All New Orienteering Venue!
Location:
Girdled Road Reservation – South Entrance
12926 Radcliffe Rd.
Concord Twp., Ohio 44077
Note that there are 3 park entrances to Girdled Road. Check-in and parking for our event will be at the South Entrance off Radcliff Road. Parking is limited so please carpool if possible and plan to arrive early.
Course Details:
- 2-Hour: Suitable for first-time orienteers of all ages – no experience necessary. Approximately 20 controls will be placed on or within a short distance from main park trails. To visit all controls, expect to cover 5-6 miles with about 70% of travel to be on a main trail and 30% off trail. (This can be more or less depending on route decisions.) As desired, controls can be skipped to shorten the distance and minimize off trail travel. One the flipside, the navigational challenge can be increased by taking more direct off-trail options. Choose this option if you are looking for an easier experience with options to customize difficulty level. Please see “New to Orienteering?” section below for more information on getting started.
- 4-Hour: For the more adventurous! Approximately 35 controls will be placed throughout the full 942 acre park. Expect to encounter challenging terrain with some steep sections. Advanced orienteering skills and good athletic ability will be needed to “clear the course” within the time limit. For those looking for a challenge but with less difficulty, all controls are optional which enables flexibility in how much to tackle. Estimated distance of 12 miles with 75%+ off-trail to visit all 35 controls.
Each control location will be assigned a point value based on the tens digit in the control code. Controls 110-119 will be worth 10 points, Controls 120-129 will be worth 20 points, and so on. Rankings will be based on total score with tie breakers going to the fastest time.
Participants that finish after their respective cutoff time will be subject to a point penalty of 10 points per minute late.
Teams of up to 6 are allowed, however all team members must stay together throughout the duration of the event.
Maps:
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Both the 2-hour and 4-hour versions will have different maps but will be printed at the same scale of 1:10,000 and 5 meter contours.
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Maps will be distributed approximately 30 minutes before the race start. Participants may use this time to preplan their routes. Make sure to bring highlighters or pens, and perhaps a clipboard.
Schedule
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Check-in at 9:00am (maps distributed at check-in)
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Mandatory instruction at 9:45am
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Mass start at 10:00am
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2-hour cutoff at 12:00pm
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4-hour cutoff at 2:00pm
Volunteers
Registration and Cost:
$10 with preregistration for NEOOC or affiliated O-USA club members, $15 for non-members. All participants must preregister – there will be no walk-up registrations for this event. Cost includes 1 map per team, and up to 6 people may be included in a team. Timing devices and compasses are available on loan for those who need them, subject to availability. Additional maps, up to 2 per team, are available at $3 each.
To preregister, please use the button below. Payment is via PayPal.
PLEASE REVIEW THE WAIVER OF LIABILITY AND ASSUMPTION OF RISK BEFORE PREREGISTERING. BY PREREGISTERING, YOU ARE AGREEING TO THE TERMS OF THIS WAIVER AND ARE ABSOLVING NEOOC AND ORIENTEERING USA , ET AL OF LIABILITY RESULTING FROM YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE ASSOCIATED ORIENTEERING ACTIVITY.
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Results:
- Will be posted to the NEOOC website soon after the event
- Livelox tracking will also be enabled for those who wish to view a replay of the event! (Make sure to carry a GPS enabled watch or phone and record your route!)
New to Orienteering?
Check out any of the following resources to help know what to expect:
- Look for Orienteering 101 events on the “upcoming events” page of the Northeast Ohio Orienteering website. These events are a great way to learn and practice on a small sample course.
- Special note: there will be an Orienteering 101 event at Jordan Creek Park on Saturday March 22, 2025. Sign up via Lake Metropark’s Events web page!
- Visit “About Orienteering” on the Northeast Ohio Orienteering website for general information, a sample map, and an instructional video.
- Anytime orienteering courses are available at Jordan Creek Park (Lake Metroparks), Richfield Heritage Preserve (Richfield Ohio), and Camp Tuscazoar (Tuscazoar Challenge). Download a map, grab a family member or friend, and go give orienteering a try!
Map Notes:
This is an all new map in 2025 and is up to IOF-2017 mapping standards. There are two dominant features of the park – the first being the large and often steep erosion gullies and valleys feeding into Big Creek. These are passable in places but challenging in others; a good read of contour lines should help distinguish. The map is clear about hazardous sections – these are mapped with thick black lines (impassable cliff symbol) for especially steep or rocky cliffs or hillsides that represent a danger. Extra care should be taken when near these areas, especially if approaching from above. Steep but passable sections between 2-5 meters are marked with thick brown erosion gully or earth bank symbols – these will pose a physical challenge but are climbable.
The second major park feature is Big Creek, which follows a winding path flowing from South to North. On most days the creek is shallow and passable with water depth between ankle and knee high. However depending on snow melt or rainfall this may rapidly change to fast moving and deeper water and present a hazard. The Event Director will indicate the creek conditions before the event and if Big Creek is out of bounds to cross. There is one safe way to cross Big Creek in almost any condition, which is a large swinging bridge connecting the main trails to Skok Meadows. The bridge itself is a mini-adventure and worth checking out!
The main trails through the park are multi-purpose including horseback riding. Please use courtesy and give right away to horses.
Mapped vegetation has been calibrated to leaf-out seasons April to October and visibility will be better than indicated on the map during any other month. A green “X” symbol indicates a large rootstock at least 6 feet in height. The forest contains a fair amount of deadfall throughout the park, and this is mapped only in limited instances where runnability is significantly reduced. There are several varieties of thorny plants and some are razor sharp. Dense thickets are usually indicated as dark green (“vegetation, fight”) and are areas to avoid especially late-Spring through fall.
Volunteers:
The Northeast Ohio Orienteering Club (NEOOC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the sport of orienteering. It is run entirely by volunteers. Typical volunteer roles in need include course setting, control collection, marketing, and event welcome and registration. If you are interested in helping with this event, or any events in the future, please connect with the event director or send an email to contact@neooc.com. Thank you in advance!
Additional Information:
- Make sure to dress for the weather. Long pants and trail running shoes or hiking boots are recommended as a minimum for any weather conditions.
- NEOOC volunteers will be on standby at registration to assist beginners and provide some basic instruction.
- Teams must stay together at all times. Please do not split up while on a course.
- Please carry a whistle. Three (3) short blasts from a whistle indicates an emergency.
- All participants must “check out” at the finish area to ensure everyone is safe and accounted for. This applies even if the course is not fully completed.