Bulletin # 1 January 5, 2010
Vermont Ski-Orienteering Festival &
2010 US Ski-Orienteering Championship
Presidents’ Day Weekend: February 11 – 16, 2010
Download Bulletin 1.
Six Venues in Vermont, Six Events, Four New Venues/Maps for Ski-O
A joint venture by four O-Clubs: GMOC, CSU, UNO, NEOC
Highlights
6 days of top-quality ski orienteering in southern and northern Vermont
2 days of 2010 U.S. Championship events (middle and long courses)
O - Club Ski-O Challenge - Valentine’s Day “Sweetheart” Couples Cup Challenge
Experienced team of course setters, new venues, new maps!
Electronic Punching on all courses! Results / E-punch coordinator: Ed Despard
Day-of-event registrations available (with surcharge)
Schedule:
Date Location Director/Course Setter
Thurs/Friday Middle Distance Event Aims Coney
Feb 11&12: Morse Farm, Montpelier Aims.Coney@hp.com
There will also be an opportunity to ski this event on Friday.
Friday Model Event Adrian Owens
Feb 12 Craftsbury Common aowens@sterlingcollege.edu
Saturday US Championship Middle Distance Ernst Linder
Feb 13 Beaver Brook Farm, Marshfield elinder@unh.edu
Saturday afternoon there will be a ski technique clinic, put on by Alex Jospe and Ali Crocker. Saturday evening there will be a social event with refreshments served at the Fritz's barn. You can get directions while at the meet.
Sunday US Championship Long Distance Adrian Owens /
Feb 14 Craftsbury Sports Center Krum Sergiev
Awards and social Sunday evening.
Monday Ski-O Team Fundraiser Sprints Ken Walker sr.
Feb 15 Kingdom Valley Nordic, Chester kwalker@vmec.org
Tuesday Middle Distance Event Larry Berman
Feb 16 Grafton Ponds, Grafton smlberman@verizon.net
Start times will be assigned on Friday night.
Travel Information
Approximate Travel Times from Airports to Montpelier, VT
Burlington, VT (1 hour); Manchester, NH (2.5 hours); Montreal (3 hours);
Boston (3.5 hours); Hartford, CT (3.5 hours); Albany, NY (3.75 hours)
Travel Times Between Venues:
Montpelier to Marshfield (35 minutes); Marshfield to Craftsbury (50 minutes)
Montpelier to Chester (1 hour 45 minutes); Chester to Grafton Ponds (20 minutes)
U.S. Championships Classes and Courses
and suggested distances
________________________________________________________________
White Orange Green Red Blue
Middle
Distance 1.5 – 2.5km 2.5 – 3.5km 3 – 4km 4 – 6km 6 – 10km
Long
Distance 2 - 3km 4 – 6km 6 – 8km 8– 12km 12 – 20km
Female
Classes F White F-16, F-18, F-20, F40+, F21+
F65+, F-Orange F55+, F-Green
Male
Classes M White M-Orange M-16, M65+, M-18, M-20, M21+
M-Green M40+, M55+,
M-Red
__________________________________________________________________
Age is determined as of 12/31/2010
Classes in Boldface are Championship classes
Course lengths are measured straight line
Notes: E-punching will be used for every event. Finger sticks will be available for
rental if you do not have one of your own.
A limited number of map holders will be available to rent for each event.
US Championship Venues and Ski-O Team Selection: EMBARGO
US Championships competition venues (Beaver Brook Trails and Craftsbury Outdoor Center) are off-limits to orienteers until the events. Participants in organized races at these sites are exempt from the embargo on that race day, but may not carry a map and must stay on their race course. Season pass holders are not eligible for championship awards on events held at that site. Warm-up/wax test areas will be designated at each venue, going beyond those areas by competitors or coaches prior to their start is grounds for disqualification.
All races of this festival will be used for U.S. Ski-O Team selection. Ski orienteers who aspire to be on the U.S. Ski-O team are required to observe the embargo rule for all venue sites. For specific questions, contact the Ski-O Team Executive Steering Committee.
The PERM Trophy for Best O-Club
Join us for the inter-club competition to award the prestigious PERM Trophy to the fastest O Club during the two U.S. Championship Days. The Trophy is an elaborate coffee samovar brought to the US in 1992 by a visiting group of Russian orienteers from the city of Perm, near the Ural Mountains in Siberia. It was bought from them by Jonathan Berman, then owner of J Berman’s Orienteering Supply, and presented to the Ski-O Committee for use as a Ski-O Club Championship trophy. The competition is scored like a World Cup event, with points awarded in each Championship class, counting only those competitors who are eligible for the US Championships. The table of points was chosen to strike a balance between excellence and participation:
Place 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Points 40 35 30 26 22 19 16 14 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
At the 2007 US Ski-O Championships, organized by the Bay Area OC in the Sierra Nevada
Mts in California, 13 clubs competed, and the host club won the trophy.
