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Memorisation

Description
Plan a course and put a map of the course at each control. At the starting point, the runner memorizes the route to go to  control 1. Then at 1, he memorizes the route to go to 2. He has to select only the essential elements to find the control.

Alternative

  • Plan a star course, or small loops to make the exo easier
  • Plan a score around the start point. Leave the map on the start. Be careful to leave a limited time for memo (10 seconds?). The purpose is to reproduce what we do during a race, not to test our memory capacity.

Comment

  • Avoid planing legs, which can only be done with a compass
  • The memo map attached to the control must be able to turn for orientation

Contributor
Nathalie Rauturier

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Zero Stop ( English)

Description
Plan a course. The instruction is never stop running.
=> adapt your speed to be able to read your map at the same time
=> memorise as much information as possible each time you read the map
=> if you have not anticipated correctly, you continue to run near the control to decide where you are going, but you never walk

Alternative

  • you are only allowed to stop at the controls
  • you have someone behind you who counts how many times you stop.

Comment

Contributor
Nathalie Rauturier

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Win, lose or draw

Description
Image0002The map with the course remains at the start point. The runner has a blank sheet of paper. He draws the elements that are useful to find the controls, without forgetting to draw the North, the number and definition of each control. The purpose of the exercce is to learn to select the important elements that will help us to find the controls.

entrainement 4.Parc. 1 bis

Variante

  • entrainement 4.Parc. 1 bisTo simplify, give to the runner the course without the map. The locations of the controls are already indicated making the drawing easier
  • This exo can be used as a put out/ put down exercice. A runner puts out a control with a map. When he comes back, he puts down his map, does not look at it anymore and draws on a paper the route to find the control. He gives the paper to another runner, who should put down the control. Laugh, endless discussions or shouting  are guaranteed… you have to use the elements selected (and drawnn) by another person!

Comment
Highly instructive

Contributeur
Nathalie Rauturier

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Contour quiz

Description
This is a quiz to do during a jog. It trains you to stabilise your gaze for map reading and to understand contour.

Quiz 1

Quiz 2

Alternative
You can answer these quiz in front of the fireplace

Comment
Nathalie still does not have the answers. But you can argue if you don’t agree with each other, and that’s also another exercise!

Contributor
Philippe Boulestreau

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Brown map

Description
.Relief-HardA brown map is an exercice to focus on contours training. 
To make it, you just hide all th symbols except the brown ones on the map and then plan a course.

Alternative
To make it less difficult, you can plan a star course and leave the paths. Be careful with the instructions: the paths are only there to relocate if necessary, not to get as close as possible to the control by avoiding reading the contour lines 😉

Relief-EtoileTo make it more difficult, you can get rid off the North lines

Comment
This exercise is “scary”. It is a good idea to propose different steps before going into a complete brown course: brown and path star course, brown star course, then small loops. Also let people having a spare map, in the pocket.

Contributor
Nathalie Rauturier

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White map

Description
Carte blancheThis exercise gives you the opportunity to work on accurate bearing and distance evaluation.

Alternative
The exercise can be done as a circuit, but it may be wise to have a spare map in your pocket.

You can add false controls to check the precision of your bearing: either false because not exactly the right angle, or false because not at the right distanceCarte blanche avec faux

Comment
You should plan situations that you can face during a race, so there is no point in working out precise bearings of more than 200m.

Be careful not to forget to mention the scale of the map.

Contributor
Nathalie Rauturier et Christine Verdeil

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True or false

Description
entraînement.A1For each control on the map, either the flag on the ground is well put out (TRUE), or the flag is not well put out (FALSE), or it is not there (MISSING). The control card should be only punched when the flag is TRUE.

Alternative
The route can be marked for children.
Put out many flags along the route. You can then ask them to punch only the flags that are on the map.
Or you can put out less flags than controls on the map and ask them to find the missing ones.

