2017 Nav-X Challenge @ Joe Grant

Update: Course Setter Notes - Click Here

Update: Schedule has changed for 3-5h courses! 9-23-2017

Quick Info

• Date: September 30 - October 1, 2017
• Location: Joseph Grant County Park, Santa Clara County Park, CA
• Event Director: Andrew Peterson
• Course Directors: Dennis Wilkinson
• Courses:  3, 5 & 16h (in 24h) Map Trek

List of Registered Entrants

Follow this link to an updated list of entrants.

Event Summary

The 2017 Nav-X Challenge at Joe Grant County Park, in the hills east of San Jose, is our marquee event of the year and we are super excited to bring it to you!  This beautiful park has typical Bay Area hill terrain with a mix of grassy, open areas, open forest, and some brush.  Find up to 70 checkpoints spread through the entire park, using an excellent BAOC orienteering map.  In the "Quad Trek" format (also known as "Regaine" by its creators at CYNO in New York state), you will execute up to four loops of map trekking, returning to base camp for a mandatory rest stops between each loop. Solos are allowed! The loops can be up to 5, 4, 4, and 3 hours in duration, with corresponding 1, 2, 2, and 3 hour rest stops - that's 16 hours of racing in a 24 hour period. You may stack two rests back to back for a longer break if you'd like. This format is an excellent introduction to overnight racing and the international championship-level rogaining standard of 24 hour events, and we hope many of you give it a try! You can also opt to do a typical 3 or 5 hour map trek. 

Schedule

New to Map Trekking or Rogaining?

Map Trekking is a “Navigation Sport” that has elements of a few other sports and activities like Trail Running, Fell Running (XC hill running), Hiking, Orienteering and Geo Caching.  More specifically, Map Trekking is a time-based challenge, 2 hrs or more in length, where participants try to score as many points as possible within the time allowed, by visiting checkpoints scattered across a vast, wild landscape.  Participants are free to decide which checkpoints to visit, and in what order.  Typically, a set time is allowed before the start for participants to study the map, and determine their route.  Participants travel on foot and navigate their chosen route using the map and a compass (No GPS allowed except for recording your track).  A late finish comes with point penalties, adding another layer of challenge to the sport.  Checkpoints vary in difficulty and the point value reflects the same, so that easy ones yield a lower point value than difficult ones.  To encourage beginners, course setters typically provide plenty of easy checkpoints near the start and finish location.

Venue / Park Info

Joe Grant is a former cattle ranch with typically beautiful Bay Area hill terrain. You will navigate through grassy hillsides, mostly open forested areas, and some brush. There are some wide, gentle valleys and also typical V-shaped Bay Area reentrants. The slopes can be relatively steep in places, so good cleats are recommended. That said, if you haven't done a long event before, be sure to bring shoes that have some support and are already broken in to avoid blisters or sore feet.

Much of the pasture land is grazed, so the grass will be nice and low, but grass seeds will be present in some areas and long pants or gaiters are recommended. There is poison oak, although by this time of year it has lost some of its potency. Bring Tecnu, or normal soap, and towels to clean off at base camp during your rest periods! You will need to cross some barbed wire fences; rolling under is almost always your fastest and safest option, especially over a long event. 

Important bummer: our permit does not allow us to provide food this year (new bureaucratic, CYA craziness from Santa Clara County). We will provide hot water, limited propane burners/cooking gear, and possibly heated chafing dishes, so you can potentially heat stuff up, but you'll have to bring all your own food. Sorry! 

On water, we will very likely not provide water on the course, so bring enough carrying capacity for 5 hours of trekking! (For me, this is typically a 100 oz/3L bladder, possibly supplemented with a bottle on hot days.) There is a water source at base camp. 

Camping is allowed in the vicinity of the hash house, so if you envision taking a nap during the night you can do so in style. There are bathrooms at the base camp as well. However, there is not a power source for charging your lights. 

We recommend bringing redundant gear, including changes of clothes and shoes, medical and repair supplies, and batteries so that you can adjust to gear malfunctions during your rest periods. This is one really nice aspect of the quad trek format. 

About the Map

Orienteering map at 1:15,000 scale.

Courses & Divisions

There will be three courses offered:

• 3 hr Map Trek
• 5 hr Map Trek
• 16 hr (in 24 hr) Quad Trek

Participants can compete in the following divisions:

• Junior Male or Mixed (19 & Under, 1-5 person teams, All-male or mixed Male-Female)
• Junior Female (19 & Under, 1-5 person teams, All-female)
• Open Male or Mixed (20-49, 1-5 person teams, All-male or mixed Male-Female)
• Open Female (20-49, 1-5 person teams, All-female)
• Masters Male or Mixed (50 and up, 1-5 person teams, All-male or mixed Male-Female)
• Masters Female (50 and up, 1-5 person teams, All-female)
• Family - Adult+Children (12&under)Family - Adult + children up to 12 yo

Results from this event count toward the 2017 Series Championship.

Price

Early fees (25% off) through Saturday Sept 16th (via online registration).  Regular fee is Sept 17th - September 27th (via online registration).  Day of Event Registration is cash only.

Discounts for orienteering club members (BAOC/GCO/etc...), $4 for adults and $2 for juniors.  Discount applied during online registration process.

For family teams (3-hr course only), it is required to have at least one adult (20 & over) and at least one child (12 & under).  Children 12 & under race free but must be accompanied by an adult.  They don't need to register separately - just list their names in the appropriate box under the adult's registration."

Additional fees to rent an e-punch ($5) and/or compass ($2).  Only one e-punch number or rental request is required per team.  On the registration page, please enter "0" for e-punch number if you are not the first person registering for your team.

Refund Policy

Refund policy: 100% refund up to 10 days before event. Future race credit 1-9 days before event. No refunds for no-show.

What to Bring

Wear what you would normally wear for a strenuous hike in Northern California.  Here are some tips:

• Cell phone (Required as a safety precaution)
• Sturdy shoes with a good tread
• Long pants or gaiters
• Visor hat
• Compass (you may rent one for $2)
• ePunch (SI stick with 50 control capacity - you may rent one for $5 if you don’t have one)
• Pen and maybe a highlighter marker (for marking up your map and making notes)
• Water (enough for the time you will be out on the course)
• On the go snacks (energy bar, gel, etc.)

Map and Directions

From the Bay Area, take CA 130 (or Quimby Rd to CA 130) east from San Jose to the park.  Pay the entry fee and follow our signs to the event center at Stockman's group picnic area/campground. This is next to the large, central parking lots