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IOF WORLD RANKING EVENT BULLETIN 1/2 PRELIMINARY INFORMATION AND INVITATION

WELCOME - "CÉAD MÍLE FÁILTE"

The Irish Orienteering Association (IOA) is pleased to host an IOF World Ranking Event (WRE) as part of the Irish Championships (IOC), and invites competitors to take part in the weekend's events. They are being jointly organised by Great Eastern Navigators (GEN) and Three Rock Orienteering Club (3ROC).

VENUE

The events are being held on Carlingford Mountain (589m) that is close to the medieval village of Carlingford. The three events use different parts of the mountain area. Contact the Carlingford Tourist Office for local and tourist information in this area.

EVENT CENTRE

The Event Centre is The Foy Centre, Dundalk Street, Carlingford, which is close to the centre of the village. It's map grid reference is J188 115. The Event Centre also contains the Fusion restaurant that serves breakfasts, lunches, and evening meals.

TRAVEL

Carlingford is 107 km from Dublin and 80 km from Belfast. Low cost airlines fly to both Belfast and Dublin with the latter airport being close to the M1 motorway that now runs to the north of Dundalk. Car ferries operate from Holyhead to Dun Laoghaire and Dublin Port , Fishguard to Rosslare, and from Cairnryan or Stranraer to Belfast (more convenient for the event) or Larne.

Please note that if you are bringing a minibus with more than 7 passengers, the driver must have an appropriate licence to conform with EU regulations.

PRELIMINARY PROGRAMME

Friday 28 April 2006

Day 1 Saturday 29 April 2006

Day 2 Sunday 30 April 2006

Day 3 Monday 1 May 2006

GENERAL INFORMATION

EMBARGOED AREA

The open mountain area of Carlingford Mountain as defined by the orienteering map on this website is embargoed for all competitors.

ACCOMMODATION

All competitors are responsible for arranging their own accommodation. Some details of accommodation are given on the website and a link is provided to the Carlingford Tourist Office that should be able to assist with accommodation. Accommodation varies from hostels (cost approx €20.00 per night) to 3 Star hotels (cost €150.00). Any WRE competitors having difficulty in arranging accommodation should contact the Organisers. Some self catering bunk accommodation will be is available at the Event Centre, and anyone interested should contact the Organisers in advance.

Please note that the event is taking place over a busy holiday weekend, and with the general popularity of Carlingford, competitors are advised to arrange their accommodation and restaurant bookings as soon as possible.

CLIMATE

Variable in that it could be 20° C on bright sunny days or have sub zero temperatures on the upper reaches of the mountain on cold days. More normal are mild days. In the case of rainy days the upper reaches of the mountain are likely to be covered in mist and, given the exposed nature of the terrain, winds can be quite strong.

TRAINING/MODEL EVENT

The IOC Middle Distance Event on Saturday 29th could be used for training as it is adjacent to the Long Distance Event area, and its features are similar. However maps for this event will be at a scale of 1:7500, and to familiarise competitors taking part in the IOF World Ranking Event and IOC Long Distance Event on the following day, maps of the Middle Distance Event area, at the scale of 1:15000, with all of the sample controls marked on, will be available for sale at the Registration and Information point in the Assembly area from about 14:15. The controls in this area will be lifted after 16:00.

PREVIOUS MAP

The map that covers the complete competition area was produced in 1992, and is available on this website. Copies of the map are available by post on receipt of €3.00. It is being revised for the event. Only the more prominent (over 1m) rock features are marked on the map. The crag symbol with tags indicates vertical crags. The crag symbol without tags indicates crags that form part of the slope but are still significant rock features.

PROGRAMME, START LISTS, AND RESULTS

Programmes, start lists and results will not be sent by post unless requested with the entry form, at a cost of €3.00, and accompanied by two self addressed envelopes. Bulletin 3 will be posted on this website by 28 March 2006, and will contain final details of the events. A complete start list will be posted on the website from 21 April 2006 and will be displayed in the Event Centre from Friday 28 April 2006. Provisional results will be displayed at the Assembly area for each event and final results will be displayed at the Event Centre after the events. They will also be available shortly after each event on the results page of this website. Split times will be available on Winsplits and Splitsbrowser.

TRANSPORT

No public transport is available to the Middle Distance and Relay areas. The Assembly area for the IOF World Ranking and IOC Long Distance Event is at the Event Centre in Carlingford village, and the starts are at least 30 minutes walk from there. The Middle Distance start is 15 minutes walk from its Assembly area, and the Relay start is 5 minutes away. Allow plenty of time to reach the starts.

PARKING

Parking in fields will be used for the Middle Distance and Relay Events, and in both cases the Registration and Information point will be located there. Parking for the Long Distance event will be at the Event Centre.

MEDIA

Media representatives should contact the Event Office if they require accreditation, information or assistance. PCs and Internet access will be available at the Event Centre in Carlingford.

DOGS

The open mountain area is used by the local sheep farmers and as it will be the lambing season at the time of the competition, no dogs are allowed in any of the competition areas, or at the Assembly and Parking areas for the Middle Distance and the Relay events. Dogs should be kept on the lead at the Event Centre.

