Parking will be in the car park at Cowpen Bewley Woodland Park, just off the Seal Sands Link Road (A1185) north of Billingham.  The grid reference is NZ 479254, the What3words reference is ///rugs.safety.object and the postcode is TS23 3NF.

Click on the link to see a map.  You can switch to Satellite mode and zoom in to see the details of the final approach to the car park.  You can also get directions if you specify your starting location.

Parking space is limited, so please share transport if possible.

Event organisation will be in the Visitor Centre.

This is a Team Score event with a difference.  The event is for teams of 3, but all entries are welcome – we will make up ad hoc teams from single person and pair entries.  This team event is suitable for all ages.

There are three courses, and each team will need to select one of their members for each course.  The courses are 30, 40 and 50 minutes score courses.  (If you are not familiar with score courses, see below for an explanation.)

As shown below, the 30 minutes course will attract a higher points value per control than the 40 minutess course which, in turn, will attract more points per control than the 50 minutes course.  Teams will need to evaluate the best use of their members to maximise their final points total.

• 30 minutes course – 15 points per control
• 40 minutes course – 12 points per control
• 50 minutes course – 10 points per control

All competitors will use the same map (showing all the controls) and will have the option of visiting the same set of controls ..... although, as explained above, the number of points earned by visiting each control will depend on which of the three courses you're doing.

Penalties will be incurred in the form of lost points   20 points for each minute or part minute for each late finisher in your team.

On completion of their course, each competitor should punch the Finish and go straight to download as soon as they get there.  There is no need to wait for your other team members before punching at the Finish.

Fancy dress is encouraged.  Extra points will be awarded for fancy dress.

Note:  In a Score event there is no pre-defined sequence of controls to be visited.  The aim is to collect as many points as possible by visiting controls in any order that you choose.  You lose points if you take longer than the specified time limit, so deciding which controls to visit and in which order is an important element of the event.

The following prizes will be awarded:

• 1st team
• 2nd team
• 1st all-female team (which has not won one of the other two prizes)

Managed woodland park containing a stream and a series of ponds and including a sculpture trail, mown areas, varied and maturing blocks of woodland and copses and an energy-efficient Visitor Centre.

If the weather is bad then cagoules may be made compulsory.  Please come prepared.

1:5,000 scale.   A4 size.   Printed on waterproof paper.

Control descriptions will be printed on the map, and loose copies will also be available.

SPORTident electronic punching will be used at this event.

The control boxes will be activated to enable SIAC cards to operate in touch-free mode ..... but please note that you will need to punch the conventional way at the Start and Finish.

SI-cards will not be available for hire on the day.  However, SI-card hire can be prearranged.  You can reserve a hired SI-card via Racesignup when you put in your entries.  There will be a £1 hire charge.  Please collect your hired SI-card from Download before your run and return it as you download after your run.  Take care of your hired SI-card, as there will be a £20 charge if you lose it.

Please note that there will not be mass starts.  You will need to punch at the Start (and the Finish, of course).

There will be no entry on the day.   If you wish to participate in this event you must pre-enter via the Racesignup online entry system.

If you are entering a full team, please specify a team name.

You can put in an entry for an incomplete team – i.e. one or two runners – and the Organiser will make up "ad hoc" teams.  Please make sure that you put your entry in against the course that you would like to run; i.e. 50 minute score, 40 minute score or 30 minute score.  We'll do our best to arrange things so that you're running your preferred course, but please note that we may need to ask some people to change to another course in order to be able to make up complete teams.

If at all possible, please enter by midnight on Sunday 1‑Jan‑2023.  After that, the online entry system will continue to accept entries until midnight on Thursday 5‑Jan‑2023, but if we get a lot of late entries we may struggle to provide enough extra maps.

Toilets in the Visitor Centre.

First Aid at Download.

The cafe in the Visitor Centre will be closed, but there will be facilities available to make hot drinks on a "make it yourself" basis at no charge.

Although Covid-19 restrictions are – at least for the time being – a thing of the past and serious illness and death are now thankfully rare, Covid-19 continues to circulate in the community and Long Covid remains a consideration.  Please continue to take precautions to protect yourself and other people.

Orienteering is an outdoor, naturally socially-distanced sport.  However, although you should be relatively safe when you are out on your run, there is a risk of Covid-19 transmission during the pre- and post-run activities.

Given that:-

• Please do not attend this event if you have Covid-19 symptoms.  In accordance with Government guidance, if you have symptoms of a respiratory infection you should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people.
• Please be considerate towards other people – including the volunteers on the organising team – and remember that some people may be more concerned about Covid-19 and have a greater desire to maintain social distancing than you do.
• Before and after your run, you may wish to avoid unnecessary close contact with people outside your household.
• Continue to maintain good hand hygiene.

A comprehensive risk assessment will have been carried out by the Organiser, but please remember that competitors take part at their own risk.  Orienteering is an adventure sport – your safety while orienteering is your own responsibility.

Please make sure that you download even if you do not complete your course.

CLOK recommends that you carry a whistle while participating in this (and every) orienteering event.

If you have a relevant medical condition, please add this to your competitor details in Racesignup.  Any information provided will be treated in strict confidence and will only be used if you need medical treatment and are unable to communicate at the time.