Newsletter Number 44, August 1998

PO Box 3,
Central Park,
3145, Victoria.
neil.phillips@bigpond.com, 61-3-95721784 fax
President: Neil Phillips

3rd World Rogaining Championships

The 3rd World Rogaining Championships are over, we have new world champions, and the consensus is that Kamloops was a great success. Despite record breaking heat (40oC at the Hash House each day) the leading team covered 110 km in amassing 3190 of a possible 3600 points.

Australians, Fins, Swedes, New Zealanders, Canadians and Americans were interspersed in the first ten places which bodes well for international rogaining. With three world rogaining championships since the IRF was formed in 1989, the plan of collaborating with local groups to stage these major events is proving a successful formula to foster international rogaining. The collaboration with the Sage Orienteering Club and strategic timing of 3WRC rogaine have proved important ingredients this time.

Message from the IRF President

(Sent to Organizing Committee at the start of 3rd World Rogaining Championships)

"To all organizers and participants in the 3rd World Rogaining Championships, my very best wishes for a most successful rogaine.

Six years ago Murray Foubister and Bob Reddick went to great lengths to organize a meeting whilst I was in North America so that we could open the topic of a World Rogaining Championships in North America. Due to their vision for rogaining, and the hard work of many event organizers and administrators since that date, we now have the 3rd World Championships in western Canada.

This same vision can apply today to look ahead to equally successful rogaines in other continents.

Major rogaines do not just happen and I want to acknowledge the efforts, commitment and faith of those behind these Championships. To Jim Fulton, Allan Stradeski, Murray Foubister and everyone else who has had a part in the Sage Stomp 98 and especially the World Rogaining Championships, well done and have a great rogaine."

Neil Phillips

Rules and Procedures

In their decision on a protest and appeal arising from 3WRC, the Appeal Committee of Peter Taylor, Peter Gagarin and Neil Phillips stressed the seriousness of teams splitting up in rogaines.

Team splitting and protest procedures are currently being reviewed by the Australian Rogaining Association Technical Committee following 3WRC. Input to this review would be welcome and is best directed to the ARA.

Alaskan Rogaine - Report by Phillip Holman

Tangle Lakes Rogaine, Alaska, July 25-26, 1998. This was the fourth rogaine organized by the Arctic Orienteering Club. The event was located near the town of Paxson, 5 hours north-east of Anchorage. The Hash House was located on the Denali Highway, with spectacular 4000 metre snow-capped peaks and glaciers of the Alaska Range forming the backdrop. The terrain was glacial moraine country covered in tundra grassland and dotted with lakes. Altitude varied from 1000 to 1500 metre. With nothing more than the occasional chest high brush, most checkpoints were visible from over one kilometre away! Dozens of summer wildflowers, colourful birds, moose and caribou were almost as big a highlight as the scenery. The map scale was 1:63360 with 30 metre contours.

The weather was cool and overcast with the occasional shower. Temperatures were generally 10-15oC. 12 hour and 24 hour categories were offered, with the majority of teams participating in the longer event. Two intrepid teams entered from Australia.

At the world's most northern rogaining frontier, there was almost 22 hours of effective light at this time of year, which made torches less critical. Catering at the Hash House was simple but scrumptious: minestrone soup, crackers, fruit and muffins.

Event co-ordinator was Ted Cahalane.
Email: cahalane@alaska.net
Phone: 1-907-45 6681 (AH)
11820 Moose Road, Anchorage, Alaska, 99516

North American Rogaining Championships

Cobequid Mountains on May 22-23, 1999 in Nova Scotia, eastern Canada. The area to be used for the competition ranges from 100-400 metres above sea level. Most of the race will be on the upper plateau region, but some checkpoints will be at a lower level and in river gorges. The area is mostly wooded, and the forests are mixed, mostly 40-60 year old hardwoods. Weather in mid May in the Cobequids should be 10-20°C during the day, and near freezing at night. Chance of precipitation during the event is about 30%, but the probability of snowfall is less than 3%. There should be no snow left on the ground, the leaves should not be completely out, and - best yet - it should still be too early for either mosquitos or black flies! (Last year, the black flies were out less than 48 hours after we finished). Details: Michael Haynes of the Orienteering Assn of Nova Scotia: haynesmc@sportns.ns.ca.

Results of 3WRC

One hundred and twenty eight teams were part of 3WRC: top placings are listed below. Further details from http://ss98.oabc.bc.ca.

3rd World Rogaining Championships
Kamloops, Canada - August 1998

Place		Points		Class		Team Members
1  	3190		OM		Nigel Aylott (AUS), Iiro Kakko (FIN)	
2  	3050		OM		Greg Barbour (NZ), David Rowlands (AUS)	
3  	2860		OM		Mattias Baath (SWE), Lars Schagerstrom (SWE)	
4  	2480		OM		Peter Mair (Can), Allan Stradeski (Can)	
5  	2470		VM		Paul Hoopman (AUS), Andrew McComb (AUS)	
6  	2420		OM		David Baldwin (AUS), Francis Falardeau (Can)	
7  	2420		VM		Rod Gray (AUS), Geoff Lawford (AUS)	
8  	2400		OM		Ernst Linder (USA), Alar Ruutopold (USA)	
9  	2300		VM		Grant Jeffrey (AUS), Derek Morris (AUS)	
10  	2210		OF		Catherine Hagen (Can), Pam James (Can)	
11  	2180		VMX		Helen Bailey (AUS), Richard Matthews (AUS)	
12  	2160		OM		Sean Mather (AUS), Jeremy Welbourne (AUS)	

Neil Phillips