Pohick Bay

Course results can be seen below.

Splits are available on Attackpoint or Winsplits.

To enter your routes and see how others went, head to RouteGadget. Another option for route analysis is LiveLox; an explanation is here, and today's event is here.

After an absence of several years while we used only a small portion of Pohick Bay Regional Park, we returned to the main portion with a full menu of well-set courses, thanks to the diligence of Will Hubsch. This was Will’s first course setting and his courses were spot on and received widespread praise—thank you, Will!
The weather was a bit chilly but ideal for those running the longer courses. And Pohick was still Pohick, with its disarmingly flat terrain intersected by steep draws often covered with relatively thick mountain laurel. Nevertheless, over 200 people enjoyed the event. All orienteering events require a lot of work before, during, and after ‘meet day’. Without the QOC officers and the army of volunteers, these meets would simply not be possible. I would like to thank each and every one of those who made this a very successful meet!

PRE-EVENT SUPPORT

• Dennis Doherty did a great job of making the arrangements to use the park and coordinating with the park officials.
• The park officials were welcoming and very helpful, and rangers made two visits to Shelter 2, during the event to ask if there was anything that they could do for us!
• Gunston Fire Station #20 was also ready to assist in case of an emergency; fortunately, we didn’t need to call them.
• Greg Lennon provided outstanding support, guidance, and advice—The Enforcer! For those who may not know him, Greg—and Kathleen—add a dimension that we old-timers have come to realize has immensely improved the quality and the experience of Quantico orienteering, such as a great website, sharp outfits, and helpful, valuable expertise and wisdom!
• Valerie Meyer took care of printing the maps, a busy process that Valerie succeeds in making look easy. (many of us remember marking up our own maps using a master map—last century)

EVENT DAY SUPPORT:

• Amy Louden once again set up and flawlessly ran the ‘electronic support’ without which we would not be able to handle more than 50-75 participants.
• Harry Jones registered the first tranche of runners—and ensured that everyone “had a whistle”. In addition to being fellow Vietnam Veterans, we discovered, after several years of seeing each other at meets, that we also belong to the opposite sides of the most-played football rivalry.
• Zorya Luna volunteered to support the second shift of registration. Zorya and Michael Luna are Marines, serving at Quantico Marine Base. The Pohick Bay meet was their first orienteering meet, and Michael did the Blue course. Though exceeding the time, he was able to find almost all of the points and found the point that he missed when he and Zorya picked up controls. Zorya is an experienced ultra runner who we hope joins QOC!
• Paul Hession volunteered to conduct beginner instruction, taught a number of people, and did a great job.
• The control pickup teams go back to secure the controls, while somewhat fatigued after running a course. That said, control pickup provides the opportunity to sharpen skills. The pickup team comprised a group of ‘regulars’ and two newbies:
  • John Baker, Gary and Ginny Quam, Justin Brown, and Matt Knight were the regulars
  • Zorya and Michael Luna were the newbies; though both were familiar with land navigation, neither had any orienteering experience