Washington Urban

• Date: Sun 22^nd Nov 2026

A great event for everyone, whether experienced in urban orienteering or not. Washington offers a mixture of complex modern housing estates with a varied network of footpaths, underpasses and parkland. The roads are quiet and there is not a lot of height gain, particularly on the shorter courses.

Road running shoes are recommended, rather than orienteering shoes. Some route choices on the longer courses could take you through small areas of undergrowth. You might choose to wear trousers rather than shorts, or avoid those areas.

Assembly and download: Tents on grassy area opposite Washington Leisure Centre NE38 7SS, (adjacent to the finish). What 3 words //being.cling.parade, Google maps

Travel: Buses from surrounding area to Galleries Bus Station (10 minutes walk)

(Photo by Malc McDonald, CC BY-SA 2.0)

Driving: From A1(M) & A194(M) or A19 & A1231 follow Washington Highway A182 to exit “The Galleries” following brown signs.

Parking:
Filter left into The Galleries’ western car park (4 hours free). Park as close to ASDA as possible and walk towards and along the right side of ASDA, crossing the bridge to the Leisure Centre (5+ minutes). Parking location: what 3 words ///sage.waving.lots

NB: We do not recommend parking at the Leisure Centre, because the car registration must be entered at Centre Reception within 10 minutes of arrival to avoid a fine. The Centre says many first time visitors have been caught out.

Entry: Enter in advance via SI Entries before midnight on Sunday 15 November. £7 per adult and £2 per junior or student. Entry on the day also possible for courses 7 and 8 only, subject to map availability.

Courses: Subject to final controlling. The age categories are just a guide here: you can enter any course you like. If you’re new to orienteering, we advise starting off with Course 7 or 8 rather than entering your age class. The organiser will be happy to help you in advance and we will also be around on the day!

Course	No. of controls	Climb in m	Length in km	Men’s classes	Women’s classes
1	27	145	11.4	Men Open (M18-35)
2	24	140	10.3	Veteran Men (M40+)	Women Open (W18-35)
3	20	135	8.4	Super Veteran Men (M55+)	Veteran Women (W40+)
4	14	80	6.5	Ultra Veteran Men (M65+)	Super Veteran Women (W55+)
5	13	70	4.8	Hyper Veteran Men (M75+)	Ultra Veteran Women (W65+)
6	12	65	4.2		Hyper Veteran Women (W75+)
7	12	110	3.3	Junior Men (M16-)	Junior Women (W16-)
8	13	55	2.5	Young Junior Men (M12-), newcomers	Young Junior Women (W12-), newcomers

Course notes: Course lengths are given as optimal distances you could travel while avoiding physically impassable obstructions (like buildings, uncrossable fences) and ‘out of bounds’ areas. They are NOT distances ‘as the crow flies’.

Courses 7 and 8 feature mandatory road crossing points (underpasses) which MUST be used.  On the other courses, underpasses and a zebra crossing are optional, but advised.

Competitors aged under 16 at the time of the race may only enter course 7 or 8.

Punching: SPORTident electronic (SIAC enabled). For dibber loan apply with your pre entry. Dibbers are available for purchase from £32 upwards from SPORTident.

Map symbols: O on map = play equipment, X on map = bench

Forbidden areas as usual. Underpass symbol

Starts: 11:00–12:30, taped route from Assembly, 300 metres’ walk. Courses close 13:45.

Facilities: Leisure Centre: Toilets (all times) and Café (opening times vary). Shopping Centre: Toilets and Cafés.

Dogs: Under close control.

Officials: Organiser Kim Sanderson sandersonkim@hotmail.com,
Planner: Martin Edney, Controller: Julian Warren

Safety: Orienteering is an adventure sport. Risks have been assessed and hazards mitigated as far as possible.
Be aware of urban hazards and other users of the area – traffic, cycles and pedestrians: particularly at blind corners. Please take care of yourself and others. If there is an incident, please pause or stop while you check on the wellbeing of the person(s) concerned.

A quick reminder for newcomers: if you’re not currently a member of British
Orienteering, you won’t be covered by the organisation’s public liability insurance for
for claims from landowners or the public relating to this event. You’re very welcome to take part, but please be aware that you do so at your own risk.