Run the Sprint on Oscar's shoulders. You can look at the map and course on RouteGadget for more details... or just do some arm-chair orienteering.

Results                 Splits                Winsplits        (Take care with Winsplits due to the Hagaby format. No Routegadget for the same reason)           

Shepherd, Effeney take out latest National League round
Sunday, 15 April 2012

Dave Shepherd and Rachel Effeney are the leaders of the SILVA National Orienteering League after winning the final race of the Queensland series, a long mass-start race start of Brisbane, today.

Both wins were by comfortable margins of about five minutes. Effeney was in doubt going into the weekend with a heel injury which kept her out of the final day of Easter, but followed up her Saturday win with another triumph today to give her maximum points for the fourth time this season. It was a much closer contest behind her, with the next four separated by only just over a minute. 

Aislinn Prendergast won a sprint finish against Anna Sheldon for second, while Susanne Casanova did likewise against Jasmine Neve for fourth.

Whilst Shepherd's win was predictable there was unpredictability behind it, in the form of a career-best result on home ground for Oliver Mitchell, who came through the field on the third loop to take second place, ahead of Murray Scown and Lachlan Hallett. Another local to achieve a personal-best result was Oliver Crosato in sixth. 

Oliver Poland continued his good season with a comfortable win over Brodie Nankervis and Todd Neve in the junior men's, while Heather Muir took out W17-20E ahead of Jacqui Doyle and Michele Dawson. 

Shepherd leads the National League by 39 points, although Simon Uppill and Matt Crane have races in hand and will have chances to improve their position in the second half of the season. Effeney took the lead for the first time to be five points ahead of Prendergast, but her four wins should place her in good stead once competitors have enough scores to be dropping their worst ones.

The Canberra Cockatoos continue to run away with the men's team competition, but a good contest is developing for the women, with the Queensland Cyclones - aiming for their first title - four points ahead of defending champions Victorian Nuggets.

Article by Blair Trewin

Photos from the Sprints are available on the Photos Page ... more coming.

Queensland conducted two exciting and technical urban sprints today at Kelvin Grove and the University of Queensland.These totalled 6 kilometres for the elite men and 5 for the women, with the seniors and juniors both doing the same courses.The second race incorporated a chasing start based on the morning’s first course results thus putting pressure on runners to maintain or improve their positions.

Two of the recently selected JWOC team members, Oscar McNulty (WA) and Ian Lawford (ACT) chose to race amongst the seniors, for added competition.Oscar, renowned for his past good sprinting results, again showed everyone a clean pair of heels to win overall.Second place could have done with a photo-finish camera, with Dave Shepherd getting the judges verdict by a nose ahead of Bryan Keely.Junior Ollie Poland was just another second further back.

Sprint superstar Rachel Effeney, sidelined by a foot injury on the last day of Easter,
was back to her brilliant best winning both races with ease and having a two and a half minute win overall.Second was taken by the wily Victorian veteran Natasha Key, who certainly has a good turn of speed.Queenslanders Heather Muir and Lillian Burrill took the quinella in the junior women, recording times that would have put them midfield in the seniors.
Article Courtesy of OA

Hear some of the Elites summing up their performances in the NOL Sprints at Kelvin Grove and University of Queensland:
- Oscar McNulty
- Heather Muir
- Rachel Effeney

Results                 Splits                Winsplits                   Routegadget            Splitalyzer

Results                 Splits                Winsplits                   Routegadget            Splitalyzer

Here are updated Start Lists for the coming weekend:
Events 8, 9 - SILVA NOL Sprints/Public Races - Saturday
Note that for Elites, Event 9 is a chasing start based on their time in Event 8. 
Event 10 - SILVA NOL Long Distance - Collins Creek - Sunday 

The winner was Christina Meelan of Toowoomba.

Results                 Splits                Winsplits                   Routegadget            Splitalyzer

Results                 Splits                Winsplits                         

See the Photos Page for the latest photos, including photos of the presentations (See Day 3 Photos).
Thanks to Jim Bowling for the majority of these photos. Photos can be downloaded (at full scale) if you would like to have a copy.

