Vic Rebels

The Victorian Rebels name has been reborn after almost a decade. This time the primary age squad takes the name… we are a group rebelling against technology taking over childhood! We are developing a group of kids and their families that love to get outdoors with a compass on their thumb and run through beautiful nature.

30 kids from 20 families have shown interest in being involved in the group. It was a bit of a slow start due to lockdowns, but we managed a first gathering at Darebin Parklands in December. We started with a fun competitive introduction of advanced orienteering skills, with squad members aiming for selection in the Victorian Schools Orienteering Team and transition into the senior state squad.

VIC Vikings: Senior state squad

For orienteers of all ages aiming to represent Victoria at the National Orienteering League and Australian Championships. This squad focuses on refinement of advanced orienteering skills and physical training whilst also having a strong social component and involvement in coaching and event organisation.

If you are interested in being a part of one of Orienteering Victoria’s training squads, then please reach out to Wendy Taverna, OV’s Coaching Coordinator, at coaching@vicorienteering.asn.au warm up using mini cone courses first introduced to us by Fredo in 2020. This gave us a chance to catch up with friends and meet new ones. Next came a pairs relay that saw some exciting head-to-head racing. And to finish off we worked together navigating along a corridor map to reach a tree covered in candy canes and small presents. Enthusiasm was high, participation was keen and further activities like this one were deemed necessary!

There seems to be two levels within the Victorian Rebels. The kids who are the familiar faces at orienteering events are ready to move onto moderate navigation. We need to help them be confident orienteering off the handrails. The other kids have just started exploring orienteering and are beginning to get the hang of what to do... and are discovering how exciting it is! We need to encourage and assist these families to attend as many of the wonderful events we have in Victoria.