Chasers Training at Black Beck

On Saturday I went to the Chasers Club Training which was held at Black Beck in the Lake District. I woke up at 6am and picked up Dave Brown and Simon Griffiths for a long drive up the M6 for a 10am start.

There were a variety of different courses. I started off with a follow the line course which was quite difficult and ended up straying off the line several times. I then tried the compass and pacing course which looked like one of the most difficult courses as there were only small sections of the map with the remainder blank. I found the first three controls without any problem, but then got a little lost and it started to rain heavily so that was that. I then retired to the club tent and had an early lunch as it literally bucketed it down. Once the heaviest rain had moved on I decided to do the long legs course which was quite straight forward and finally had a go at the simplification where I managed to complete half of the course before being unable to find number 4 so retired back to the club tent. By this stage I already had a long day so had rest for the last 45 mins before the novelty 'head to head' sprint races. I managed to win 3 and lose 1, but the main point was to make quick decisions in technically difficult terrain. Overall, the training just hit home how am I unused to proper TD5 terrain. A big thanks to Cath (organiser and planner) and Emily (control setter) for a good day's training - shame about the rain!

After the training we retired back to Hawkshead Youth Hostel for a shower and then to watch the first half of the England/Ireland Rugby game (what a disgrace..., unless you are Irish!). Then dinner comprising of Soup, Bangers, and Sponge Pudding. The evening was rounded off with some Marston's Pedigree and general orienteering discussion for a couple of hours. I had a quick look at Compass Sport magazine and am tempted to sign up as it looks a lot better than I remember.

Overall, a great day was had by all and was also a good social occasion.

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