The 2010 Winter Couples Cup
Valentine Sweetheart Challenge
Celebrate Valentine’s Day and show the world that you are the most loving couple in the universe! The couple with the highest point score during the February 14 Long Ski-O US Championship will be awarded the couples cup, a ski-O equivalent to the legendary UNO Couples Cup, awarded at the annual UNO Camping weekend. Rumor has it that this may be bundled with some tasty chocolates as well. Point scores will be determined according to a secret magic formula by the masters of ceremony.
Vermont Ski-O Festival Series Winners
Winners will be determined in each age class according to their overall scoring in all events of this series (excluding model event). Additional details, such as scoring rules will be posted on the event website.
Accommodations
Northern Events: Thursday 2/11 – Sunday 2/14
Craftsbury Outdoor Center
http://www.craftsbury.com/general/stay/winter_rates.htm
From $ 179 – 251 per night/couple, add’tl person $ 81, kids $ 38 (7 -12) $ 49 (13- 17) includes three sumptuous all-you-can eat meals, includes ski trail pass.
Village Motel, Hardwick. Basic motel.
www.vtvillagemotel.com , call for rates (802) 472-5211
Hollister Hill Farm Bed and Breakfast, Marshfield
www.hollisterhillfarm.com , call at 802-454-7725
Marshfield Inn and Motel (6 miles west of Marshfield)
Rates: $68 to $98 per double. Call for reservations (802) 426-3383
Towns of Montpelier and Barre, (5 miles south of Montpelier, 14 miles southwest of Marshfield) have several motels / hotels, incl. a Days-Inn and Comfort Inn and Suites at 802-229-2222 (near I-89, exit 7).
Southern Events: Monday / Tuesday 2/15 – 2/16
Several Inns and Motels in the general area of Chester, Springfield, Bellows Falls, Saxton River. See: www.chesterlodging.com/index.htm
For a fancy get-away try the Tavern in Grafton.
Also: Holiday Inn Express right at Exit 7 off I-91. (approx. 12 miles from Chester)
Detailed Schedule and Directions
Notes: E-punching will be used for every event. Finger sticks will be available for rent if you do not have one of your own.
14 map holders will be available to rent for each event, on a first-come first-served basis.
Thursday/Friday 2/11 & 2/12: Morse Farm, Montpelier, Middle Distance
Courses available both days. Racers can race on both days, but only first race counts towards overall series score. There will also be a "try it" class, for people who already have a trail pass, and those results will not be counted toward the overall score in the series.
Registration/Packet pick-up for entire event series.
Start times: Thursday: 12 - 2. Courses close at 4:30 pm.
Friday: 9 – 11. Courses close at 1:30
Host club NEOC. Course Setter: Aims Coney.
All courses offered. Winning times 50 - 75 minutes
Awards during Saturday’s Social
Morse Farm is a brand-new world-class cross country Nordic ski and snowshoe touring center 3 miles north of Montpelier. Its trails were designed by two-time Olympian John Morton (also a Vermont Public Radio commentator).
Directions: (from south) From I 89 take Exit 8, to Montpelier. Travel straight on Rt. 302 past three lights, at the fourth take a left onto Main street. Travel on Main Street until you meet the roundabout, take the first right on the round about. Continue straight up the hill (Main street becomes County Road) until you see us (2.7 miles from the round about)
Friday 2/12/10: Craftsbury Common, Model Event
Start times: 10 - 2. Courses close at 4pm.
Host club GMOC. Course Setter: Adrian Owens
A low-key training event on an outlying area of the Craftsbury Ski Trail system to get acquainted with the terrain, snow conditions, map. Nominal fee for map and trail use.
Craftsbury Common: A quaint Vermont Village, home of the Sterling College. Has an
extensive network of trails over farmfields and through woods; connected to the
Craftsbury Outdoor Center trails and the Catamount Ski Trail.
Directions: (from South) In Hardwick, VT, follow Rt 14 north for ~ 7 miles. From Route
14, take a right turn at the "Craftsbury Outdoor Center 6 miles" sign (South Craftsbury
Road). Pass through Craftsbury Village, go up a hill, through the village of Craftsbury
Common (a collection of white houses at the top of the hill). Meet at Sterling College which
is on your left in the common.
Saturday, 2/13/10: Beaver Brook Farm, Marshfield VT
US Middle Distance Ski-O Championships
and US Ski-O Team Fundraiser
Starts 11-1, Courses close at 3:30 pm. Awards / Social at the barn on site: 3–5 pm (no smoking, no alcohol). Awards; light food and drinks provided.
Host club UNO.
Course setter /event director: Ernst Linder elinder@unh.edu
Local hosts: Vivien and Mike Fritz.
All proceeds will go to the US Ski-O Team.
Beaver Brook Farm is in it's 10th year of operation providing high quality ski trails for the local communities. There are over 20Km of groomed trails. We are the Northeast demonstration center for TiddTech Grooming Equipment and use all their latest implements such as the G2 on our trails. Compared to most ski centers, our trail network was designed with Orienteering in mind and created for that purpose through our annual logging operations in the forest.
