2023 Nav-X Challenge @ Sunol
Quick Info
Date: Friday 1 September to Tuesday 31 October
Location: Sunol, CA
Courses: 3h & 6h GPS Map Trek
Registration: https://eventreg.orienteeringusa.org/eventregister/a40/register/start/copy-of-2023-nav-x-2
List of participants: https://eventreg.orienteeringusa.org/eventregister/a40/reglist/home/copy-of-2023-nav-x-2
Nav-X’s 4th event of 2023 brings us to a classic orienteering venue in the East Bay near Sunol.
59 checkpoints are marked on the detailed BAOC orienteering map of this beautiful park.
You have 3 or 6 hours to try and get to as many checkpoints as you can.
We will be using the Smartphone app named “MapRun” to record your visit to each checkpoint. The app will record a “punch” automatically using your GPS position.
Results from each competitor are tabulated into a results list.
There is also an app named MapRunG that can be used with Garmin watches.
All the instructions including directions to the Start are below. Be safe and have fun!
EVENT INFORMATION
MAPRUN
DIRECTIONS TO PARKING:
Exit Calaveras Blvd off I-680 in Sunol, CA.
Travel 6.0 miles south on Calaveras, and turn left at Geary Rd. There are signs for the park approaching, and at, this intersection.
Continue on Geary Rd into the park, paying the fee at the kiosk if it is staffed. There are many areas you can park; due to the start and finish location, near the headquarters might be most convenient.
BATHROOMS - There are several sets of outhouses in the park headquarters area. There are also some next to control 35.
GEAR REQUIREMENT - you must carry the following on your course
Smartphone/GPS watch - goes without saying since we are using an app for timing.
Compass
Whistle for safety
GEAR RECOMMENDATION - We also recommend participants bring the following:
Cleated shoes - you may be traversing steep slopes
Long pants and long sleeve shirt for the poison oak
Gaiters or ankle coverings to prevent debris from entering your shoes
Snacks & Water, especially if you are on the 6-hr course
TRASH - There are trash cans at the parking area. While on the course, practice Leave No Trace (LNT) - bring all trash back to the parking area.
MAP & COURSE NOTES
TERRAIN - Sunol is typical East Bay grassland and oak woodland. It is hilly and boasts some incredible views, a lot of which I tried to feature on this course. Stickers (and burrs/star thistles) are unfortunately still present in most areas, but the abundance of small paths make it possible to avoid these a lot of the time. The terrain is generally fast, but hilly; indeed, the topography is probably your number one concern when route planning. The areas of brush and undergrowth are decently well mapped and mainly easy to avoid, though it’s also possible to get through in places if you decide to try.
MAP - The Sunol map is a well-established BAOC map, and I made some small updates to it around control locations and route choices. The most common inaccuracy is where a large tree has fallen but the map has not been updated; in these cases, there is no brown X. As a result, I’ve tried to avoid placing controls on these features unless the map is accurate (or if there are no other significant features in the area). The fences are generally well mapped. Almost always, when the map indicates a hole or gate in a fence, it’s there. There are a stunning number of unmapped indistinct trails (created by cows or deer or pigs or… who knows what else) that appear and disappear out of nowhere; these are very useful when navigating to controls but there are simply too many of them to consistently map them. Some are mapped, however, and these are generally reliable, useful, and surprisingly fast. The vegetation in the northernmost sector of the map (north of Welch Creek Rd) is a little spotty; the map there is old and not used as much, and sometimes the details of the vegetation are a little rough. I took time to update the map around all the controls and route choices, but be aware of a slight drop in quality once you cross that road. Also note that the map features may not perfectly align with the new contours, i.e. blue watercourse symbols may not exactly appear in the bottom of a reentrant. The north lines are currently very slightly off from magnetic north (2.8 degrees), but it shouldn’t be noticeable.
COURSE - There are 59 checkpoints varying in point value from 20 to 100 points. This is a lot of checkpoints for a 3/6 hour event, and will hopefully provide you with a lot of options and some fun strategic route choice. I don’t think it’s quite possible even for a very fast runner to fully clear the course, but I think runners will be surprised at how fast some of the terrain is. My goal was to bring participants to some of the most beautiful and scenic parts of Sunol, and a well-planned route will oftentimes save you from the grueling hills and ugly gully crossings that Sunol is sometimes notorious for. Still, the course is steep, so be ready for a good bit of climb.
POISON OAK - It’s there, but generally avoidable. I tried to set courses that avoid clumps of it, especially if you try to steer clear of dark green vegetation. The area around 101 is a potential exception; the map was a bit spotty, so please be intentional about how you approach that control. In the wooded areas, it grows as individual knee to waist high plants; it also grows as larger individual bushes, vines, and in thickets. The thickets are easily avoided. It’s definitely a good idea to wash after your course just in case though.
