This page is designed to introduce the club, Airienteers, to new members whilst the publication, 'Let's Go Orienteering', provides a basic technical guide for newcomers to the sport. Please use the contact names under Committee to introduce yourself to other Airienteers. Experience shows that some of the best ways to meet club members and discover more about orienteering are to help at events, come to social activities and take part in relay competitions.
Airienteers
Airienteers is the orienteering club of Airedale and Wharfedale.
The area covers the districts of Leeds, Bradford and Craven including Morley,
Garforth, Wetherby, Otley, Ilkley, Keighley, Skipton and Grassington. The club
promotes orienteering both for leisure and as a competitive sport. Airienteers'
diverse involvement spans mapping school grounds for use by novice youngsters
to organising international events. Our areas mapped for orienteering range from
inner city parks and suburban woods to wild gritstone moors and limestone fells.
Airienteers, or AIRE, is one of several clubs in the region that comprise the Yorkshire and Humberside Orienteering Association (YHOA). Twelve such regions make up the British Orienteering Federation (BOF), itself part of the International Orienteering Federation (IOF). Our neighbouring YHOA clubs include:
| CLARO | based on Harrogate, Ripon and Nidderdale |
| SYO | South Yorkshire Orienteers |
| EBOR | based on Selby, York, Malton and Scarborough |
| HALO | Humberside and Lincolnshire Orienteers |
| EPOC | East Pennine Orienteering Club, including Halifax, Huddersfield, Dewsbury and Wakefield |
| LUOC | Leeds University Orienteering Club |
Membership
You are welcome to compete in three events before taking
out membership. Different fees apply to seniors, juniors (20 years or less),
families and groups (eg. schools and youth groups). There are two levels of club
membership:
Local membership enables you to participate in club events. Membership spans the calendar year but new members joining from October are automatically registered until the end of the following year. You must be a BOF member to enter National and Championship events and you are expected to become one after competing in your third Badge event.
Reference to 'national' and 'championship' competitions
may sound quite elitist but you would be surprised, for even these events cater
for all standards of orienteering. We would recommend BOF membership to you
after perhaps one year of local membership.
Activity
The orienteering 'season' spans from September to June.
In summer, annual and bi-annual orienteering festivals are very popular such as
the Scottish 6 Days, the Welsh 6 Days and on the North Yorkshire Moors
the White Rose event is held over the August Bank Holiday weekend. In a season,
AIRE typically organises one or two Badge events and five Colour-coded events
together with night, relay, informal and training events. On Wednesday evenings
during the summer we hold a series of informal events. Periodically AIRE contributes
to the organisation of national and international competitions. AIRE liaises with
local authorities to establish and manage Permanent Orienteering Courses (POCs).
String Courses are designed to introduce younger children to orienteering and
are a regular feature at events.
Social activities have included ceilidhs, picnics, training
weekends in the Lake District, dinners and 'fun' orienteering events, eg. 'Vampire-O'!!!
An AIRE focus is often present at the major national competitions. A year-round
programme of 'Tuesday Night Runs' gives club members the opportunity to train
and meet regularly.
Publicity
Our regular club magazine, AIRE Affairs, is posted
to you. There is also an interim information sheet that can be collected from
our orienteering and social events. You can find out about orienteering organised
by other clubs in the region by picking up their leaflets at events. BOF membership
provides a quarterly newsletter and national fixtures list. Subscription to the
bi-monthly magazine Compass Sport gives you the most up to date details of national
fixtures plus articles covering orienteering techniques, mapping, event reports,
etc.
Club Organisation
The club is run by a committee which is elected at an AGM in October and comprises
Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Fixtures Secretary and at least four members. The
committee meets monthly to manage club activities and is supported by other club
members performing such vital roles as Equipment Officer, Membership Secretary,
Mapping Officer and Club Captain, our team manager.
Event Organisation
The sport is quite labour intensive and relies on the voluntary
effort of many members to organise its events. In general, orienteers enjoy making
things happen as well as participating. Our main orienteering events involve an
event organiser and a course planner. The competition is overseen by a controller,
usually from a neighbouring club.
Other Airienteers help on a team basis. All members and family groups are allocated to a team which is responsible for one of the following tasks:
Benefits of this system are:
Helping at an event is the best way to learn more about
the sport and to become part of the club. When you volunteer to help, tell the
organiser and your team leader that you are new to orienteering, to AIRE or
to both. Ask them to introduce themselves and request an explanation of what
you need to do. Airienteers is a large club with members from as far afield
as Garforth east of Leeds to Malham in the Yorkshire Dales. Even long-standing
members do not know everyone and may not realise that you are new to the sport
or club.
Club Kit
The distinctive green, white and black orienteering tops
help club members spot one another at events and contribute to the team spirit
in relay competitions. When you feel ready to declare your club identity just
contact the Club Kit Coordinator to place an order. Professional suppliers of
orienteering equipment such as compasses, whistles and studded running shoes often
attend larger events where they are referred to as 'traders'.
Reading
'Pathways to Excellence - Orienteering', by Peter Palmer,
is a very readable account of a family's introduction to orienteering and their
progress through the following years. It is available from orienteering equipment
suppliers.
Further Information
As a new member of AIRE, you will receive:
These should answer many questions about orienteering and Airienteers but if you need to know more, please feel free to email Dave Walton (Secretary), or Gill Ross (Membership Secretary).