National Orienteering Week ~ What is your favourite Canadian Orienteer map, and why?

As part of National Orienteering Week in Canada (NOW), we asked our High Performance Program athletes "What is your favourite Canadian Orienteer map, and why?"

Bow Valley Provincial Park, near Canmore, Alberta

"Now that I'm able to figure the map out and not get lost, its a good mix of fast open, flat forest, and complex ridges." Will Critchley

"Technical navigation, super-fast running and one of the few areas where you get incredible views while you race." Patrick Goeres

"Great runnability, tricky terrain and top quality mapping." Carol Ross

Long Lake, Whitehorse, Yukon

"Fast, but still technically and physically (hills) demanding." Robbie Anderson

"Personally, I have a lot of fond memories of orienteering there. It is also a very technical map contour wise, and can therefore be very challenging." Pia Blake

"It was the first map that I ran on after I had learned how to read contours. It was such a proud moment!" Emily Kemp

Carcross Desert, Whitehorse, Yukon

"The scenery around is stunning, and it has so many different types of terrain in it from forested, to scrubby stuff, to sandhills, to rock features..." Louise Oram

"Amazing technical challenges mixed with fabulous scenery, and an awesome physically challenging dessert." Graeme Rennie

Lewes Lake, Whitehorse, Yukon

"This map is super technical providing a great challenge" Kendra Murray

"No other map has that level of end to end detail, good runnability but low visibility, no trails and spectacular scenery. Paradise if you can handle it, traumatic if you cannot." Eric Kemp

"It is very challenging and different terrain." Trevor Bray

"The 2011 Canadian Orienteering Championships middle was held at this map. It was super detailed, but really fun to race on at the same time." Emily Ross

Barrens, near Carp, Ontario

"This map is special to me because it is very different from anything I've ever on. It is a challenge and something that I can work at improving." Laura Teutsch

"The uniqueness of the terrain. It's also very technical yet quite runnable so is very fun!" Jeff Teutsch

We have orienteering events on all over Canada this week. Check out the NOW website and find out what's going on in your area!

You can follow our High Performance Program athletes as they train and compete throughout the year on this blog, on Facebook, and on Twitter @OrienteeringCAN

National Orienteering Week ~ What tips would you give a beginner?

As part of National Orienteering Week in Canada (NOW), we asked our High Performance Program athletes "What tips would you give a beginner?"

"Get out on a map as often as possible. Don't be afraid to go over your courses with other orienteers." Emily Ross

"Practice, practice, practice. And run on courses more difficult than you are used to/think you are ready for." Graeme Rennie

"Do not get discouraged by mistakes!" Trevor Bray

"I would say that it is important to always trust your compass, don't assume that you know better than your compass which way is North." Laura Teutsch

"ORIENT YOUR MAP! (always)." Tori Owen

"Keep your head up and look far ahead. You'll be surprised how far ahead you can see." Patrick Goeres

"Think about which way is best to enter the control, and then plan your route to come from

that direction." Louise Oram

"Re-visit old maps -look for features on the map before you see them in the terrain, and visualize them. If you know what is coming you will be able to move more quickly with less hesitation. Kerstin Burnett

We have orienteering events on all over Canada this week. Check out the NOW website and find out what's going on in your area!

You can follow our High Performance Program athletes as they train and compete throughout the year on this blog, on Facebook, and on Twitter @OrienteeringCAN

National Orienteering Week ~ What drives you to continue competing in Orienteering?

As part of National Orienteering Week in Canada (NOW), we asked our High Performance Program athletes "What drives you to continue to compete in Orienteering?"

"Orienteering is challenging. I want to do it well. The need to compete with other orienteers, the only meaningful yardstick against which to measure my performance, follows." Jon Torrance

"I have to win. If it were not orienteering, it'd be something else. But, since I seem pretty good at it so far, and can get significantly better, I envision there is a lot of winning potential still to be had." Will Critchley

"The challenge of each new race and type of terrain that forces you to adapt." Emily Kemp

"Orienteering is always new and exciting. Different terrain and races are always around the corner. I love to compete and I'm keen to reach the top!" Robbie Anderson

"Love of the sport, the outdoors, and the challenge of pushing your body." Louise Oram

"There is always the feeling that you can get better. The feeling of an absolutely perfect race is amazing, I strive for this feeling every time." Kendra Murray

"Imagine running over every hill, spiking every control. Flying through the forest with complete control over body and mind, it is wonderful." Eric Kemp

"That it is so multifactorial, it is not just physical or mental, and there is always something to work on." Tori Owen

"I am motivated to continue orienteering because I love getting to train or race on new terrain. I also want to have the perfect race." Pia Blake

"The adrenaline rush I get during a race and the feel good feeling you get after a race. Also how much I enjoy running in the woods." Jennifer MacKeigan

We have orienteering events on all over Canada this week. Check out the NOW website and find out what's going on in your area!

