Report from Karen Parker
I last did the OMM (or KIMM as it was then) 39 years ago in the Galloway Hills. The combination of horrible weather, illness and long crocodiles of runners put me off, or so I thought, for ever. But when I heard this May (from a talkative loo delivery man at the Knipe Scar event) that the event was based at Shap Abbey, a mere 10 minutes’ drive from home, and on fells I know well a seed of interest was sown. After all I could always run home if I was hating it. Doing and enjoying the Mourne Mountain Marathon with Julie in September caused the seed to germinate and emerge as a healthy sapling.
We chose the Long Score course as it offered the best way to avoid the crowds and 13 hours over two days was almost exactly what we’d done in Ireland.
The event centre was in the same field that BL used for the Lakes 5 Day event at a few years ago, but with a marquee about 20 times the size of ours. Things didn’t start well; we found the start triangle on the map but nothing fitted. Where was the wall corner? Had we really come that far from the abbey? Finally, Julie asked a start official where we were and it turned out that we needed to follow a (not very) taped route 600m to the start kite. Hmmm! Our chosen route involved a couple of control on Swindale South followed by another 5 on Swindale North, both areas well known to orienteers. With an O map it would have been easy, but a 1:40,000 map with 15m contours felt very different. However, elephant tracks, as long as you got the right one, and lots of other competitors around simplified things.
After about 3 hours we suddenly noticed that we were on our own for the first time. Phew – that’s what MMs should be like. And it was time for decision making. Unfortunately, there was no cluster of controls close to the camp so we had to commit ourselves early. The plan worked out well though we had to abandon an attempt to find a control on a cage which according to reliable sources (i.e. my brother Steve Birkinshaw) was placed too low.
The campsite was in a beautiful remote-feeling spot in upper Longsleddale, with the low sun making the fells look particularly lovely. Over night the temperature fell close to freezing and light-weight gear was tested to its full. I really hadn’t expected to be wearing my waterproof trousers in bed. On the plus side, the clear skies and absence of light pollution led to a wonderful display of stars.
We later discovered that we had done well enough on Saturday to be in the (so called) chasing start on Sunday morning. Fortunately, we didn’t know at the time so instead of a rush to be ready to go by 7.30 we had time to warm up properly with multiple cups of coffee and the tent heated by the gas stove. Of course, cold wet shoes still felt horrible but our spirits were high (though not high enough to appreciate the banter of the shark and dinosaur at the start line). Decision making was relatively easy today but it was slightly disappointing to set off back along the same ridge that we had finished on the previous day. Some surprisingly challenging navigation kept it interesting though. Having coped well with difficult controls we then made a very careless 45-degree error on a relatively simple control. We didn’t lose too much time but I was picturing Dan and John at home watching us on the tracker and cringing. As predicted it started to rain mid-morning with the wind strengthening too. Today there were plenty of controls near the finish, and given the relatively low time penalties for lateness we could possibly have been more ambitious, but with the finish (literally) in sight, and the weather worsening, being a bit early seemed attractive. In the end we had 20 minutes to spare but were relieved not to be racing up the steep hill back to the finish field.
Overall, it was a great weekend, and we were happy with our results. I’ve finally got over the trauma inflicted 39 years ago.
In total 7 Border Liners took part in the event with results as follows (and very sorry if I’ve missed anyone):
Long Score
Jeff Powell-Davies (BL) and Ian Jones – 7th Overall and 2nd Vets
Emma Stuart (BL) and Nicky Spinks – 2nd Female
Karen Parker (BL) and Julie Ferris-Worth (BL) – 7th Vets and 5th Female
Medium Score
Natalie Hawkrigg (BL) and Rose Singleton – 9th Overall and 1st Female
Isabel Berry (BL) and Robin Stones – 7th Mixed
B Course
Andy Lewsley (BL) and Oliver Wilson – 6th Vets
Full results and tracking are available here
Border Liners Orienteering Club 