Directions: From South: Traveling into Marshfield, Vermont on Rt. 2 (from the east or west), at the Village Store, turn northeast on Rt. 215 heading toward Cabot. Travel 0.5 miles and turn north on McCrillis Rd. Go 0.7 miles to the top and take the right fork down to the big barn where the ski parking is in the barnyard.
From Craftsbury go south to Hardwick onto Rt. 15 heading south through town and then east about 5 miles to South Walden. Turn south on South Walden road heading to Cabot. Turn south onto Rt. 215 and travel through Cabot and Lower Cabot heading toward Marshfield. Just before you reach Rt. 2, turn right on McCrillis Rd and drive 0.7 miles up to the top and take the right fork down to the big barn and parking for the event.
Sunday, 2/14/10: Craftsbury Outdoor Center
US Long Distance Ski Orienteering Championships
Starts from 10-12, courses close at 3 pm. Awards and Social afterwards.
Host club GMOC. Course setter Krum Sergiev. Event director Adrian Owens.
Craftsbury Outdoor Center was founded in 1976 on the shores of Big Hosmer Lake. The Center offers a beautiful and convenient location for couples and families with children to relax and enjoy the outdoors for a day or a week either on their own or as part of an organized program. In the summer the Center has rowing and running camps for all ages. In the winter the Center has 85 kilometers of groomed cross-country ski trails and a skating pond for outdoor winter recreation. Premier cross country ski-area in the eastern U.S. Site of several U.S. ski orienteering championships and the famous Craftsbury Marathon.
Directions: See directions for Friday; then from Craftsbury Common, continue out of town approximately 3/4 mile, and look for a yellow curve sign. As the sign indicates, the pavement curves to the left, you want to bear right off the pavement and follow the "Craftsbury Outdoor Center" signs (staying on Mill Village Road). Continue winding on the dirt road for just under 1.25 miles and turn right onto Lost Nation Road. The Outdoor Center's is located approximately 0.6 mile.
Monday, 12/15/10: Kingdom Valley Nordic, Chester VT,
US Ski-O Team Fundraiser Sprints
Start times 10-1, courses close at 3pm. All proceeds go to the U.S. Ski-O Team
Host club CSU, event director/course setter/site manager: Ken Walker. .
Two courses offered: White/Orange approx. 1.5 km. Red/Blue approx. 3 km
Multiple runs will be permitted starting at noon at $5 donation per run.
Special prizes for overall fastest M/F times on each course.
Lunch available -- chili, fruit, soda, coffee for sale as Team fundraiser.
Kingdom Valley Nordic: Owned and operated by the course setter on his property, it provides a small network of ski trails specifically designed for Ski-O. Expect several “European” style dotted trails, and a mix of wide and semi-wide groomed trails.
Directions: (from north): From I-91 take exit 7 travel west on Rt 11 to Springfield. Stay on Rt 11 for another 6 miles, Kingdom Valley Nordic will be on your left. (from south): From I-91 take exit 6, go west on Rt. 103 into Chester (about 7 miles), take a right onto Rt 11, Kingdom Valley Nordic is 2 miles on your right.
Tuesday, 2/16/10: Grafton Ponds Ski Trails, Grafton, VT
Middle Distance
Starts from 10-12, course closes at 2pm.
Host club CSU, event director/course setter Larry Berman.
Grafton Ponds Ski Trails has an extensive trail network for Nordic Skiing totaling 30k of skating and classic skiing through fields and forests. Tiller groomed Nordic skiing for all abilities, plus 30k of backcountry terrain. It boasts its own snowmaking system (on 5k of terrain) that ensures the best possible conditions all winter!
Directions: (from Chester), from Rte 11 turn south on Rte 35 (by True Value hardware store) and follow to Grafton. Turn right and then left in front of The Old Tavern. Follow Townshend Road 3/4 mile out to the ski area. (From Bellows Falls, VT and east) follow Rte 121 west through Saxtons River into Grafton. Turn left in front of the Old Tavern. Follow Townshend Road 3/4 mile. (From Brattleboro, VT and south) follow Rte 30 north to Townshend. Turn north (right) on Rte 35 and follow signs to Grafton. Turn left toward Grafton at Y about 3 miles after turning onto Rte. 35. Ski area on right after 6 miles.
Volunteers Needed
We love to have volunteers help us. We need help with sign posting, beginner instruction, registration, starts and finishes, E-punch, and control pickup. If you can help on one or more of your competitive days, please let the event directors/course setters know (see page 1) before the events begin (we also accept drop-in help on each event day). If you arrange ahead of time to work an entire day, you will get a 2 point credit for the O-Club Challenge.
Cancellations
You can cancel without penalty before the first event day (February 11 2010). That is, all of your money for registration and rentals will be reimbursed. If you cancel on the day of the event because of extenuating circumstances, we can typically refund all of your money.
If you fail to show up without any notice, your entries will not be refunded. If an event is cancelled for any reason, all fees for that event are refunded to competitors. Unless you hear from us that we have cancelled an event, figure that the event will occur. Start times may be postponed/extended when driving conditions are bad. If the resort is open and trails are groomed, we typically will hold our events even in snow storms.