You can follow our High Performance Program athletes as they train and compete throughout the year on this blog, on Facebook, and on Twitter @OrienteeringCAN

National Orienteering Week ~ What is your favourite aspect of Orienteering?

As part of National Orienteering Week in Canada (NOW), we asked our High Performance Program athletes "What is your favourite aspect Orienteering?"

"I love that I can control what happens during every event or training session, and that I can concentrate on staying in the moment and only thinking about how to get to the next control." Pia Blake

"I love how different it is from anything else. Instead of having a specific course that must be run, the courses and terrain are all so variable it is always interesting." Kendra Murray

"Orienteering is always a challenge. I also love the feeling of knowing that a control is going to be just over that hill, or on the other side of that boulder, and then actually seeing it!" Emily Ross

"That the sport involves lots of mental training as well as physical training." Trevor Bray

"Running through the woods at full speed with full control." Robbie Anderson

"The unique experience: Venturing into the unknown, the thrill of the hunt, the satisfaction of the kill… (e.g. taking the control)." Eric Kemp

"The problem solving aspect, and that the fastest runner will not necessarily be the winner." Louise Oram

"I appreciate that it is a sport where you absolutely need to hammer. And though you don’t have to be smart, you just need to be clever." Will Critchley

We have orienteering events on all over Canada this week. Check out the NOW website and find out what's going on in your area!

You can follow our High Performance Program athletes as they train and compete throughout the year on this blog,on Facebook, and on Twitter @OrienteeringCAN

National Orienteering Week ~ What is your first orienteering memory?

As part of National Orienteering Week in Canada (NOW), we asked our High Performance Program athletes "What is your first orienteering memory?"

"Going orienteering with my dad. I was on a bike so I could keep up. It was the guys of the family vs. the girls of the family!" Adam Woods

"My earliest orienteering memory is orienteering on my own in Germany when I was 7 or 8, and marveling at how all the trees were planted in rows instead of being helter-skelter like back home." Pia Blake

"One of my earliest orienteering memories is running B-meets with my dad. Every Sunday morning, my dad and I would head out together on the intermediate course." Laura Teutsch

"Twelve years ago, it was Halloween. My family and I were trying orienteering for the first time and we got lost searching for a giant caterpillar. We found it eventually..." Eric Kemp

"Running my first race in Winnipeg, some trails were completely flooded up to my knees with a nice film of ice on top. I had a blast and never looked back." Patrick Goeres

"My Dad telling me to duck as he bashed through thick New Brunswick forests with me in the baby backpack!" Carol Ross

"I remember my dad making an orienteering map of the trails behind my house for one of my birthdays (not sure which birthday, but I was pretty young) - my party guests and I did a mini O course together and got a sticker at each control." Kerstin Burnett

We have orienteering events on all over Canada this week. Check out the NOW website and find out what's going on in your area!

You can follow our High Performance Program athletse as they train and compete throughout the year on this blog, on Facebook, and on Twitter @OrienteeringCAN

National Orienteering Week ~ How did you discover Orienteering?

As part of National Orienteering Week in Canada (NOW), we asked our High Performance Program athletes "How did you discover Orienteering?"

"I started orienteering when I was 8yrs old all thanks to my dad who thought it would be fun all go out as a family together and get lost. After enough of that, though, we caught the bug and I competed in my first COC’s up north in the Yukon in 2004." Emily Kemp

"When I was 5, my brother Eric, my sister Emily, and my dad picked up a pamphlet and decided that we would try an intermediate course. We got completely lost, and ended up falling in love with the sport." Molly Kemp

"After orienteering as a very young child in a hiking backpack with my parents I started orienteering regularly around 1999. My first major event was the 2006 North American Champs when I surprised myself by coming in the middle of the pack in the 17-20 age category (I was 17). I’ve been hooked on competing ever since." Jeff Teutsch

"I have been orienteering my whole life, as both my parents orienteer. I began to train and become competitive around age fifteen." Kerstin Burnett

"I began orienteering (running or biking with my father) at age 9. I picked up orienteering again in 2009." Adam Woods

"I have been involved with orienteering for as long as I can remember, going out with my mom before I could read a map by myself. I would say I started orienteering around the age of 5." Kendra Murray

"When I was 8, my family decided they wanted orienteering to be one of their main sports. We would go on lots of road trips to Ontario and the north east US to compete in events. It was some of those events that got me hooked." Emily Ross

We have orienteering events on all over Canada this week. Check out the NOW website and find out what's going on in your area!

You can follow our High Performance Program athletes as they train and compete throughout the year here on our blog, on Facebook, and on Twitter @OrienteeringCAN