Sprint Camp 2025 Regional
February 14th 2025 6:00pm - February 16th 2025 2:00pm
Organizers: Ben Smith (Event Director), Robyn Rennie (Organizer), Ingrid Weisenbach (Permit), Joanne Woods (Assistant), Stan Woods (Assistant), Reuben Ford (Assistant), Chris Benn (Assistant), Dawn Lessowai (Assistant), Alton Ho (Assistant), Brian Ellis (Assistant), Marg Ellis (Assistant), Kate Karamycheva (Assistant), Jonathan Harris (Assistant), David Bakker (Assistant), Mike Rascher (Assistant), Holly Hendrigan (Assistant), Bruce Rennie (Assistant)
Live results are here
Route choice analysis is here
Photos are here
Relay results by course are here
Thanks: a huge thank you to all the volunteers listed above who helped make this event happen. It's an incredible amount of work in the months leading up to the event (I counted over 100 hours just for myself), there's always last minute drama (normally related to permits; the ice was a new curveball this year), and the core crew are constantly solving problems all weekend. But we make it work every year, and are so grateful that people travel from far and wide to enjoy a fun weekend of quality orienteering with us.
Note that I won't be directing the event next year as I want to race as an Elite again before I get too old and slow! My training starts now.
Thanks again, and see you all next year! Ben
Recent updates
- Feb 18:
- Feb 16:
- Lost property: pair of "orienteering technology" "Supra" spiked shoes. Contact Ben to claim.
- Route choice analysis from the course planner. Especially important to read if you hopped the fence at Mahon!
- Feb 13: 2nd WEATHER UPDATE - it's slick out there! Spiked shoes highly recommended.
- I'm re-planning the courses for Princess Park to avoid a ravine that is very dangerous without spikes at the moment. Distance and climb will be less (2.9km/74m and 2.4km/52m). Those without spikes should consider running on the snow beside the trails rather than on the trails themselves. You can wear microspikes/kahtoolahs for this race as there will not be any urban running now. Same assembly location at the picnic shelter.
- Greenwood Park and William Griffin are in better shape. Still be very careful if you don't have spikes. Both have short sections of paved running.
- Lonsdale is completely clear - road shoes are fine.
- Mahon and Deep Cove are generally okay, and should improve even more during the warmer temperatures in the next 2 days. Any particularly bad spots that the control setters notice will be mentioned at the start line.
- Feb 12: Relay teams are available here. Contact Ben if you've changed your mind about running / not running in the relay on Saturday.
- Feb 11: The event guide was emailed to competitors this afternoon. Contact Ben if you registered but didn't receive it.
- Feb 8: WEATHER UPDATE - plan to bring spiked orienteering shoes if you have them! Vancouver is currently in a cold snap and there has been snow on the ground for the last week. It's melting, but probably won't be completely gone by next weekend. Roads and sidewalks are generally clear, shaded forest trails are generally compact snow with moderate grip, but there are sections of sunny well-used trails that are icy instead of snowy. Orienteering shoes work phenomenally well (at the expense of being really loud when you're running on the road!). The worst spot is at the running track, which sees a lot of sun and a lot of people. You can currently get around all the courses wearing regular trail runners, but need to be VERY careful on the icy sections. We'll post another update on Thursday with progress on how the big melt is going :)
- Feb 8: Map of event locations added. Full details will be emailed to competitors early next week.
- Jan 10: Registration is now open! See more details about the event structure and locations below.
- Dec 15: Courses are planned, banquet is booked, permits have been applied for. Registration will open early in January.
- 5 SI races
- A relay race
- 3 training sessions
- A Saturday night banquet with presentation by Canadian elite Emma Waddington
- Runners in the elite category will be competing for a prize purse of $1150 (top 5 men and top 5 women get payouts). Most courses will be 3-3.5km long, with expected winning times of 12-15 minutes.
- Runners in the expert category will be competing for glory (and some delicious goods). These courses are the same navigational difficulty as the elite courses, but a bit shorter.
- Friday
- Night training session. Bring a headlamp - it will be dark in the park!
- This will most likely be at Kensington Park in Burnaby, though we're still waiting for contracts to be finalised.
- First start will be ~6:15pm. Everybody out of the room by 8:45pm.
- You can pick up your map bag and SI stick (if renting) on either Friday night or Saturday morning before the first race.
- The R5 RapidBus provides regular and fast connections from downtown Vancouver.
- There are many dining options on East Hastings St or at The Amazing Brentwood mall (both 5 minutes drive).
- Saturday
- 2 SI races, 1 relay, 2 training sessions.
- Generally in North Vancouver.
- Banquet and presentation at Delbrook Community Centre in the evening. Room booked from 5-9pm, with food served ~6:00pm.
- The complex is on the map being used for the final race! It contains a swimming pool and hot tub etc if you wish to relax and clean up before dinner.
- Sunday
- 3 SI races, generally in North Vancouver
- Expect to finish at approx 2:30pm.
Event information
GVOC are hugely excited to welcome everyone back for another Sprint Camp in February 2025!
Sprint Camp is a full weekend of sprint races and trainings that we've been hosting since 2006. This year it will consist of:
This year it will mostly be based in North Vancouver. There will be some excellent urban orienteering venues, but also a little more forest than you've seen for the last few years. Note that a lot of the maps are hilly - if you want to do some race-specific training, start doing more hill reps!
What course should I enter?
We offer two entry classes - "Elite" and "Expert".
The weekend runs to a tight schedule - please only enter the elite category if you are usually capable of completing a sprint orienteering course in under 20 minutes.
Unfortunately Sprint Camp is not suitable for complete newcomers
to orienteering. However, if you're able to get around the Wednesday
Evening Training courses without too much drama, you should be fine with
the expert courses!
Registration
Click here to register! Registration deadline is Feb 8. See who's coming
Most people register for the full weekend, but we do accommodate single-day registrations for just the Saturday or Sunday.
Cost for the full weekend of races is $120. Half price for juniors. Half price if you're only attending one day.
Banquet tickets are $30. Vegetarians and vegans will be well catered for. Please message Ben to let us know if you have any restrictions we should know about. Thanks!
GVOC is subsidising entry for Team Canada Program athletes - you will receive the discount code soon.
Schedule
Detailed information will be emailed to competitors in the week leading up to the event. Here is an overview for people who need to make plans in advance.