The autumn orienteering season kicked off in glorious fashion last weekend with a double-header at Aviemore. The warm sunny weather on both days was perfect for running and on Saturday 25 teams of 11 runners raced for the Scottish 11 Person Relay trophies. 

Douglas Tullie ran first leg for Roxburgh Reivers coming home in joint 2nd place but unfortunately the rest of the team couldn’t maintain the position and slipped to overall 7th in the Open Class.  However, with a team aged from 11 to 55+, Reivers did better in the Handicap Class, finishing a well-earned 3^rd or 7^th depending on which scoring system you use !   ECKO decided to use a complicated calculation for the handicap (making us 7^th) but the simple version which was used for at least the past 2 years made us 3^rd.  The whole event has sparked off a debate which you can view on the ECKO website.  The winning Open Team was Edinburgh University, consisting of several British Team members including James Tullie.  EUOC came 2^nd in the Handicap using both systems and consisting of only 18-21’s this probably indicates that neither handicap points system is great. 

The 6^th round of the Scottish Orienteering League at Loch Vaa on Sunday provided another memorable day of racing on what is regarded as one of the best areas in the UK.  Lots of wiggly lines, lochans and open areas of very short heather made for an enjoyable run for most people. Getting into the placings were Jim Knox 1^st M55S, Rob Cranston 2^nd M40S, Sarah Tullie 3^rd JW4, John Tullie 3^rd M45L, Lindsey Knox 3^rd W45L.  Other results: Douglas Henderson 4th M55L, Kirstin Maxwell 4^th JW4, Karen Maxwell 5^th JW3, Eileen Maxwell 5^th W40S, Douglas Tullie 10^th M21L, Ian Maxwell 15^th M45L, Andrew Armstrong 22^nd M45L.

• Relay results
• Loch Vaa results

“An experience of a lifetime” was how Teviothead brothers James and Douglas Tullie described their recent trip to the Junior World Orienteering Championships in Lithuania. They were members of the 6 men and 6 women Great Britain Team competing against the top 300 orienteers from 35 countries. The event was based in and around the picturesque southern spa town of Druskininkai.

Their gruelling schedule of five races in six days started with a sprint race around the streets and parks of the town where although the navigation wasn’t particularly difficult the slightest mistake cost several places. James was 1min 41s behind the winner in 63rd place with Douglas a further 16s back in 76th.

The following day was the toughest of the week with the 13km long distance race which took place in a very technically demanding forest with lots of contour detail and low visibility. Added to this the temperature , as it was throughout the week, was over 30 Centigrade. Despite several mistakes the boys both managed to finish in the top half of the field with Douglas, who lost both contact lenses in the dense undergrowth, in 69th and James 1min 8s back in 74th.

After a well earned rest day the event moved on to another tough forest for the middle distance qualification race. Here the field of 170 men were divided into three heats with only the top 20 from each heat making the A final. After decent runs both Douglas and James squeezed into the A final in 18th an 20th places respectively and although they didn’t run as well in the final they had done well to get there.

The week was rounded off with the relay races in a very fast, flat forest on the outskirts of Druskininkai but with legs of 10km and temperatures soaring to 35 degrees it was no picnic in the park. James and Douglas were part of the GB 2nd team which finished in 35th place. Although James now moves into the senior ranks, Douglas has two more years as a Junior and now has his sights set on qualifying for next years JWOC in Australia.

• JWOC website for full results

South Yorkshire Orienteers won this year’s Harvester Trophy, over 25 minutes ahead of second placed Edinburgh University (EUOC). The event, held by Roxburgh Reivers at Teviothead, near Hawick, and planned by John and James Tullie, started slightly earlier than usual, with both classes starting before 10pm to allow for SOL5 the next day. This meant in a change to the usual order, it was the first leg runners who got the benefit of daylight. The open hillside made for a fantastic spectacle once the daylight faded, with the spectator control offering spectactular views of headtorches bobbing across the hillside.

The first three legs saw the lead change several times, with early pace setters CLYDE jostling with EUOC for the lead. However, by the time the first fourth leg runner came home, it was SYO who were in front, with a lead they were never going to relinquish. SYO’s final time for the seven leg course was 388:25, ahead of second placed EUOC, who finished in 415:54.

In the B class, CLOK’s Ladies team beat the University of Durham and MDOC to win not only the Women’s Open but also overall winners on the B Class, finishing in 260:12 – a massive forty minutes ahead of the second and third placed teams. In the Juniors, Nottingham Orienteering Club held off Harlequins, to take the Junior Trophy, and a respectable seventh place overall in the B class.

Whilst most Roxburgh Reivers were involved in helping to run the Harvester and SOL, Roxburgh Reivers’ juniors Karen and Kirstin Maxwell did manage to get a run. Karen continued her good form, and recent win at the Scottish Schools Championships with second place on JW3, and older sister Kirstin (also a winner at the Schools Championships) won JW4, consolidating her place at the top of the league.

• Results and officials’ comments
• Discuss this year’s Harvester on Nopesport