Seniors and Others orienteering meet attracts wide range of participants

With National Orienteering Week set to conclude on Saturday, the Yukon Orienteering Association (YOA) has been hosting a number of different events to help sell the sport in Whitehorse.

With National Orienteering Week set to conclude on Saturday, the Yukon Orienteering Association (YOA) has been hosting a number of different events to help sell the sport in Whitehorse.

Altogether, the YOA held three events, which began last Saturday with the Learn to O clinic and finished Thursday with the Seniors and Others meet.

The other meet was a part of the Wednesday night series, held every two weeks.

Seniors and Others began at noon and it used a map featuring the downtown area of the city, which provided a good opportunity for people to tryout the sport.

The meet was open to anyone and was free for seniors, while other participants had to pay $5. The event began in Rotary Peace Park.

“It went quite well,” said Nesta Leduc, the Seniors and Others meet director. “It’s a beautiful sunny day.

The wind was a bit of the problem with all of the papers we have, but apart from that it went very well.”

Around 35 people attended the meet, including 10 seniors.

The course used was wheelchair and stroller accessible.

It featured seven control points in total, which were designed so participants could attend and finish during their luch break.

Leduc said she was pleased with how the event went.

“I am happy quite a few people came out and enjoyed it,” she said “Some people came out who had not orienteered before and were exposed to the sport.”

Maura Glenn and Arla Repka both participated in the Seniors and Others course together.

Glenn has been orienteering for a few years, while Repka has been active in the sport for the past 10 years.

Both prefer the more recreational form of orienteering over the competitive method of taking part in the sport.

Glenn said she wanted to participate in the Seniors and Others meet to get some exercise.

“It’s a fun thing to do for exercise, orienteering,” she said. “It’s a fun way for a walk.”

Repka said these meets are easy to do in an urban setting.

“You can picture where (the control point) might be, what park or what building or what railing or whatever.”

Both were able to find all of the control points and were happy with the way the meet went.