SHR Navigation Course

15th-16th October 2011

Like Hamilton and Paula last year, I signed up for the SHR Navigation Course this year and can heartily recommend it. Led by Bruce Poll and ably assisted by Dave Scott, it’s a good chance to brush up on your map and compass work, pre-race planning, and all in the context of hill racing, mountain marathon, and orienteering use.

Both days start with a morning of theory and planning, then an afternoon in the hills. Day 1 allows the chance to practice navigation with the group including trying to judge distance covered or time to get to a point, and Day 2 has a longer exercise to put it all into practice (including pre-race planning) which can be run solo or in pairs.

Very good and relevant course, plenty of chances to ask questions, generally sort out your understanding, and try it all out in the field. I still need plenty of practice but I’m much happier about planning routes and following bearings now. I’m also pleased to report that I successfully located the Grog and Gruel without using my iPhone.