Most recent newsletter - August 2026
From the president
The club continues to host a diverse range of events. Thanks to all the hard work of the organisers, planners, controllers and on the day volunteers that make these days happen. A special mention to all the helpers at the recent Rabbit Island event that were available to ask questions of before groups headed off into the forest.
NOCturnals
The NOCturnal series of rogaines through the dark months of winter were well attended with some of the biggest attendances for an event of this type for our local orienteering club. I was in town one of these evenings for a prior commitment and it was an awesome sight to look up into the surrounding hills and see groups of lights bouncing around.
Events in the pipeline
Looking forward, the calendar is still looking good. In addition to the Sunday events, we have the Wily Weka rogaine coming up on 6 September, and a MTBO event later that same month.
Over Labour Weekend in October we are hosting, in conjunction with Marlborough Orienteering Club, the Taitonga South Island Orienteering Club Championships on a new Sprint map in Tapawera, with the Middle and Long taking place at also beautiful, always challenging Nelson Lakes: an amazing weekend to recharge!
Richard Dunn,
President Nelson Orienteering Club
NOC membership 2026
We invite new members to join Nelson Orienteering Club and for existing members to renew their membership. Membership runs from 1 January to 31 December annually.
Costs
Membership fees for the whole year:
· $90 for a family
· $45 for a senior and
· $30 for a junior.
Becoming a member in the second part of the year will reduce your membership fees by 50%.
If you have been a member in the past few years (of Nelson OC or another orienteering club in NZ) please email Richard Dunn at president.noc@gmail.com to reinstate your membership and receive an invoice.
Intending to join?
Membership has advantages like discounted fees to orienteering events nationwide, skill development opportunities, financial support for representing New Zealand at international level and for juniors access to training camps.
If you are new to orienteering and want to join Nelson Orienteering Club, please go online, and follow the online registration process steps at https://www.revolutionise.com.au/nelsonoc/registration/.
Exchange request
My name is Lada Sobotková and I'm a 16-year-old student from the Czech Republic. I would love to spend a year starting in July 2027 and finishing in June 2028 in New Zealand as an exchange student. During my year in Nelson, I would attend a local high school.
Sporty
I'm a sporty person and I enjoy many different sports, including running, cycling, hiking, soccer and especially orienteering. I compete in orienteering and during my year in New Zealand I would like to continue training with Nelson Orienteering Club. I also have some experience with training children, during winter I used to lead one training session for children each week.
I love spending time in nature. My hobbies include cooking, learning languages, reading, drawing and photography. I'm interested in history and maths. I like travelling, learning about other cultures, meeting people and exploring new places.
Family
I have two older brothers who both spent a year as exchange students in USA. My family hosted several exchange students from different parts of the world (USA, Brazil, Colombia) and I'm very glad that I had the chance to meet these interesting people. Last year we also had an exchange student from Alaska in our school and we became very close friends.
These experiences inspired me to also try to go on such an exchange.
Contact
I'm hoping to find a welcoming host family (or families) where I could spend my year in New Zealand and share my experiences and culture with.
If you are interested or would like more information, please email me.
Thanks in advance,
Lada
recent NOCturnal rogaines & upcoming wily weka
The past months saw the traditional NOCturnal Rogaine Series, with even higher record-breaking crowds than the already very popular Summer Sprint Series. It is pleasing to note that the vast majority of participants register online, with only a handful requesting a (more expensive) late entry.
The events highlighted two aspects for general improvement:
· ‘Out-of-bounds’ areas: already discussed previously:
· Any olive-green areas (often private property) on an orienteering map can not be crossed: you have to go around it!
· Any areas with pink/purple crosses (out-of-bounds route) or pink-crossed patches (out-of-bounds area)
Following these instructions keeps the competition safe and fair, but equally if not more importantly, it keeps the landlords happy. Happy landlords means we can keep returning to these amazing areas again and again. Be cool, follow the rule!
· How to best setup your original rogaining, including having a ‘halfway and 10-minute-finish strategy’. The article below is a summary of an article on the North West Orienteering Club website, written by mister rogaining himself, Geoff Mead. If you are participating in the upcoming Wily Weka and are new to rogaining, the article below could prove to useful.
Hints and tips on planning a rogaine
Rogaine is the sport of cross country navigation in which individuals or teams visit as many check points as possible within a given time. Competing in a rogaine will challenge your map reading and navigational skills, while being a great physical workout. It is often a fun and social event, with all participants starting at the same time, and trying to finish around the same time.
A rogaine is different from a traditional orienteering event in that you have to work out what check points to visit and the routes between them to maximize your check point score within the time limit. Competitors are given planning time with the map before the start to plan their route and what check points to visit. Here are some hints and tips to optimise this time.
