By Andrew Mitchell
The woods around Whistler came alive this past weekend as the
town played host to the B.C. Orienteering Championships. There were three
courses — a short course on Nesters Hill and a middle distance
competition in Lost Lake Park on Saturday, and a long distance event in the
Brandywine area on Sunday.
Several competitors took part in all three events, with an
overall provincial champion crowned at the end of the weekend and titles
awarded for short, middle and long events.
Whistler’s Scott Brammer placed first in the men’s open
competition with a course time of 23 minutes and 11 seconds, while Duncan Munro
placed a distant second after struggling to find a checkpoint.
Joel Young raced unopposed in the Men’s Open 3 race.
In the middle distance race, where courses were up to 3.1 km in
length, Whistler’s Martin Padroe was 10
th
in the Men’s 20 category
in a time of 35:14. Young was second in the same group in 50:17.
Sheryl Reynolds was unopposed in the Women’s Open 3 category in
1:50:39.
Gary Robbins, a Squamish adventure racer, placed first in the
Men’s Open 5 group in 30:05.
The long distance course followed a route that was up to 5.1 km
in length, providing you move smoothly from checkpoint to checkpoint.
Whistler’s Mark Fearman, Robbins’s racing partner, placed 13
th
in the Men’s 20 category in 2:16:15, while Robbins was 16
th
in
3:31:38.
Joel young competed in Men’s Open 4, placing first in 1:14:48 on a shorter 2.8 km course with eight checkpoints.