Comment
When you do this exercice, plan the course and print your runners maps. Draw on your own map, where the wrong flags are and where there are some missing.
Don’t put missing flags only far away. The runners motivation may collapse…

Contributor
Nathalie Rauturier

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White as snow

Description
floconWith this exercise, bearing precision is essential. Blank areas should not be avoided, it should make you aware that you do not need to read everything on a map.

Alternative
They are endless:

  • you can do the exercise with Easter bells, with the club mascot…
  • you can use a white colour that is not totally opaque
  • you can change the size and number of stars to make it easier
  • you can also change the pattern…10498316_10155157117450541_4958623083587509574_o

Comment
It’s nice. But how can we do that ?

Steps with OCAD
– In OCAD course setting , create a colour purple (just below the course setting purple in the colour order, for the edge of the stars), colour white (just below purple in the colour order, for the inside of the stars) and blue (first in the colour order, to draw the north lines above the stars).
– Create a purple line symbol and a white surface symbol
– Find a jpeg model of a snow star on internet, put it as a template for the map
– Draw around the star with the purple line symbol
– copy/paste the resulting symbol as many times as necessary, place the stars where you want
– plan the course, adjust the placement of the stars if necessary
– fill the stars with the white area
– redraw the north lines, if necessary
– set up the page lay out

Contributor
Simon LEROY (carte LAUVCO)O

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Snatch the bacon

Description
béretThis is a variant of the “Snatch the bacon” game.

Let’s say you have 12 players. Make 6 teams of two. In each team you have one player A and one player B.
Print a very large scale map (1000th) with 12 controls.
At each control, you put between 1 and 6 cones of the same colour. Be careful to put different coloured markers on the controls that are closed to each other.
The maps are placed 5 meters in front of the teams, which are  inline.

You call out a player (A or B), a number written on the map (from 1 to 12) and you specify the colour of the cone (if you don’t want them all to bring you the wrong cone).
The players go near the maps to memorise the location of the control you have just announced. They don’t know if there is 1 or 2 or 6 cones placed at that point. They will soon all run, not necessarily in the right direction ;).
When the players get to the cones, they take one and go back to the start. First come, first served, until all the cones are taken. Unlike the real game of beret, only the “snatching the bacon” is important, to add value to map reading.
Then you then call the other players, another number (and therefore another colour of cones).
Once the 12 numbers have been called, each team counts the number of cones they had. The team with the greatest number of cones wins.

Alternative
You can replace the cones with cards numbered from 1 to 12. Then the players can check that they are at the right place.  
You can put chocolate for easter time.
You can make the controls more complicated to find, depending on the players you have.

Comment
Remember to note the correspondence between the colour of the cones and the numbers on the map before playing.
This variant of the “Snatch teh bacon” game is very dynamic and is pleasing all, young and old, beginner and experienced runners.
It also ensures that no one is in complete failure. No player will have 0 points at the end.

Be careful, with experienced adults, to give the rules of safe behaviour : shoulder strokes to destabilise the competitor when approaching the cone are forbidden for example!

Contributor
Nathalie Rauturier

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Tag party

Description
EpervierYou designate a “Tag Man” called “Sparrowhawk” in french, the others are called players.
Everyone has a map, with controls to punch.
At the start, the players set off towards the finish. They have to punch any 5 markers without being touched by the sparrowhawk. The sparrowhawk leaves 5 minutes after the group and must try to hit as many players as possible. Once touched, the player becomes another sparrowhawk.
The sparrowhawk wins if he has hit half of the players.
In order to be able to recognise which players have been hit or not, the players can be given a bandana. As soon as they are hit by the sparrowhawk, they take off their bandana.

Alternative
Many variations can be found:

  • number of sparrowhawks at the start
  • time between the departure of the group and  the sparrowhawk
  • number of controls to be punched before taking refuge at the finish

Comment
This exercise requires participants to remain focused on map reading, while making sure not to be hit by the sparrowhawk.

Contributor
Nathalie Rauturier