click here to download the Final Instructions.

Force Ten (Phoenix) 2008 – 16th & 17th August

Final Instructions

Thank you for your entry to our 13^th Long O event in the Kielder area. AMG Outdoor Ltd, parent company of Force Ten, Vango and Phoenix are supporting the event and we are very grateful to them. There are some excellent prizes, including tents, sleeping bags, sleeping mats and Trangia cookers.

Please read the enclosed Safety Notice carefully. Note that cagoules or windproof body cover must be carried.

Accommodation and Facilities

Camping is available at Kielder campsite, and you should pay the camping fees directly to the campsite management on arrival. Pre booking is advised (phone 01434 250291 or email jkkielder@fsmail.net). There is also a Youth Hostel in Kielder and camping 10 miles away in Bellingham. The Riverdale Hall Hotel in Bellingham is very nice, and does excellent food too. Food is served in the Angler’s Arms next to the event parking (but closed between 1500 and 1800 hrs). If you would like to eat there can you please book well in advance (01434 250072)

Your Entry: Start times have not been allocated for Day 1 - competitors can just turn up and go using the punching start. Start times are from 10:00 to 12:30 hrs on Day 1. Note however that you must report to registration first to complete a safety declaration and you will be issued a token authorising you to start.

Your SI card number will be checked at registration. If you are hiring an SI card, you can pick it up at registration. Note that on Day 2, you must be ready for your assigned start time if you are in the Chasing Start.

Travel: Kielder is at the NW end of Kielder Reservoir, accessed from the junction near Bellingham or alternatively via the Forest Drive from Byrness. Follow the large brown tourist signs.

Enquiries/Registration and Car Parking: Parking will be at the Angler’s Arms NY630934. Registration will be at the east end of Kielder Campsite, a few hundred metres to the west of the parking. Campers can of course leave their vehicles by their tents. Registration will handle SI card hire, entry on the day, and entry changes, as well as any queries. It will also issue orienteering maps for the permanent course. Unfortunately we have not been able to arrange an orienteering event this year.

Saturday – open from 8:30 to 19:30.

Sunday – open from 08:00.

Hired SI Cards: Those hiring an SI card/dibber will be able to collect it at Registration. The rental charge per dibber is £1 for both days (50p for a single day) and will be collected from you if you did not include it with your entry fee. Note that these must be returned at the download station on your last day – there is a charge of £25 for non returned/lost dibbers, but we hope this will not be necessary!! Should you forget to hand one in, please post it in a padded envelope or wrapped in bubble wrap (they need some protection) to Andrew Nicoll, 47 Holywell Avenue, Whitley Bay, NE26 3AQ. Remember to use the correct postage - an ordinary 1st or 2nd class stamp is insufficient due to the thickness of the package

Map: Extract from Stirling Surveys map for the 1997 Karrimor Mountain Marathon with some corrections for forest changes – felling and growing.

Scale 1:40,000

Contour Interval 10m - Note that this is different from previous years’ Harveys maps at 15m.

A4 in size, printed on waterproof paper. Course pre-printed with control descriptions on the front.

As there is no legend printed on the map, for those unfamiliar with mountain marathon maps copies of the legend together with blank copies of the map will be on display at Registration and at the Starts.

Control descriptions: Control descriptions are printed on all maps. They will not be displayed at Registration or the Start and no loose descriptions will be issued. Note that you must visit all the controls on your course in the given sequence.

Terrain: This year’s event will use the fells and forest to the north and east of Kielder village. This includes Deadwater Fell, West Kielder Moor and Grey’s Pike.

The hills rise from around 200m in the village to around 550m with some interesting winding valleys. A working forest covers a large part of the valley sides. Where the forest is shown as thick (solid green) it is. The areas shown as felled or new plantation are crossable but quite slow and hard going. Rides are generally easy going and the forest tracks are good.

Note that some forestry operations are due to start, and you may encounter forestry vehicles on the access tracks – please be aware and cautious.

On the fell itself heather can be quite deep, particularly on the slopes and, as it can be quite abrasive, lower leg cover is recommended.

Near to the village there are new mountain bike tracks – shown on the map as paths. If you should use these (it is obvious what they are when you see them) please be careful and remember that a bike going downhill at speed can manoeuvre less easily than you !

Course lengths:

Starts: Day 1 start will be approx. 2Km walk with 65m climb from the campsite.

Day 2 start will be approx. 750m walk with 30m climb from the campsite.

Finishes: Finish for both days is near the Registration area and car parking.

Day 1 course closing time is 18:30

Day 2 course closing time is 16:30

Please ensure that you finish by these times, even if you have to retire. See the Safety Notice.

On Day 2, controls will be collected progressively, starting with the first controls on the courses at 12noon and completing shortly after the course closing time.