Know yourself
How fast do you run (or walk) in this type of terrain? You might be faster than in a traditional orienteering event, since 2/3 of rogaine controls are easy or moderate navigation and there is likely to be more people
to “follow” initially. However, how long can you keep this pace up?
What to bring to a rogaine?
· A piece of string that is the length of how many km’s (at the map scale) you have calculated you will run within the time limit. For example if your estimated km rate is 10 min/km, then your plan is to cover 18 km in 3 hours. If the map scale is 1:20,000 (1cm on the map = 200m on the ground, so 10cm on the map = 2 km) you’ll need 90cm string.
· A highlighter pen.
· A watch (amazing how many people forget one).
Rogaine planning time
On the map look for any “easy clusters” of check points that are close together and easy to connect up (for example no big hills, no dark green bushes, no big river to cross). Highlight these check points. Then use your length of string overlaid on the map to figure out a route that covers the “easy clusters” of check points and as many other check points as well. Try different options and add up the check point score for each option. Watch out for excessive climb and slow terrain that may destroy your expected mins/km rate of travel.
Fine tune the route
From about the half-way point of your course plan a short way (less check points) back to the finish and a long way back (extra check points) to the finish.
Leave a low value check point (or two) close to the finish “spare”. If you are nearing the finish with a minute or two in hand pick up the “spare” check point, if you are out of time miss it out. Ideally you will get to the finish with a few minutes to spare. Don’t go over the time limit and suffer penalty points which can run up very quickly. Highlight your planned route on the map.
One km from Finish
Legendary Geoff Mead draws an arc on his map, one km from the Finish. This is to help in the decision making for the last fifteen minutes of the event, when the brain is lacking oxygen and the legs are shot. It is very easy to wreck a good rogaine score in those last minutes by coming back too early or too late.
Good luck with your next rogaine. For more planning advice, visit the NZ rogaine association website.
Rogaine is not French?
When the Molloy family recently raced under the team name ‘Rogaine is not a French word’, it triggered the question where the name does come from. Some digging showed that rogaining evolved from the 24-hour walks held by the Melbourne University Tramping Club. These competitive events were based on tramping-style navigation and walking skills, with everyone seeking the same sequence of checkpoints. Rogaining was a solution to the “follow-the-leader” problem they were getting with large numbers of walkers. The name was devised by Rod, Gail and Neil Phillips.
A traditional rogaine is 24 hours in duration but there are also shorter events of 6, 12, and 18 hours. Events with a night section are usually scheduled to coincide with a full moon.
Orienteering in paradise—Welcome to Taitonga SIOC 2026
Nelson and Marlborough Orienteering Clubs invite all orienteers to Te Tau Ihu o te Waka-a-Maui to celebrate high-quality spring orienteering during the A-level 2026 Taitonga South Island Orienteering Championships, Labour Weekend of 24-26 October 2026 in the beautiful Tasman District. We look forward to welcoming fellow orienteers from the South and the North Island of New Zealand, and hopefully also new and old friends from overseas!
The dedicated website is the best place to be for everything you need to know about Taitonga SIOC2026, and any updates/changes, including information on embargoed areas and Bulletin 1.
Expertise from many clubs
Events this size can only take place with the help of many, many hands. Besides setters and controllers Oliver Egan, Georgia Whitla, Michael Croxford (all NOC) and Stephen Bradley and Catrina Forbes (both MOC), event organiser Richard Clarkson is supported by Fergus O’Neill & Tane Cambridge (PAPO, Sprint), Will Tidswell (HBOC, Long) and Jenni Adams (PAPO, Long) and Carsten Joergensen (PAPO, Middle)
Entries
Entries are now open, with regular pricing ending Friday 2 October at midnight. Avoid the 50% fee increase after this date, open for one more week before entries close. Absolutely NO entries ‘on the day’.
ARE YOU OUR COACH this summer?
Nelson Orienteering Club are looking for expressions of interest in a part-time orienteering coaching position in Nelson from November to February. An ideal applicant will be between 18 and 30 years of age with significant orienteering experience and good communication skills. The role will include independently delivering in-school sessions to classes of students aged 13-16, as well as wider club training sessions. Scope is flexible depending on funding and applicant availability.
Previous experience with orienteering coaching, such as coaching at Junior Camp, HP Camp, or within your local club would be a bonus. Familiarity with orienteering mapping and course planning software would also be useful. Nelson Orienteering Club will offer a travel and accommodation subsidy; the amount will depend on the final scope of the programme.
Please contact Scott Smith (scottsmithnz99@gmail.com) with any questions or to register your expression of interest.
Nelson Orienteering Club
Secretary Katie Malthus
noc.secretary@gmail.com
www.noc.org.nz
This NOC newsletter appears (mostlu) bi-monthly,
on the last day of the month,
starting in January
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