Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve, the venue for 2019 ACT League # 8 and the newest for Orienteering in the ACT, proved to be a challenge for the course planner and competitors alike, and for some competitors and insurmountable challenge. The more successful orienteers used canny route choices to avoid the impenetrable undergrowth, which was mainly blackberries, but some of the thicker, less-prickly undergrowth also created some impenetrable barriers. The more observant competitors found the narrow paths through the green on the map. The maps and photos from the event are here.
The fastest three competitors on each course were:
- Red 1: 6.8 km: Men: Martin Dent 55.05, Tomas Krajca 55.27, Paul de Jongh 60.05; Women: Anna Fitzgerald 82.15.
- Red 2: 5.9 km: Men: Ryan Stocks 51.29, Andrew Kerr 54.36, Tristan Miller 55.27; Women: Cathy Hogg.
- Red 3: 4.8 km: Ian Prosser 51.14, Mark Bourne 54.17, Martin Wehner 55.18; Women: Asha Steer 58.36, Tara Melhuish 58.41, Ella Cuthbert 58.51.
- Red 4: 3.2 km: John Shelton Agar 43.24, Greg Wilson 47.49, Robert Allison 49.47; Women: Valerie Barker 55.57, Judy Allison 57.30, Ann Baylis 67.25.
- Orange 1: 4.8 km: Wayne Gregson 56.06, Owen Radajewski 57.16, Patrick Shelton Agar 64.06.
- Orange 2: 3.7 km: Men: Kenji Walter 53.19, Ken Mansell 53.17, Timothy Robards 64.19; Women: Natalie Miller 36.33, Ingrid Shelton Agar 48.51, Susan Hallissy 70.52.
- Green: 2.3 km: Men: Hayden Dent 30.23; Women: Jane Barnett 30.58, Shauna Haipola 44.52, Naomi Penton 55.08; Teams: Sharyn Butts/Carly Homes 60.35, Leonie Harriott/Natalie Mace 62.26, Aidan Geer/Beth Fisher 63.33.
- Blue: 1.9 km: Men: Eilam Bourne 29.49; Teams: Samuel Munin/Natasha Rai/Kaliliu Munin-Rai/Miro Munin-Rai 66.04, Sandra Green/Alana Vandenberg/Poppi Vandenberg 66.54.
The full results are here and the Winsplits are here
The top five on corrected times for age and gender were:
- Martin Dent 125 points
- Ian Prosser 124
- Andrew Kerr 123
- Tomas Krajca 122
- Ryan Stocks 121.
After eight rounds the top five, best-five scores are:
- Ella Cuthbert 664
- Matt Crane 654
- Ana Herceg 653
- Martin Dent 650
- David Stocks 644
The full standings are here.
ACT League # 9 will be at Awoonga on Sunday 4 August.