SAFETY

In view of the exposed nature of the terrain, all competitors will have to wear their race number on the front of their O suits at all times and will have to carry a whistle. A policy of NO NUMBER NO GO will be enforced, as will NO WHISTLE NO GO.

All competitors compete at their own risk and the Organisers take no responsibility for accidents or items lost or stolen.

CLOTHING

Full body cover, with short sleeves permitted, has to be worn for all three events. The carrying of cagoules may be recommended or compulsory, depending on the weather. A notice as to this requirement will be placed at the clear and check SI stations in the Assembly areas, and it will be enforced by the Start Team.

PRIZES

Prizes will be awarded to the leading competitors in the IOF World Ranking Event and the Irish Championship events. No prizes will be awarded for the entry on the day courses.

PECULIARITIES

The SI stations will be hung vertically on the control stakes. These will be used at the Middle Distance event, and at the Training area, on the Saturday. An example of the controls will be on display each day at the Registration and Information point in the Assembly area.

CANCELLATION

In the event of cancellation for any reason, the Organisers reserve the right to retain all or part of the entry monies received, to cover incurred costs.

REGISTRATION

Separate entry forms are available on this website for the individual Irish Championship events, the IOF World Ranking Event, and the IOC Relay Event. The completed forms should be sent to:-

e-mail: ioc06entries@eircom.net

The forms and payment should be sent to arrive no later than 7 April 2006, or the 14 April 2006 in the case of the Relay entries. Late entries may be accepted at the discretion of the Organisers, where the fees will be increased by 25%. The starting draw for the IOF World Ranking Event will take place on 20 April 2006 and no WRE entries will be accepted after 19 April 2006.

PAYMENT

Payments should be made by way of Irish Euro and Sterling cheques or drafts, payable to IOC 2006. The Sterling amount can be calculated by multiplying the Euro total by 0.70. In the case of competitors from outside Ireland and Britain, they may pay on arrival, at the Registration and Information point in the Event Centre, or at the Assembly areas.

The fees for the events are:-

* IOC Competitors for classes M21E and W21E should enter on the WRE entry form
~ Junior teams only

VISA APPLICATION

Overseas visitors may need a visa to enter the Republic of Ireland, and the Government's visa information website, provides details of whether a visa is needed. Information on the procedure for applying for a visa and the forms are also available on the website. Competitors who require visas are advised to contact the Organisers for the required reference information, and are advised to submit their form to the Irish Embassy or Consulate in their country as early as possible.

EVENT OFFICE

E-mail: ioc06queries@eircom.net

EVENT OVERVIEW

CLASSES AND COURSES

IOC MIDDLE DISTANCE EVENT

The provisional planned length of the courses, and the classes are as follows:-

Courses or classes may be amalgamated or separated depending on the number of entries.

IOF WORLD RANKING EVENT AND IOC LONG DISTANCE EVENT

Courses 1 and 2 are those for the M21E and W21E classes of the IOF World Ranking Event. The estimated winning time of the M21E course is 90 minutes and that of W21E course is 75 minutes.

The provisional planned length of the courses, and the classes are as follows:-

Courses and classes may be amalgamated or separated depending on the number of entries.

IOC RELAY EVENT

The Organisers have changed the format of this competition from that used in previous years by introducing a handicap race for those competitors who are not taking part in the Open Premier, Women's Premier, and Junior classes. This uses the handicap system devised by the Scottish Orienteering Association that is designed to allow everyone to run an appropriate distance for their age class, and to produce similar winning times for each relay team.

With all of the classes starting together, and with all of the handicap teams running in the single overall handicap competition, it should make for very close racing when allowance is made for the handicapping. Courses for all of the handicap classes are based on an estimated winning time of 35 minutes, and the winners of the overall handicap competition will be the first to finish.

The handicap points for each class are:-

The handicap system allows for a mix of ages and sexes. For instance three M16's could make up a team of 12 points, or you could have one W35, one M40, and one W55.

The classes and courses will be:-

Courses A, B, C, and D will all be of the highest technical standard, while the Light Green, Orange, and Yellow courses will be of IOA Colour Course Standards.

The provisional planned lengths of the courses are as follows:-

Teams may be made up of competitors from different clubs to allow as many people as possible to compete. The organisers may not accept a combination team if it appears to be much stronger than the likely competition.

ENTRY ON THE DAY COURSES

These will be available on the 29th and 30th of April as part of the Middle Distance and Long Distance events. Entry can be made at the Registration and Information point at the Assembly area on Saturday 29 April 2006, and at the Event Centre on Sunday 30 April 2006. Entry on the day does not apply to the IOF World Ranking Event.

RULES, IOF EVENT ADVISOR, AND CONTROLLERS

IOA Competition Rules, 2000 Edition
IOF International Competition Rules for Foot Orienteering Events, 2004 Edition
IOF Guidelines for World Ranking Events, 2006 Edition

EVENT ORGANISATION

Last update: 23 March 2006