NOY 8
IMPOTANT NOTE: National Parks have confirmed that they will not be burning in this area this week and the event will go ahead as planned on the Decapitated Poppethead Map (as below).
Location/Map: “The Decapitated Poppethead”, 1:10000, 5m contours
Planner: Lynda Hewson
Controller: Geoff Todkill
Organisers: Paul Killen & Ingrid Oblasser
Directions:
From Sydney, head north on the M1 Pacific Motorway (formerly F3 Freeway). After 98 km, take the Cessnock exit and follow signposted route to Cessnock. At the first traffic lights, turn left into Vincent Street. Follow this road for 5 km, proceed through Kitchener (past the Poppethead Park), then after a further 1km keep watch for orienteering signs.
From Newcastle, proceed to Kurri Kurri, then follow signposted route to Cessnock. At the second set of traffic lights, turn left into Vincent Street. Follow this road for 6 km, proceed through Kitchener (past the Poppethead Park), then after a further 1km keep watch for orienteering signs.
Parking: Park as directed under the power-line bordering the West side of Quorrobolong Road. For safety reasons, vehicles should NOT park on the opposite (East) side of this 100 km/h road. This is the same assembly area as last year’s NOY 7 “Astley’s Tower East" event.
Mapper’s notes:
Terrain - This is classic Hunter Valley spur-gully terrain, mostly gently undulating but steep in the south western section of the map. A complex track network and fine watercourse and erosion gully detail is present across much of the map.
Vegetation is variable from highly runnable to very thick, while visibility is generally very good. Full body cover is recommended due to patches of thick and/or spiky growth.
Planner’s notes: This area has been largely unaffected by the April storms. There are few trees down so it remains a highly runnable area. Fortuitously the storms have "cleaned out" the larger creeks & many of them are now runnable; beware the occasional deep pond. Some erosion gullies are now steeper & deeper since April, be careful in & around these gullies. Some tracks are more eroded after the storms. Where the tracks are deeply rutted it is faster & safer to run beside them. Some termite mounds marked on the map have decayed so they are barely or no longer visible.
The start is close to the assembly area. From the finish there will be a short streamer trail across the creek and back onto a track leading back to the assembly area.
Children Safety - The Arena and car park areas are close to Quorrobolong Road which is quite busy with local traffic travelling at speed. Also, the creek to the West of the Arena has deep pools with muddy edges. Parents and guardians are responsible for the supervision of their children.
Out of bounds: The forested area immediately adjacent to the South of the Arena is out of bounds. On the map it is shown with stripes as Out of Bounds.
Courses:
HARD Long: 6.8 km, 16 controls
HARD Medium: 5.2 km, 12 controls
HARD Short: 3.8 km, 10 controls
MODERATE Long: 3.3 km, 13 controls
MODERATE Short: 2.8km, 11 controls
EASY: 2.4km, 10 controls
VERY EASY: 1.8 km, 11 controls
Start times: 9:30 to 11:30am with course closure at 1pm