Scout Orienteering Championships
Briones Regional Park
Date: (Sun.) Oct. 27, 2024
Location: Lafayette, CA
Event Director: 
- 925.934.6567
Course Setter: Gavin Wyatt-Mair
Type: B; DATE CHANGED! 30th annual Scout-O and Championships for all scout levels (pending park approval)
Related Event Information
We apologize — we have had to change the date for this event. The old date was October 6; the new date is October 27, 2024. The registration deadline is now October 21. Everything else is unchanged from previous information.
We are pleased to announce the 30th Annual Bay Area Scout Orienteering Championship.
Are you and your troop ready to test your map-reading and problem-solving abilities? Are you ready to pass the map-and-compass requirements for First Class, Second Class, or the Orienteering Merit Badge? The Bay Area Orienteering Club is pleased to offer the thirtieth annual Scout-O, a cross-country map and compass adventure designed to test the map-reading ability, compass skills, and woodsman savvy of any troop regardless of size or experience.
Girl Scouts, Daisies through Ambassadors, Boy Scouts, Cubs, Tigers through Webelos, of all ages are welcome. Instruction will be offered prior to the event, so that all Scouts, regardless of prior experience, will be able to take part in the actual competition. There will be courses of four distinct levels of difficulty, so that no Scout should encounter a challenge beyond his or her capabilities.
Who will be champions this year? Everyone stands a chance!! Some practice, some fitness, and some thinking will get you a long way. So come on out — bring your compasses, running shoes, and your brains — and have fun!
There will be patches. Anyone who has not yet received a patch for a prior year's event can get it at this year's event, or by contacting the Meet Director. The patches are "progressive", so that a scout can participate in multiple Scout-Os and add to his or her patch sequence.
The event will be held on Sunday, October 27, 2024 in Briones Regional Park (https://www.ebparks.org/parks/briones/), in Orinda. The park has been mapped to International Orienteering Federation (IOF) standards. The details shown on these 5-color maps far exceeds those available on even the newest U.S. Geological Survey topographical maps. Teams may keep their maps, so they will be useful for instruction and reference.
Preregistration is required for the event. It might be necessary to constrain the number of participants, so register early (first come, first served). Registration information is below.
Note that there will be a 20- to 30-minute walk from the parking lot to the Start. Please allow yourself time for that.
Water will not be provided on the courses. Please bring your own water.
We will have electronic punching again this year. Be sure to CLEAR and CHECK your finger stick before you start, and be sure to punch the START unit when you start.
A regular Bay Area Orienteering Club event will be held simultaneously at the same location, so anyone wishing to do a BAOC course is also welcome. Pass the word. More information is available on the page for the concurrent BAOC event.
For additional information, contact:
- Gavin Wyatt-Mair
- Tel. (775)-691-6384
- E-mail:
Schedule
The meet will be held on Sunday, October 27, 2024. Instruction will begin at 9:00 AM. The pre-assigned start time of each individual team will be determined by the entry date of their troop. In general, start times will begin at 10:00 AM and go until about noon.
The afternoon event will run from 1:15 to 2:45 PM.
The awards ceremony will begin at 3:15 PM, and the meet will be closed at 3:40 PM.
The pre-assigned start times will be posted here on Saturday, October 26th.
It is advisable to arrive at the meet by 9:00 AM. We will stick to the pre-assigned start times — it's less confusing that way.
Note: There is a 20- to 30-minute walk from the parking lot to the Start.
The Finish will be close to the Assembly Area and parking.
Remember: Everyone must report to the E-punch download tent, even if they have not completed their course.
Bring compasses, and remember, we go rain or shine!
Registration Information
All troops participating in the Scout-O must be pre-registered and prepaid.
Registration will close on Tuesday, October 21, 2024. The cost of the event is $10.00 per scout or participating leader. Choose your teams carefully, because they must remain together all day. Mixed-category teams are possible, but will compete on the course of the higher-ranking scout. Each troop may have one 3-person team to allow for odd numbers.
Registration forms were included in the bulletins that were sent to scout troops. If you do not have a registration form, we prefer that you download
this Excel spreadsheet (60KB), enter your troop's information in the file, and email the completed file to the Meet Director ().
