Central Texas Scouts Compete in Orienteering

The Twelfth Annual Scout Orienteering Challenge is going to take place at Bastrop State Park on Saturday, January 22, 2011.  Over 1,000 competitors aged nine through adults are expected to attend from San Antonio, Houston, Austin, and throughout central Texas.

The Scout “O” Challenge is a scout invitational meet organized to raise funds to assist boys attend high adventure camps and to attend leadership development programs.  Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Venture Scouts and Cub Scout Webelos come together for a weekend of camping and orienteering to participate in a fun weekend of sport and camaraderie.  Registration starts at 7:30 am on Saturday at Bastrop State Park’s refractory building with a map and compass briefing prior to the start of the meet at 10 am.  The race ends at 2 pm with awards beginning approximately 4 pm.  Early registration begins 7 pm Friday night. Scout units interested in the Challenge can find the registration form on the meet website, www.Scout-O-Challenge.org.

Bastrop State Park is unique because it has a permanent orienteering course the whole family can enjoy year-round.  Orienteering maps are available at the state park for $3 which provide instructions for beginners or advanced orienteers.  According to Steve Nelson, Meet Director, “orienteering is a fun activity families can enjoy because it is in the great outdoors.  Competitors develop a strategy to find the orienteering markers in the woods like a treasure hunt.”

Orienteering is known as the thinking sport.  The idea is to efficiently navigate a course using a map and compass.  It can be done on an individual basis or as a member of a team.  Many control points are located throughout Bastrop State Park.  Each control has a point value.  Controls farthest from the start and hardest to find rate the highest point values.  Each competitor has a set time to collect as many points as possible.  Although orienteering has become an Olympic sport, individual hikers and runners typically enjoy the sport as well as families looking for a fun afternoon in a park setting.

For information about the Scout Orienteering Challenge, contact Carolyn or Steve Nelson at adraggin@swbell.net.  The meet website is www.Scout-O-Challenge.org.