NAVIGATION
The Perseverance Cup or how I managed to remain in the bush for 236 minutes and 52 seconds Jim (I wonder where he got to) Bowling
There is a trophy in the Queensland orienteering calendar that is somewhat unique. Awarded once a year at the Queensland Championships, it is at once shunned by all but still accepted with happy smiles by whoever the current winner should be. It is the Perseverance Cup, and I have been the winner of this trophy. I would like you to share my triumph.
B
Y now the Queensland Championships at Leyburn Diggings will be a fond fading memory for most of you. But for me it will still be a bright shining glorious event. It was the event where I achieved the pinnacle of my success as an orienteer. I am the proud winner of the Perseverance Cup - that much coveted prize for the orienteer who can remain in the bush longer than anyone else and still return home through the finish chute. Some of you might say, ‘It’s easy to win that.’ But let me tell you, it is the most difficult trophy of all to win. It takes hard work, dedication, skilful misreading of the map, and most of all, perseverance. You must also be able to make every mistake you’ve made over the years all within the time it takes to run one course. After 20 plus years of orienteering I felt that this was my year. I knew there were quite a few serious contenders who had beaten me in previous years, but this time I had a cunning plan. Here is how it went. Not wanting to be too obvious I started my run in good form. Along the watercourse, across the hillside with the dam on the right, over the saddle and along the gully on the left, then into the next saddle. This is where the first part of my plan began. Making sure no-one was close by to see me I skirted down to the left instead of moving across the hillside on my right. Naturally I thumbed my map across the hillside. I was able to cross, and ignore, a gully, a hillside, and a couple of patches of green that were not on my thumbed track. I then used some boulders, which were in the wrong place to attack my control. This should have led me directly into the control; instead I sighted a major track through the bush. Now, I realised that if I went to the road I could quickly relocate and I would be on my way again. Instead I proceeded to run in a wide circle until I had returned to near where I was when I started. (Did you get that?) Running in a circle is fairly difficult and takes practice. Basically what you have to do is take a short step with your right leg and a long step with you left leg. This ensures that you will circle endlessly about until you wish to change direction. At that time you just change legs. I don’t want to give away too many secrets so we will continue. Eventually stumbling onto the road I proceeded to ignore my compass telling where North was, and forced the map to fit the contours and gullies nearby. This little exercise consumed about ten minutes. By running up the nearest gully I crossed over my previous track and casually watched Trevor Sauer and David Firman galloping in a beeline across the hill and through the far saddle. Since I had been looking for my first control for 30 minutes I felt I should move on. So, up through the saddle and along the 16 THE AUSTRALIAN ORIENTEER JUNE 2009
ridgeline which would lead me to my control. This is where the organisers assisted me greatly. (I really must thank them.) I was now looking for a 7-metre high boulder, and was within 80 metres of where it should be. Surprise, surprise, I could neither see the boulder, nor any formation that could support such a boulder. My (perseverance) cup runneth over. My time out was approaching 39 minutes when I happened to glance down at some jumping cactus and spied a control cunningly hiding behind a 0.7-metre high boulder. Drat! There it was. Never mind, I had found the 1st control in 40 minutes and felt that my grasp on the Perseverance Cup was sound. In a state of euphoria I galloped, (read trotted), down the hillside, through the watercourse junction and contoured around the far hill. Reaching the next saddle I moved off to where my next control was. Forgetting for a moment my cunning plan, I slyly kept myself between a large tree and Tony Tavner-Corner as he moved off in the wrong direction. Sure enough, there was my control nestled in the gully. Controls #3 and #4 were spiked without trouble and I was really tearing up the course. Leaving control #4 sanity prevailed as I realised I was in imminent danger of forfeiting my trophy. However, I soon got back on track and proceeded to find two unmapped gullies, one misread group of rocks, and a watercourse I went up the wrong way. My plan was back on track! I was able to stumble about in the area for at least 30 minutes, finding all sorts of beautiful control sights, but luckily not mine. Then Lynne Cavanagh came along and almost spoilt it. (I realise now she was in the pay of the opposition). Without hesitation Lynne asked if I was looking for the 5th control. Reluctantly I said “yes”. Smiling maliciously she triumphantly pointed to the map and said, ‘We’re here, on the watercourse junction.’ This could mean disaster for me! However, never let it be said I can’t think in a crisis. Quickly looking around I spied a jumble of rocks on the far side of the watercourse and looking Lynne straight in the eye told her it couldn’t be, as those rocks weren’t mapped. Not giving her a chance to refute my argument, I rapidly made off down the watercourse in a generally eastern direction (I think). This encounter just goes to show how a momentary lapse of concentration can ruin your whole plan! So, down the watercourse, along the ridgeline and relocate. I ignored my first relocation point and gamely carried on until I found three cliffs, two earth banks, and a major watercourse junction. Deciding I could no longer ignore the signs I turned about and ran (?) up the watercourse until I stumbled on my 5th
