Balls Bluff
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Sunday
Balls Bluff welcomes you back! This park was last used in 2012, and is a favorite at this time of year. New QOC member Hannah Culberg - a member of last year's Orienteering USA National Team - has on short notice done quite a bit of work to design a full set of challenging courses (white through red; details below) for your orienteering pleasure.
Our registration area will be at the Edwards Landing pavilion, at the south end of the park, so make sure to read the driving - and parking - directions. DO NOT park in the small Edwards Landing parking lot unless you are a meet helper. We prefer that you use the parking lot at Balls Bluff Elementary School which is about half a mile from Edwards Landing. If you car-pool, you can drop-off participants at Edwards Landing before parking there. Otherwise, a little walk as a warmup shouldn't do anyone any harm. Definitely do not park in or near the narrow cul-de-sac leading to Edwards Landing. This would surely rankle the residents in the cul-de-sac and possibly end our welcome to run events out of Edwards Landing. However, if you want to be closer than half a mile, you may park on one of the wide streets between Edwards Landing and Balls Bluff Elementary School - Hunton Place, Graywood Way and Wood Edge Drive- provided you refrain from block the residents' driveways or otherwise irking them. Click here for an overview map, showing our registration area in the lower right corner.
Balls Bluff Battlefield Park is the site of the first Civil War battle in Loudoun County (1861). The park has recently undergone restoration to more accurately reflect its 1861 condition, and you are encouraged to tour the area and its National Cemetery near the Potomac River.
Training Session: Mihai Sirbu will be conducting an intermediate/advanced training session at this event; meet at 1:30pm at the registration area.
Any youth or large groups attending, please contact the Event Director so that we can coordinate pre-registration for your group; the group registration and waiver form is part of the information on our Group Leaders page.
Post-Race MeetUp! The nearby Panera Bread cafe, located (here), is just a few minutes due south of the Balls Bluff School, and it's a fine place to hang out and discuss your routes, whether or not you're also taking advantage of the nearby Leesburg Premium Outlet Stores!
| Location | Balls Bluff Regional Park, Edwards Landing Pavilion (School Parking), Leesburg, VA (Classic) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Registration | No advance registration required. Just show up and have fun! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Start Times | Start anytime between 11 - 1:30, and be back to download no later than 3pm. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Schedule | Sunday, May 17
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| Volunteers |
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| Location Details |
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| Course Details | Classic
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| Course Notes | Classic In general, the Balls Bluff map has held up fairly well, though there are a few features worth noting. Rootstocks are mapped intermittently - there are plenty on the ground which are not on the map, and the ones which are mapped are frequently quite small. I would not suggest relying on them for navigation. That being said, the rootstocks which I used as control features are all distinct and unambiguous. Knolls as mapped are essentially non-existent. Small depressions are typically the holes left from uprooted trees (but where the truck and roots have rotted away). There are plenty more out there than mapped - the mapped depressions are the largest and most distinct holes in the area. Vegetation is generally pretty good, although even the white areas in the southern half of the map can sometimes be thicker/lower visibility than anticipated with all of the spring growth. Trails are mostly good, although there are a few new spurs and some minor shifts in a few locations. Water is provided on all courses. Orange - Red all have one control with water, and two water drops marked with the magenta cup symbol on the maps. These are located at white and yellow controls along likely route choices at various times during the courses. Your route choice or control locations may take you close to some backyards - please respect other's property and stay out of those areas. They are marked as olive green on your map. There are a many controls in close proximity to each other out in the woods, and the red course will have a butterfly loop part way through the course. Check your codes and numbers carefully to avoid a mispunch. Additionally, due to the constrained area for the start and finish, there will be a lot of runners going in a lot of different around the start and finish. Please be careful of other runners and keep your head up. Have fun! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Entry Fees | Individual Entries
Note: juniors = under 21
Team or Group Entries Participants are welcome to compete together as a single team entry. Teams containing one or more nonmembers are charged the nonmember individual rate. Teams containing one or more adults are charged the adult individual rate. For teams to receive member or junior rates, all members of the team must be members or juniors, respectively. Each extra team map beyond the first is an additional $2. Individuals or teams desiring to compete on a second course can do so for a reduced fee of $2/map. Important Notes
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