John & Lynn Westoby 1:10:14
11 Bill & Dayna Wiebalk 1:11:16
12 Tom Brand 1:16:18
13 Jeff Hsieh, Melanie Naconzi, Adhish Yajnik 1:29:04
14 Forest Gilletti, George, Alex & Nate Kuhn 1:52:12
Second Course
Selma Blanusa 51:28
Fog-0 Course (3.6 km, 65 m climb, 12 controls)
1 Joe Miller 51:13
2 Tom & Judy Cronin 51:19
3 Jennifer Kerr 1:03:52
4 Greg Khanlarov 1:04:52