If you are not able to use that file, you can use
this editable Word file (60KB) or
this printable PDF file (12KB), and (snail) mail the completed form to the Meet Director at the address below.
-
Note Regarding File Links: If you simply click on one of the file links on this page, your browser might open the file in the browser. To download a file to your computer, click on the link using the right-hand mouse button (or, if you're using a Mac, hold the control key and click). Then select "Save Target As...", or "Save Link As...", or whatever equivalent choice your browser provides.
Excel Spreadsheet (60KB) Editable Word File (60KB) Printable PDF File (12KB)
Troops may obtain registration forms and detailed information from the Meet Director:
- Gavin Wyatt-Mair
- 20 Folin Lane
- Lafayette, CA 94549
- Tel: (925) 934-6567 (home)
- E-mail:
Competitive Categories
The format for this year's Scout-O championships is described below. Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts of all ages are welcome, and the competition is arranged to accommodate any skill level. In addition, the courses are arranged to meet the map and compass requirements for First Class, Second Class or the Orienteering Merit Badge.
Scouts will compete against other scouts with the same orienteering experience. Four Scout courses will be offered, as described below.
The course details and Course Setter's Notes should be available before the event — be sure to read them.
- Course 1
- Daisies, Brownies, Cub Scout dens, Webelo dens, Tenderfoot, and Junior scouts — or scouts with very little (less than 2) prior orienteering experiences: Dens and younger scouts will run in groups of 2–6 with an adult advisor who should follow his or her group, not lead it; Tenderfoot scouts will run in pairs.
- Course 2
- Juniors, Cadettes, Seniors, Second Class, and First Class scouts — or scouts with minimal (2 to 5) orienteering experiences: Compete in pairs.
- Course 3
- Seniors, Ambassadors, Star, Life, and/or Eagle scouts, or scouts with substantial (more than 5) orienteering experiences: Compete in pairs.
- Course 4
- Advanced, experienced orienteers of any rank: Run alone on a typical Orienteering USA Orange-level course.
- Adult course
- All leaders and parents are invited to compete on a course similar to, but separate from, Course 3. They may run in groups or alone. Leaders/parents should also pre-register. Leader results are for bragging rights only, and will not affect troop scoring.
Note: Choose your courses carefully — there are more points available for doing the harder courses (we are encouraging scouts to "move up" a notch), but don't get on a course you can't finish, because then you will likely lose points. As a rule of thumb, the points available for Course 2 are about 10% more than Course 1. Course 3 is about 20% more, and Course 4 is about 30% more than Course 1.
Afternoon Meet
All scouts may compete in a troop event in the afternoon. Both morning and afternoon events will contribute to the troop total score to determine the troop championship.
Hint: The more scouts that attend from a given troop, the better the troop usually does. We combine the top N scouts' scores from the morning and afternoon events to get the troop score. The value N is set by the Meet Director on the day of the meet, based on conditions and attendance.
Prizes
Awards will be made to the best teams on each course. The champion troops will be determined by the results in all categories including the afternoon event. As in past years, there will be medals, certificates, and a Troop trophy.
There will be awards for the top "Junior" Scout troop (cubs, webelos, daisies, brownies, etc) as well as the top Girl Scout troop if a Boy Scout troop wins, or the top Boy Scout troop if a Girl Scout troop wins.
Each participant will receive a progressive (by course) participation patch.
Equipment
You will each need water, strong trail shoes, long pants (the park has stickers!), a pen or pencil, a watch, and a compass. You may want a hat, sunscreen, etc. if it's hot, or rain gear if it's rainy. Bring your own lunch and water.
Driving Directions
Registration will be at the West entrance to the park, off of Bear Creek Road. (This address might be useful: 1611 Bear Creek Rd, Lafayette, CA.) The approximate coordinates are N37.9271,W122.1578.
To get there, take Route 24 west from I-680 or 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, and is well sign-posted (don't be fooled by the parking area on the left — that's not it).
The park has an entry/parking charge of about $4 per vehicle (and $2 per dog [Guide and Service dogs are free]), collected at the entry kiosk (if and when it's staffed). Please carpool if possible, since there will probably be many scouts attending.