START - The start area is shown on your map as a triangle and is at a fence corner next to one of the parking area roads. It is a much lower fence than most of the ones you will encounter on the course. Do not approach the start until you are ready to go! Your GPS device will start you automatically if you press the “Go To Start” button and are near it; it will alert you by beeping once you are within a couple meters of the spot.
SCORING: Just like our other events, each checkpoint has a point value reflecting the navigational difficulty and remoteness of the checkpoint (higher point value for tougher, more distant checkpoints). Some of the checkpoints in the far north, for example, are higher value than more navigationally challenging ones closer to the start. The point value is the “10 part” of the checkpoint code. Examples: 33 = 30 points, 50 = 50 points, 88 = 80 points, etc. The late penalty is initially 30 pts / minute on the app but will periodically be manually adjusted to the Nav-X standard 10 pts / minute.
MARKERS - Each checkpoint is marked with a strand of orange, biodegradable flagging, except there is no flagging at the start, finish, and one or two controls on very obvious and frequented features. The flagging is generally very visible and often tied to branches or rocks. If your control feature is a depression or boulder, it might be tied to a rock or branch somewhere on the feature. You don’t have to touch or even see the flagging to get credit; you only need your GPS device to beep. In fact, even though we set out the flagging in late August, it may be gone by the time you run, due to people, animals, or wind. The MapRun app will beep automatically when you get close to the checkpoint based on your GPS reading.
FINISH - the finish is marked on your map with a double circle and is located at a group of rocks close to the visitor center/park headquarters. When you are within a couple meters of the spot, your GPS device will register a finish. It should be easily possible to cross the bridge to the northeast of the finish without punching it. Do not approach the finish until you are ready to end your course. (Depending on the device, it may be possible to continue the course after this, for example if you approached the finish spot by accident. However, this might not work for you, so we recommend you don’t go near the finish until you are done.) Remember to save your course on your device after you finish.
MAP PRINTING - To keep costs down, we are not printing and mailing maps. We are providing two PDF versions of the map for you to print before doing the course. The first PDF is a 1:25000 version of the course that will print on 8.5 x 11 that you can use for route planning. Since you won’t be able to read much of the detail at that scale, we have also provided a second pdf at 1:10000 that will print onto six sheets of 8.5 x 11 paper with overlap between sheets. The checkpoint descriptions are on one of the map sheets, and we are also providing a separate pdf with the descriptions only.
Thanks for reading, and have fun! - Daniel, Lubo, and the Nav-X team.
IMPORTANT SAFETY NOTES
YOU ARE DOING THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK - WE TAKE NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY INJURIES OR DEATH. HAZARDS INCLUDE STEEP HILLS AND CLIFFS, LOOSE ROCKS, OCCASIONAL DENSE AND SHARP BRUSH, POISON OAK, MOUNTAIN LIONS AND RATTLESNAKES.
The park is only open for day visitors from 8 AM to dusk.
There is no cell phone service at the park headquarters. Do not rely on a cell phone as a safety plan at this venue.
Due to the self-serve format, you may be completely on your own when you run your course. Be aware of this! Though the park has its normal visitors and rangers, you will be visiting areas away from trails where people don’t go. Be a bit more careful as you run, let a friend or family member know before you go, and check in with them once you’re back in cell phone range. You should definitely bring a whistle, at the very least, in case of emergency.
WATER - Please be sure to bring enough water for the course that you are doing. Although this course is happening in the early fall, it is still a very open park, and it can get quite hot on some days. The rangers are installing water fountains at the parking area, but when we visited, they were not yet operational. The rangers occasionally set out giant water jugs close to the visitor center, but I would not depend on these. There are two water fountains at the old ranch area or “high camp” (precisely at control 35). I set that control there in the hopes of the water fountains being on, but as of August 19th, they were shut off and thus unreliable (there are still bathrooms next to 35 if needed). Overall, we recommend you bring as much water as you need for your entire course. There is a reasonable amount of water in the smaller creeks or stock tanks; if you have to use this water, you should filter it, as Sunol is being grazed now.
Steepness of the terrain is probably the most prevalent danger at Sunol. The courses have been designed to almost always have nice route choices, but sometimes these are not obvious. In general, do be aware that many gullies and reentrants are steeper than they look, and crossing them is often quite difficult (if not impossible in some areas). Please be strategic about crossing such features. Weather could be a factor, depending on which day you visit (I’ve been there on 100 F days; it’s something I’d recommend avoiding). There are also a lot of barbed wire fences. Watch your footing, wear proper clothing, and roll under the fences. The cattle are mostly docile, but Sunol cows have always been a little unpredictable and temperamental. Please try not to get between them and their calves, and give them their space if they show signs of feeling threatened.