Boundaries and Crossing points: Where the map shows crossing points, these must be used. Elsewhere, cross fences and walls with care. If you need to open a gate to pass through it, make sure it is closed behind you! Should you damage a wall or fence, or see such damage, report it at the campsite so that we can arrange to have it repaired.

On Day 1 course A crosses a high deer fence. The only crossing points are marked on the overprint and the line joining the controls is broken to indicate that there is a choice of crossing point. No other course is affected.

River Crossings: Streams north of East Kielder are usually easily fordable but you should use your own judgement about where to cross, particularly if the weather has been very wet. The planner’s advice is the river south of East Kielder, the Kielder Burn, should only be crossed on the bridges shown on the map – not highlighted on the overprint but standard symbols. This is only relevant to Day 2 and the bridges are on the optimum routes.

Controls: These will be marked with a control banner on a stake. The SPORTident control box will be on the ground and the control number will only be displayed on the box. In case the control box malfunctions, there will be a punch at each control. Start and Finish boxes will be mounted on a stake.

SPORTident Electronic Punching - The event is using SPORTident electronic punching. Each competitor (or pair) has an SI card (dibber). ‘Punching’ a control is done by inserting your SI card/dibber into the hole on the control box sited on the ground at each control until it beeps and flashes (this is almost instant, it may beep more than once but try not to let it beep more than two or three times) – in the event of no beep or flash, there is a conventional punch at each control. Use this to punch the edge of your map to prove you have been there. There will be a ‘clear’ station just before the start – this clears the previous event from your dibber. You will be asked to ‘punch’ a check box on the first start line and there will be a start control box at the last start line which must be ‘punched’ (so it is a punching start apart from those in the Day 2 Chasing Start between 0900 and 1000). All this will be very obvious once you are there!

Remember to use your SI card/dibber at each control and at the finish. Also after finishing, return to the download station (same location as Registration). Here the contents of your SI card are read into the computer which checks that you have visited all the controls in the correct sequence. You will then receive a detailed results printout. If you should miss out or forget to punch a control or if you take them in the wrong order, then you will be disqualified! For those new to this system, it quickly becomes familiar but feel free to ask questions either at registration or at the start.

You must report to Download after you have finished (or retired), so we know that you have finished and don’t start organising search parties for you!. Results will be displayed at Download.

Start Times, Day 2 - There will be a Chasing Start on Day 2 for all those finishing within 60 minutes of the leader on each course (C and C Pairs are on the same course and are combined for this purpose, likewise D and D Pairs). There is a timed start for people in this group. You must be on time! The second group of starters is those who entered on Day 2 only. The third group, those who finished more than 60 minutes after the leader’s time, will be in reverse order from slowest to fastest. These last two groups will be allocated times, but there will be a punching start for competitors in these two groups.

09:00 – 10:00 Chasing starts Timed start

10:00 – 10:09 Entry on Day 2 only Punching start

10:10 onwards Remaining competitors at 1 minute intervals Punching start

Lists of Day 2 start times will be posted at Registration on Saturday evening. By 4 pm or so on the Saturday, the results for Day 1 should give you a very good idea of your likely start time on Day 2.

Pairs Classes: a reminder that competitors in the Pairs classes must keep together. In particular both members of the pair must visit each control together and must arrive at the finish together.

Veterans’ Competition: this uses our normal handicapping system - details on the web site.

Prize Giving: we hope to hold the prize giving at about 14:00 on the Sunday near Registration.

Orienteering Event – there is no organised orienteering event but map packs for the Kielder Burn Permanent Orienteering Course will be available at Registration.

Slow Competitors - Slow competitors are just as welcome as fast ones! However it will be helpful to let us know (at Registration) if you intend to walk on a longer course or if you expect to be out for more than 6 hours. Whilst you are responsible for yourself at the event, we do make a check that everyone has returned and this will help us avoid the premature arrangement of a search operation. You must be back by the course closing time each day – see above.

Responsibility and Safety: please note that competitors use the event facilities and take part in the event at their own risk. See Safety Notice.

GPS Systems and similar: may not be used during the event. Altimeters are permitted.

Dogs: may not be taken with competitors on their course.

Results: Results will be posted at the Download Point each day. Results booklets will be posted to competitors who provided envelopes for them. The results will also be posted on our web site. A complete list of split times will also be posted on the web site.

Toilets: Campsite toilets at Kielder Campsite. Also public toilets by Kielder Castle.

Shops: Small local store in Kielder.

Telephoning: Mobile reception is very variable in the area, but mostly non-existent. There are public telephones on the camp site, in Kielder and at Leaplish.

Once again, thank you for supporting the event and we look forward to another enjoyable weekend.

Entries Andrew Nicoll Tel : 0191 252 2383 email : andrew@nicoll.co.uk

Organiser Colin Matheson Tel : 0781 4398145 email: freefall.matheson@btopenworld.com

Planner Adrian Barnes

Controller Patrick Smyth

Event web site http://www.newcastleorienteering.org.uk/phoenix/phoenix.html