New to orienteering?

Orienteering is a navigation sport suitable for all ages. Participants are given a map, which they use to navigate to a series of controls (checkpoints). Each event has a new set of courses, so orienteering always presents a fresh challenge. If you have any questions, please talk to us at an event or get in touch by email.

The basic skills of orienteering can be taught in a short period of time. At your first event, make sure to let the volunteers at registration know you are new to the sport. They will be able to introduce you to experienced club members who can teach you the basics. This video, by elite New Zealand orienteer Gene Beveridge, provides information on the key elements of orienteering maps and is a useful watch before your first event. More introduction videos can be found via the Orienteering New Zealand website.

Types of Events

There are several types of orienteering events hosted by Nelson Orienteering Club. All of these have course options suitable for beginners, and can be participated in by individuals or teams. The winner is the participant who clears the course in the fastest time, while finding all the controls in the right order.

  • Sprint events are generally held in urban environments, such as a school campus. These events require basic navigation skills and the emphasis is on decision-making at speed. Winning times for each class range from 12-15 minutes;
  • Club / OY events are generally held in a forest or on farmland. These events are longer and have a higher degree of navigational complexity than Sprint events;
  • In a regular orienteering event, controls needs to be found in a pre-assigned order. Rogaine events differ from standard orienteering events in that there is not a set order in which participants must visit controls. Instead, it is up to participants to determine which controls they will navigate to within a given time period. Controls are assigned different point values depending on their difficulties; the winner is the person who gains the greatest number of points.
  • Each year, there are also big championships, organised by local orienteering clubs on a rotational schedule. All these championship events are open to all orienteers, from absolute beginners to veterans of the sport: besides the championship courses, based on age and gender, there are non-competitive courses to choose from.

Getting Started

There are a number of key steps to participating in your first orienteering event.

  1. Choosing an event: Head to the events page and decide which one you would like to participate in. It is necesarry to pre-register online for each event and any additional information (parking / special requirements) will be annouced ahead of time. Events are signposted off a main road, and there is usually ample parking available. If you have hired a timing device (SI card), these can be picked up at Registration.
  2. Starting: The Start is marked with a big green flag. All the available courses will have clearly marked 'lanes', with maps available at the Start. With the exception of rogaines where everyone starts at the same time, events generally have a two-hour start window in which you can start at any time you like, provided you leave time between you and the previous participant on the same course. This is to avoid participants following one another around the course. We recommend that newcomers arrive slightly before the start of the event, so there is time to get some help before starting your course.
  3. Finishing: The last control on your course is the finish control, and is marked with a big red flag. After you have punched the Finish control, please come to the download tent to download the results of your course. Even if you decide not to finish your courseprint, please ALWAYS come back to the download tent. This lets us know you have made it back safely and we do not need to send out a search party.

Course Difficulty

Every event has a variety of courses to cater to everyone, from complete beginners to advanced orienteers:

  • White courses are very easy. These courses are for beginners and for children doing a course on their own. Controls are generally found at the intersections of tracks or fences. A white course follows "handrails" such as tracks, fences and vegetation boundaries;
  • Yellow courses are easy and suit most beginners. Controls are on or close to handrail features such as tracks, fences, vegetation boundaries or streams;
  • Orange courses are of intermediate difficulty. Controls are no longer on or near handrails, but are located near prominent features in the terrain that can be found using simple navigation skills (such as contours and compass reading). 
  • Red courses are technically difficult and require very good navigation skills and the use of a compass.

We generally suggest that new orienteers do a white course or a yellow course as their first course. You are always welcome to complete a second course free of charge.

Do I need to be fit?

You may walk, jog or run, alone or in a group – your choice. Fitness is not a necessity, although it does help, particularly in serious competitive orienteering. You may treat the event as a race, a personal challenge or simply as a stroll, with the search for controls providing an extra element of interest.

What to bring to an event

  • Just wear clothes suited to walking or running in the terrain (urban, farm, forest). Any kind of walking or running shoe will be fine. It is useful to wear eye covering if in the forest to protect your eyes from branches, or if required for reading fine detail on the map. 
  • A compass if you have one. In the Registration tent, we have a few for hire if you are new to orienteering; 
  • A whistle for non-urban events (see Safety below);
  • A SportIdent card (SI card). This is a small device which checks your progress on the course, storing the number / time you pounch each control, including the Start and Finish control. If you do not have an SI card of your own, you can hire one when pre-registering. Once finished, please proceed to the Download tent (which often also is the Registration tent) to download your personal results of your course;
  • A watch to keep track of course closure time. Walk to the finish without finishing the complete course if you are not likely to finish in the required time before course closes. Please continue by going to the Download tent and download your partial results, so the event organisers know for sure you are not lost, and we don't have to send out a rescue party...
  • It is useful to carry water on hot days, for longer events, for children, or if you know you will be out for a while. 

Safety

In general orienteering is a safe sport. As with any activity, it is up to each individual to take responsibilities for their own actions while participating in any organised orienteering event: participation is at your own risk. Please comply with the following 'Personal Safety Check' for participants:

  • Obey all instructions and warnings: these are often displayed near the Registration tent and/or in the Start area;
  • Wear appropriate clothes for the conditions;
  • Consider wearing safety glasses;
  • Notify the event coordinator of any potentially serious health problems;
  • Keep clear of any plant or equipment, farm buildings, and out-of-bounds/unauthorised areas. Avoid disturbing livestock and keep away from all work activities;
  • Be suitably hydrated;
  • Carry a whistle. 
    • The recognised emergency call is six short blasts. Pause and listen for a reply and repeat to allow helpers to locate you. If other participants hear a whistle signal, they are required to abandon their course and help a participant in need. It is expected therefore that an individual will only use their whistle if they are seriously injured and / or consider themselves significantly lost such that they need immediate assistance from others. 
    • If you are injured or become lost, but are still mobile and do not need immediate assistance, it is recommended that in the first instance you try to make your way to a main road/track.
  • If you hear repeated sounding of car horns, this means that there is a fire, or another major problem. Abandon your course and return to the nearest road, then head back to the event centre, unless directed to another assembly point or exit route. Notify an event official you are safe.