Another fine warm day greeted competitors for Day 3 of the Australian 3 Days Championships in Queensland. It was make or break day for some competitors eyeing the prize of Australian 3 Day Champion, while for many others improving on results from previous days was the goal.

A number of competitors had an exceptional weekend, winning all three days. A big congratulations to Ross Brighouse (M65A), Neil Schafer (M85A), Gyula Karolyi (M35-44AS), Rob Lewis (M45-54AS), Winnie Oakhill (W14A), Marina Iskhakova (W21A), Anna Hyslop (W35A), Jenny Bourne (W50A), Carol Brownlie (W60A) and Toy Martin (W65A).

On the other hand, there were a number of classes which were very tight at the pointy end of the field.  Jock Davis (NSW) overtook Eddie Wymer (Vic) for a 2½ minute win in M45A. Anita Scherrer (ACT) gained a minute on Nicola Dalheim (Vic) in W45A, but fell 26 seconds short of the overall win. It was also close in W45-54AS, where Philippa Lohmeyer-Collins (Vic) took a 28 second win over Vicki Wilmott (NSW). 

There were no changes in the overall lead in the elite classes today. In the men’s elite class, David Shepherd (ACT) took the win today, but it wasn’t enough to overtake Simon Uppill (SA) for the overall win. Bryan Keely (Vic) took the overall third place, and a great run by Murray Scown (ACT) moved him up to fourth overall. Oliver Poland (ACT) had a third straight win in the junior elites, handing him a well deserved overall win. Ian Lawford and Oscar McNulty rounded out the top 3 overall.

The women’s elite class was won by Grace Crane (Tas) with Susanne Casanova (SA) about 5 minutes behind in the overall placings. Tracy Marsh (NSW) had her best run of the weekend with a second place today, but it wasn’t enough to overtake Vanessa Round (SA) for the overall third place. Michele Dawson (NSW) had her first win of the weekend in the junior elites, but Lilian Burrill (Qld) had set up enough of a lead over the rest of the field to take the overall win. Amy Buckerfield (Tas) and Heather Muir (Qld) came second and third respectively. The sledge competition was won by Justin Woolford of Tasmania. 

The Australian 3 Days also incorporates a number of other competitions on various days. The Family Relays on Friday were won by the team of Matthew Crane, Grace Crane and Jan Hardy, with second place going to the Uppill/Anderson team and third to the Wymer team. In the Australian University Championships held on Sunday, Bryan Keely of Latrobe University and Rachel Effeney of the University of Queensland took the individual honours, with the University of Queensland team the overall champions. The Champion Club Trophy went to Ugly Gully of Queensland.

Congratulations to all competitors in the Australian 3 Days! The Easter 2012 Carnival continues with midweek events at Cascades and Harding’s Paddock, before moving to Brisbane for sprint and long events next weekend.

The Sledge ends with a champagne finish.

Hear some of the elites summing up their performances at the Australian The Days:
- Simon Uppill
- Grace Crane
- Oliver Poland

Results                 Splits               Winsplits                   Routegadget            Splitalyzer

Overall Results - Australian Three Day Championships

See interviews with:
- Lilian Burrill
- Heather Muir
- Anna Sheldon

See the latest Sledge Interview.
- Simon and Mitch  
- The Fairies
Start times on Monday are from 9:00am. Check at Registration for details.

Today’s event was a tough physical affair at Shanty Gully, a spur gully area west of Warwick. It was the long distance day for the elites and the warm weather was challenging for everyone
regardless of the distance.

Simon Uppill continued his good form, winning the men’s elite class in 99:06 and giving him a 5 minute overall lead heading into the last day. Bryan Keely had a good run to finish in second,
and David Shepherd was once more in third. Matthew Crane did not finish today, meaning he is no longer able to challenge for the overall positions. The junior class was won by 5 minutes by Oliver Poland, with Max Neumann from Queensland having a great run to finish in second. Kasimir Gregory (NSW) took third place. 

