Got in an email from Bob Roncker:
I am often asked, “Bob, what do you do now that you are retired”? Along with the normal replies I add that I have restarted a past involvement with the sport of orienteering and Orienteering Cincinnati, the local orienteering organization. I am contacting you to inform you of a new local upcoming orienteering event that may be of great interest to you.
First - What is orienteering?
Orienteering is a fun way of training and competing. You use your skill of finding one's way through a series of checkpoints on an unfamiliar course using a map and a compass. Typically, a course is set in a wilderness area and the participants are timed as they complete it.
Orienteering challenges both mind and body. The key to orienteering is the ability to make wise decisions, rather than the ability to run like a deer. Hence, it’s called "The Thinking Sport". Out in the woods, you must make decisions and calculations; reading the map, recognizing the terrain, choosing routes, setting the compass, and sometimes counting paces. This mental challenge makes orienteering consistently stimulating.
It can be a way to experience nature and the outdoors in a new way or it can be a competitive event where time is critical. Orienteering adapts to all ages, experience and abilities.
What is QCARS?
The Queen City Adventure Running Series (QCARS) is a series of six events held at parks and other venues in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. Each event will feature two races in which participants use a map and compass to locate hidden checkpoints. One race will be suitable for beginners and the other race for more experienced navigators.
Both races will be less than 3 km if you travel straight between each checkpoint. You can go at your own pace, according to your navigation skills and foot speed. Some participants will take their time and enjoy seeing their favorite park in a whole different way. Some participants will go fast in order to best other competitors or attain a personal record. Whatever your goal, you will have an adventure!
Event Locations
6/08/19 Burnet Woods
6/22/19 Sharon Woods
7/13/19 Northern Kentucky University
7/27/19 Mt. Airy Forest
8/10/19 Tower Park, Fort Thomas
8/24/19 Eden Park
Event Logistics
Each event takes place on a Saturday, with a start window from 10:00 a.m. to noon. Participants should be off the course by 1:00 p.m. Free instruction is available in the registration area. Your entry fee includes a pre-marked map and timing chip, which records your visit to each of the checkpoints.
Registration
You’ll find entry fees to be considerably less expensive than those of typical road races. Online registration for the entire series at
www.ocin.org is $30 (this includes a $15 OCIN membership) or you may sign up for an individual event on the day that it takes place ($5 members and $10 non-members). But, as an added inducement, for you and a small group of key people, if you mention my name at registration, Orienteering Cincinnati will waive the registration fee for the first event that you attend.
I believe, if you give orienteering a try, you will enjoy it and you will find that it complements your current exercise program. Bring a friend with you! I look forward to seeing you with map in hand. Many of you initially joined a store related running or walking group and found it to be a life-changing experience. Do you want to miss this opportunity of not venturing into a new activity and missing the many outcomes that may result?
For Additional Contact Information
Gregory Fasig – President of Orienteering Cincinnati
gregfasig@outlook.com
513.621.7751
