Blåveis Sprinten - first orienteering event of the season.

The end of the race: the finish is inside the sports hall.

Last night, as I drove home in the snow,  I was wondering whether it had been a mistake to register for an orienteering event today. However in Fredrikstad, an hour south of us, the roads, fields and woods were mostly bare of snow. But it was cold, only a few degrees above freezing. 

A runner from our club wizzes through the arch into the finish which is inside the sports hall

The venue was indoors in a sports arena. Start was 800 meters  away. Running those 800 meters was not enough to warm my hands. I had time for another lap around the lake before my starting time, then, as I got underway towards the first control I could feel the warmth returning to my hands. As I ran through the course I got so warm that the wind that had seemed so chilly on my way to the start line now was a balmy breeze, cooling my hot brow!

Dancer, posing with map and compass

Husband at the finish.

The woods we were running in were obviously a much loved recreational area, with a myriad of paths. And easy to run off the paths as well. In fact it was easiest to follow the compass course - every time I tried following a path to a control, it turned out I was on the wrong path and I lost precious minutes getting reoriented. Not that it made any difference in the end. The winner ran in 24 minutes. The second to last in 34. I came in at 1 hour and 3 minutes. But I had fun!   

The woods beyond the sports hall, where the courses were.

I love Orienteering!