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Structure
Interesting Questions, Facts and Information
- There are a total of 25 general entries.
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 Interesting Questions, Facts, and Information
 Orienteering
leg. A 'spur' is a small ridge or protrusion on a hillside. A 'reentrant' is a small valley or draw running down a hillside. A 'catch' is a large feature which is not easy to miss in the direction you are going, such as a lake.
Scandinavia. Orienteering started around the turn of the 20th century in Scandinavia. Maps were at a much smaller scale in the early days of the sport, in black and white, and without contours to show the shape of the land!
punches a card. Each control flag location has a bright red plastic device with a number of sharp metal teeth. The orienteer uses this punch to impress the pattern made by the teeth onto a control card box which corresponds to the control site being visited. At the finish, the card is handed over, and the punch patterns are verified for the correct control sites.
| What is located on the ground, which corresponds to the circled locations on the course map, so the orienteer knows the correct spot has been found? | Orienteering - the Maps, the Sport
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flag. The control flag marks the spot that is circled on the map. It is made of fabric hung on a triangular box-kite-like wire frame. The upper triangle is white and the lower triangle is orange. A unique 'control code', which is usually a two-letter combination, is attached to, or near, the control flag. This code is also on the 'clue sheet' which describes the location, so the orienteer will know for certain the correct circled location on the map has been found.
| On the orienteering course map, the places to be found are in circles. The 'finish' is in a double circle. What symbol is used for 'start'? | Orienteering - the Maps, the Sport
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magnetic. North lines are parallel lines drawn from magnetic south to magnetic north. They are spaced every 500 meters on the map. Orienteers use compasses to orient themselves to 'magnetic' north, so a series of reference lines on the map is an easy way to take a bearing!
| Maps made specifically for orienteering are at a 'human' scale. Terrain and features are mapped to show what a human would readily see when moving through an area, such as boulders that are waist high. What is the preferred scale for orienteering maps? | Orienteering - the Maps, the Sport
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1:15,000. The preferred scale is 1:15,000. Orienteering event maps are also at a scale of 1:10,000, where one cm on the map = 100 meters on the ground.
| Orienteering courses are colour coded according to how difficult to complete they are. Which colour is used for the easiest courses, suitable for young children and novices? | Orienteering
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White. The most basic course in orienteering is a 'string course' where the route is actually marked along it's entire length by a string which participants follow. String courses allow even very young children to participate and begin to learn the various map symbols and necessary skills needed to progress in the sport. The first of the colour coded courses are the white courses, which are usually no more than 3km in length, over easy terrain with good visibility and clear landmarks. Courses progress from white through yellow, orange, green and red, to blue which are the longest and most difficult courses to complete.
| Sometimes, a control point is positioned such that competitors arrive at, and depart from it by the same route. What name is given to a control point placed in this way? | Orienteering
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Dog-leg. A course design which leads to a dog-leg control point should be avoided, as by being shown where the control point is, it gives an unfair advantage to the following competitor, and 'spoils the fun' for the leading competitor.
| For an event held using the International Orienteering Federation rules, what colours are used for the 'kite' or flag which marks a control point? | Orienteering
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White and Orange. The control point must have a high visibility flag or kite, a means of identifying which control point it is, known as a 'control code', and a means by which the competitors can mark their race cards to prove they have reached each control point. The IOF uses orange and white flags, as do most other governing bodies. Earlier ones were red and white, but nowadays the standard is orange and white in a pattern of triangles.
| The symbols on an orienteering map are standardised so they can be followed regardless of the native language of the participants. What symbol represents the starting point of a race? | Orienteering
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Triangle. A triangle represents the start, then each control point is shown by a circle. The finishing point is represented by a double circle, one within the other.
| Orienteering maps are specially printed and show more detail of the terrain than a standard map would. The various colours on the map represent different types of terrain. What is represented by white areas on the map? | Orienteering
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Open, runnable forest with good visibility. A forested area where there is undergrowth to impede running but good visibility, is shown with vertical green stripes. Plain green denotes forest with low visibility and reduced running speed, and is graded from slightly reduced to impassable. Open areas are indicated by yellow on the map, and man made features and rock formations, boulders and the like, are shown in black.
Maps are produced according to the IOFs "International Specification for Orienteering Maps".
| The "Father of Orienteering" was a Swedish soldier and Scout Leader who organised the first large scale orienteering event in 1919. Who was he? | Orienteering
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Ernst Killander. 220 athletes attended Major Killander's event near Stockholm in 1919. As well as developing the rules of the sport, Killander is also credited with coining the word 'orienteering'.
| The rules and guidelines for the four main forms of orienteering are governed by the International Orienteering Federation. In which country is it based? | Orienteering
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Finland. The IOF has member countries from every inhabited continent on Earth, and was founded in 1961. It was recognised by the International Olympic Committee in 1977.
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