Three ski-o courses have been laid out at Mt. van Hoevenberg. You are welcome to try one, two or all of them anytime between Feb. 6 – March 7, 2021. Ski-o procedures have been modified to comply with covid guidelines so please read the following notes carefully.
Course Fee: there is no charge to ski a course but all participants must have a van Hoevenberg trail pass. Day passes must be purchased in advance – they cannot be purchased on site. Please read about van Hoevenberg’s policies and procedures regarding payment, parking etc. here: https://mtvanhoevenberg.com/operational-updates/.
Maps: the map scale is 1:7500, except for the long course which is 1:10000. Maps may be obtained by contacting Janet Findlay (jfindlay@roadunner.com) or by downloading from Usynligo, a free orienteering phone app. If downloading from Usynligo, be sure to use the latest version (Feb. 4). You can find information about Usynligo at https://empoclub.org/usynligo-phone-app/.
Courses: Short – 3.5 km / 9 controls
Medium – 4.5 km / 11 controls
Long – 7.4 km / 15 controls
Timing: there is no electronic timing for these courses. The Usynligo app will give you an overall course time as well as split times between controls – remember it may not give an instantaneous response when you reach a control and you may have to wait up to 30 seconds for it to beep. If you don’t wait for the beep it will not record your arrival at the control. You may also time yourself. We will compile course times so if you want your time included, please email it to Janet at jfindlay@roadrunner.com.
Control Markers: We have used small numbered signs on poles as control markers (see photo). There are no traditional orange and white orienteering kites on the course.
Be sure the number on the sign matches the control number that you’re looking for.
If you hear a Usynligo beep, make sure you see the control, as the app may be picking up
the signal from a different control located on an adjacent trail.
General: 1 – the start and finish are on 2 separate poles situated beside one another near the new lodge. One has “Start” and the other has “Finish” written on it;
2 – controls must be visited in numerical order;
3 – you can take whatever route you think is the fastest to reach the control – your route does NOT have to follow a marked trail;
4– one way trails, as marked on your map with pink arrows, must be observed for safety purposes. Please use common sense when skiing to avoid collisions with other skiers;
5 – you can take off your skies at any time but you must have them with you at all times.
For further information please contact Janet Findlay.
Enjoy your course and feel free to pass on comments and suggestions!