Scout Participation

Reading maps and using them for navigation is an important life skill - those that come along to our series will receive
the initial training required to participate safely in a one hour navigation activity.

But to do this, we need your help ....

Please read the material on this page carefully - it explains how we operate and what you need to do to register for one of our events.

What we provide

A Map

Each team will be given one or more detailed colour maps of the area in which the event is being held. Typically, the maps are 1:7500 scale and show all roads, parks, creeks, paths/tracks and point features such as play-parks and park benches. 
Most maps will have a legend, a scale bar, a North arrow or compass circle and text detailing the scale and contour interval.

electronic tags

For safety reasons, we tag every person that goes out on the course. The tag is an RFID chip that attaches to your index finger with an elastic strap. As you reach each checkpoint, you press the red button on the control - the electronic control writes its control number and current time to the RFID chip.
When teams finish the course, they download into our computer. This lets us know who is back and who is not - and automatically scores each participant.

A course

In addition to the above, the map will also have a number of control circles on it showing the location of each checkpoint. Associated with each checkpoint is a checkpoint description - text that describes the feature at that location. Checkpoints are numbered say 1-20 (or 1-25)...with high-numbered controls being worth more points than low-numbered ones.

coaching

All of our coaches are experienced Scout or other youth leaders, orienteers and rogainers who hold a current WWCC. We train kids in small groups - typically 4-6 at a time. The coach will explain how to use the tags, how to read the map, how to orient the map and how to navigate from one point to another. 

What you provide

early notice

Most leaders define their program at the start of a term - so they can give parents and youth members notice of out-of-hall excursions (such as Adventure Racing). Please let us know early if you put us on your program - this allows us to 'reserve' places for you. 
At some locations, the numbers are restricted - if we reach the limit for that location, groups will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. 

brief the scouts/parents

Most of our hosting groups provide a BBQ - typically selling sausages and cool drinks after the activity.  While our activity is free for kids and scouting personnel, we do ask people to bring say $2 along to buy a sausage or drink from the hosting group.

provide names

Please provide a copy of your pack/troop list - including the names of ALL youth members and leaders. If you know of parents that are likely to come along, include them too.
It doesn't matter if some don't turn up - our computer is smart enough to work that out. Please use the Excel Spreadsheet provided on our website to provide these names.

on the night

We ask leaders and youth members to arrive as early as possible - by 6:30 pm at the latest. We provide a pre-printed list to each leader - listing the names of all in their group and the tag numbers assigned to each.
We ask the leader to gather his youth members, hand out tags to them and then pass groups of kids/escorting parents to one of our coaches.

Where to from Here?

Pick a Date/Location

Most leaders build their programme months ahead - typically during term breaks - to cover group activities for the next 8-10 weeks.
Check our Home Page for the current fixture - this provides dates and locations for planned events.
Once you've decided when and where, please let us know - we put your name, contact details and your estimate of numbers on a list and keep you informed if anything changes.
This also reserves a number of places for you on that evening - if our quota for a night is exceeded, we will process entries on a first-come, first-served basis.

Let Parents Know

If you're visiting another hall, you're going to need help with transport. You can use/change our Information Sheet for Parents as you wish...and send it to parents.

Information Display

When you get a response from parents, some may ask to take part in the activity and may also bring along brothers or sisters. This is no problem for us - as long as you add their names to the list of people coming.

...and now, tell us...

Download the ATTENDANCE SHEET here and provide:
    => A copy of your mob/pack/troop list
    => Add the names of Parents and Leaders
    => Add the names of additional people that might attend
Send us a copy of the spreadsheet - ie the XLS file. (Please do not, send us a PDF file or a picture of the spreadsheet - these are not helpful). 
We record all reservations against the events on the Home Page; please check there to see if your reservation has been received. The reservation is not confirmed until we receive your Attendance Sheet.
Please do this as soon as you can - we generally close entries on Sunday evening before each event and reserve the right to refuse entry to requests/attendance sheets that arrive after this time.

Hosting an Event

What's Involved?

Our series is enthusiastically supported by Scout Groups that have taken part in previous events. Most of these Groups are located in reserves/parks that provide a delightful start location for the activity.

What is needed? Typically, 150-200 people will attend. To cater for such numbers, we need adequate car-parking and access to a hall (the hall provides access to toilets and may be used if rain is threatened). 

In addition, each hosting Group can, if they wish, provide a low-cost BBQ and drinks - this turns a basic training activity into a terrific social evening as lots of people stick around to snack on a sausage or buy a cool drink to cool down. 

Finally, we'd be grateful if the various sections in the hosting Group could join us on the night - it's a great way for the various sections to meet one another and a terrific opportunity for older Scouts/Venturers to train younger Cubs and Joeys. 

On the Night

The Suburban Adventure Racing Team set up the course during the day and arrive onsite around 5:30 pm with their equipment. With help from 3-4 early starters, setup takes 20-30 minutes and we are generally ready to start by 6:00 pm. We ask hosting groups to provide access to their hall a little before 6:00 pm. 

If a BBQ is being provided, it is wise to set up around 6:30 pm and have a few sausages ready by about 6:50 - this caters for the early starters. The bulk of people - and the Joeys, Cubs and Scouts - will finish their course between 7:30 and 8:00 pm. If large numbers are expected (see the Series Homepage - we display a list of registered Groups for each event), it's wise to pre-cook lots of sausages around 7:20...to prepare for the rush. 

The activity finishes around 8:00 pm and pack-up takes 20-30 minutes. We usually vacate the area around 8:30pm.
At the end of the evening, we publish a web report with details of the event, lots of photos, the results and a copy of the map. We send a link to this report to all leaders that took part - so they can forward this to parents and/or youth members the following day. 

How to Register

We prepare our fixture in May/June each year - and contact Groups at that time to see who is interested in taking part. 
If your Group would like to host an event next year, please let us know  - we'll put your name on our list and contact you during the fixture process to check that the date assigned is OK with your Group.

If your Group is selected as a Hosting Group, we will also provide a set of very-detailed laminated maps - with aerial photography on one side and a map on the other. These are a superb way of training young children in map-reading and can be used in a variety of games for all sections within your Group.