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Volunteer Appreciation Event

Bon Tempe Reservoir

Date: Dec. 3 - 4, 2016
Location: Fairfax, CA
Event Director: - 510.525.1574
Course Setter: George Minarik
Type: C; Annual Volunteer Appreciation Event; LIMITED ATTENDANCE; RESERVATIONS REQUIRED

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


Alert: Registration is now closed for both Saturday and Sunday

A waitlist is available for those who missed registration and would like to wait for a cancellation.


This is our annual Volunteer Appreciation Event’’ on a new map at Bon Tempe. We love our volunteers!

On Saturday, December 3, and Sunday, December 4, we will celebrate the contributions of our volunteers by offering some great orienteering, followed by a holiday party that will include a variety of food and drink. All on a new map created by Bill Cusworth with Lidar contours.

Bon Tempe Reservoir is a beautiful orienteering area on the slopes of Mt Tamalpais near Fairfax in Marin County. The terrain is quite varied, and includes some great redwood forest and wonderful views. Most of the terrain is nicely runnable, although there are some steep parts.

The event is free. Pick either Saturday or Sunday, since the courses for each day will be the same.

Brown, Green, and Red courses will be offered. The course stats are below. Notes on the courses will be published later.

Here are the revised criteria for eligible volunteer participants:

This event is by preregistration only and the attendance is limited by the park administration (the Marin Municipal Water District [MMWD]). Registration is now closed (the entry deadline was Friday, November 25th).

If you missed registering on time, we will put you on a waitlist in case of cancellations. Send an email to with the following information:

  1. Your name
  2. Your preference for Saturday, December 3, or Sunday, December 4
  3. Your course preference: Brown, Green, or Red (see the details below)
  4. The number of your E-stick (yes, there will be E-punch!)

If you are already registered you may modify your race day or course before the event as long as there is space available. (The allotments are full for both days, so changing the day might not be possible.) Send an email to with your request.

Again, you must be preregistered to attend this event. If you just show up without registering, you will not be allowed to run a course.

We will need the following volunteers: Saturday and Sunday setup and take down, Saturday and Sunday E-punch operators, control pickup on Sunday, bring a holiday snack or drink.

This event is free to all participants. Well, okay, there is an expense​—​there is a park toll of $8.00 per car at the ranger kiosk. This kiosk is staffed sometimes, but usually not, so you will most likely need to use their electronic toll machine that takes cash up to $10 bills, but it does not always return change! You can also use your debit or credit card to pay at the machine.

BAOC is a great, all-volunteer organization. Thank you all for making it happen.

George & Leslie Minarik


Schedule

Be sure to read the check-in and start procedures below.

Saturday

Sunday

Courses

Here are the details of the courses:

    Course    Distance    Climb   Controls
    Brown      3.7 km     180 m      12  
    Green      4.9 km     245 m      15
    Red        6.2 km     315 m      19

There will be a one-kilometer walk from the registration/parking area to the Start. The Finish is adjacent the registration area.

Be sure to read the Course Notes below for more information.

Check-In and Start Procedures

We will have a remote Start, a 1 km walk along a mostly flat trail​—​takes about 15 minutes. You will pick up your map at check-in, but it is prohibited to look at it until after you punch the START punch.

Upon arriving at Registration:

  1. Check-in your E-stick.
  2. Sign the waiver.
  3. Pick up map and control description packet.
  4. Follow mapped route along trails to the Start, 1 km. There will be no streamers. Stay off the road.
  5. Enter your name on the self-signup sheet​—​a start is OK every 2 minutes.
  6. CLEAR & CHECK your E-stick.
  7. Put your walk-to-start map in the provided container.
  8. At your selected start time, punch START.
  9. Look at the map and go!

Course Notes

The new map is of IOF standard. The scale is 1:10000 with 5-meter contours.

Because of a forest thinning program, some areas mapped as green have become very runnable. You may also notice wood piles from this thinning process that are not mapped.

A circle (event-specific special item) is used as a control description on all the courses. This indicates a group of redwoods, aka a fairy ring.

There are two water stops each on Red and Green. There is one water stop on Brown. There is water at the remote Start.

There may be poison oak out there, but I haven't been able to identify any of it.

All the courses cross roads with light traffic.

Thanks to

Driving Directions

The first challenge of the event is to locate it! Due to MMWD rules, no directional signs will be posted. There are several ways to get to Bon Tempe from Highway 101 in Marin. the default route is listed here:

From Highway 101 in Greenbrae, take the Sir Francis Drake Blvd exit, and go west for 5.5 miles to the town of Fairfax. Turn left at Claus Dr (Rino gas station on the right), and then immediately take another left onto Broadway. Turn right at the next corner, which is Bolinas Rd.

Stay on Bolinas Rd for 1.5 miles. Turn left at the large, brown, wooden sign with white lettering that says "Lake Lagunitas". Stay on this road until you reach the ranger kiosk. Pay the entrance fee ($8 per car) at the pay-and-display machine (see comments above).

Proceed on the paved road to the parking lot at the very end. (Do not turn right onto the gravel road to Bon Tempe Dam.)

There's a map here that shows the location of the event.