Queensland’s Rachel Effeney won the women’s elite class in 85:55, followed by Grace Crane (Tas) and Susanne Casanova (SA). In the junior elites Heather Muir (Qld) improved from the previous days to take the win today. Lilian Burrill (Qld) remains top of the leaderboard with her second place today, and Amy Buckerfield’s (Tas) third place moved her up the overall
results.

Carol Brownlie (WA) and Toy Martin (NSW) had repeat wins in W60A and W65A respectively, and Carolyn Jackson (Vic) took the win in the W55A class after a second yesterday. Winnie Oakill (Qld)
also had a repeat win today in W14A, and Annabelle Mill (ACT) moved into first place in W12A with a win.
 
Jock Davis (NSW) had a win in M45A, although Eddie Wymer remains in first place overall. Mark Nemeth (Qld) overtook Warren Key in M50A. With yesterday’s winner of M60A, David Firman (Qld), unable to run today due to course setting duties, a new leader was guaranteed. David Marshall (Tas) filled this position with a 4minute win today.

The Sledge class continued their hijinks, with many running in their hard earned boxer shorts and one even in a dress. Simon Mee took the win today.

Tomorrow’s race returns to granite country, at Rosenthal Creek near Dalveen.

Results               Splits               Winsplits                  Routegadget            Splitalyzer

Progressive Results - Prologue, Day 1,2

See what some of the Senior and Junior Elites thought of the event today.
Interviews with:
- Vanessa Round
- Jacqui Doyle
- Oliver Poland
- Lilian Burrell

The Sledge Start List for Day 2 is available here.
A sample of Sledge Videos shown on the Sledge Page

Results                 Splits                Winsplits  (Elites)             Routegadget        Splitalyzer

Progressive results to the end of Day 1.
Previous day results are on the Results Page.

Today saw over 600 runners competing in Day 1 of the Australian 3 Day Championships in a granite area extending over both sides of the Queensland-NSW border. With long grass covering much of the area between the rocks, competitors found it both physically and technically tough. Those who paid careful attention to the map and didn’t let themselves get pushed around by the terrain performed well today.

The lead changed a few times early in the men’s elite race, before a mistake from Simon Uppill (SA) gave Matthew Crane (ACT) the lead at control 7 which he held to the end. Simon finished in second, followed by David Shepherd (ACT). The junior elite race was led from start to finish by Oliver Poland (ACT) who finished almost 2 minutes ahead of Brodie Nankervis (Tas) and Ian Lawford (ACT).

Similarly Vanessa Round (SA) held the lead in the women’s elite race from the beginning, showing her strength in the physical terrain. Bridget Anderson (Qld) and Susanne Casanova (SA) were rewarded for their consistent runs with second and third places respectively. Jacqui Doyle (ACT) and Lilian Burrill (Qld) traded places for the lead in the junior elite class, with Jacqui taking the win by 21 seconds. Michele Dawson of NSW was third.

The largest class of the day was M65A where Ross Brighouse of New  Zealand took the win. An impressive run from Geoff Lawford (Vic) saw him win M55A by almost 10 minutes. Other large winning margins were posted by Clive Pope (Qld) in M75A and Tony Mount(Tas) in M80A.

Jenny Bourne (Vic) won the largest women’s class of W50A by over 8min. A three way battle in W55A between Robin Uppill, Carolyn Jackson and Sue Key ended with Robin Uppill (SA) taking the win. Maureen Ogilvie of NSW led from the beginning in W75A for a very good win.

A number of other families won multiple classes including the Wymer family (Isabelle W40A, Eddie M45A), the Burrill family (Simeon M14A, Marion W45-54AS) the Gray family (Mikaela W10A, Ryan M10A) and the Polandfamily (Noah M12A, Oliver M17-20E).

A highlight of the day was the sledge class which featured a mass start between Powerrangers, forest fairies and Wally (from Where’s Wally). Read more about this class
here. 

See what the winners had to say as they came out of the finish tent. Interviews with:
- Simon Uppill
- Grace Crane
- Dave Shepherd

The Prologue Races and Family Relays were held today at Wilmot’s Waterholes, an area of scattered granite just north of Stanthorpe. Courses were set with many short legs and changes of direction to keep competitors on their toes. 

The Elite classes were first into the bush, with Simon Uppill of the Southern Arrows getting his weekend off to a good start by winning the men’s elite class ahead of Canberra Cockatoos David Shepherd and Matthew Crane. The Junior Elite class was won by Oscar McNulty of the Western Nomads who continued his great start to 2012, although Ian Lawford of the Canberra Cockatoos was very close behind. Brodie Nankervis (Tas) took out third place.

Grace Crane (Tas) and Vanessa Round (SA) had a close battle in the women’s elite class, with Grace taking the win by 5 seconds. Queensland Cyclones Rachel Effeney and Laurina Neumann finished in third and fourth. The largest winning margin of the day was in the junior elite class, where Lilian Burrill (Qld) had a great run. Lilian hails from Warwick so with her home terrain advantage she may be hard to beat this weekend. She was followed by Michele Dawson of the NSW Stingers and Mary Fleming of the Victorian Nuggets.

In the Public Prologue, runners either competed in a short, medium or long course. Incredible running speed was shown by some young Victorian runners in the short course, with 11 year old Aston Key taking first place over 10 year old Kylian Wymer. The medium course was won by Jenny Bourne of Victoria, who just edged out Queenslanders John Baker and Neil Simpson. The long course was also very close with Eddie Wymer of Victoria winning by 3 seconds over Mark Nemeth of Queensland.

Results and splits (Winsplits) are now available and routegadget will available soon.

Tomorrow will see competitors return to an adjacent area for Day 1 of the Australian 3 Days Championships.

The 37 teams in the Family Relays are listed here.

The list of entrants is now available.

In the interests of fairness, given that some people have run on this map before, here is a copy of the map for the Events 1 and 2: Prologues/Family Relay.

This Update provides information on:
Program and Start Lists available
- If you have any queries please email easter20twelve@gmail.com as soon as possible.
Registration
- Registration times and location.
Eating Out on Friday 6 April
- Plan ahead for Good Friday
Getting to Stanthorpe from the Brisbane Airport 
- Recommended route from the Airport. Allow at least 3 hours.
Weather
- Dry and Cool
Safe travelling and we look forward to seeing you in Stanthorpe.
Read More

The Start Lists are now available here. (Latest version posted: 2/4/2012)

Following Easter, a training camp for the NSW juniors has been organised in Stanthorpe, starting on the evening of Monday 9 April and going through until the morning of Friday 13 April. It will be based at the Storm King Dam Recreation Camp which is 10 mins south east of Stanthorpe. A bus has been hired for the duration of the camp and accommodation for the four nights will be at the Recreation Camp.
Read More

The 2012 Easter Orienteering Carnival will be held on the Granite Belt and near Brisbane in Queensland.

The event centre will be Stanthorpe which lies at the heart of the Granite Belt, 220km south-west of Brisbane on the New England Highway.

The district supports a diverse fruit and horticulture industry as well as over 55 wineries and a thriving eco-tourism industry.

Significant National Parks are nearby including: Girraween, Sundown, Bald Rock and Boonoo Boonoo.

There is a wide variety of accommodation available for Orienteers from hotels and motels, B and B's, to caravan and tourist parks. See the Travel and Accommodation page for more details.

The Carnival includes 10 events near Stanthorpe and Brisbane and incorporates:
-          The Australian 3 Day Orienteering Championships
-          Prologue Event for Elites and the Public Prologue/Family Relay
-          Two Mid-Week events
-          Two NOL/Public Urban Sprint Events
-          A NOL/Public Long Distance, Badge Event

Wildfiresports.com.au is proud to be sponsoring Easter 2012