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Start Times

Pre-assigned start times for participants in age classes are posted here. Participants in recreational classes may start at their convenience within the specified start window.

Start Procedure

For the competitive age classes, pre-assigned start times and a 3-step pre-start process with a 3-minute call up will be used. Competitors must report to the start 3-minutes ahead of their pre-assigned start time. If your start time is t minutes, then at t-3 minutes you'll be invited to enter the start chute where an official will check and confirm your SI number. At t-2 minutes you will be invited to advance and pick a loose control description (clue) sheet. Then at t-1 minutes you'll be invited to pick up your map, but not look at it, and advance to the start line. The exception is participants on courses 1 and 2 who will be allowed to preview their map at t-1 minutes.  At t minutes participants on all courses may look at their map and follow the marked route to the start flag. Note that no start punch will be used for participants in competitive classes - your pre-assigned start time is your start time.  The start official, at his/her discretion, may move someone in a competitive class who has arrived late at the start to the recreational start lane (see below). 

Participants in recreational classes and volunteers whose duties prevent them from starting on time may start at their convenience within the designated start window through a special start chute/lane to the side of the regular start lanes. An official will check your SI number and guide you through the pre-start process. Volunteers and participants in recreational classes will use a start punch to record their start times.

The start for both days is located ~320m from the arena, with 30m of climb. Participants should allow themselves enough time to reach the start area at least 5 minutes ahead of their start time. 

Course Closing Times

The middle courses will close 2hrs after the last start time, at 3:30pm Saturday. The long courses will close 3hrs after the last start time, at 2:30pm Sunday. You must report to the timing tent in the arena and download your SI stick by the course closing time so that control pick-up can begin and our dedicated volunteers can get home at a reasonable hour. 

Timing System

The SPORTident (SI) timing system will be used and contactless punching will be available for those with SIAC timing sticks. Non-SIAC timing sticks are available for rent each day through the online registration system if you do not own one. Or you can purchase one in advance from the o-store.

Middle Course Properties

Long Course Properties

Course Planner's Notes

Welcome to this lovely forest amongst scenic farm fields and gravel roads in Denholm, a municipality in La Vallée-de-la-Gatineau, Quebec. It’s the perfect time of the year for orienteering! The trees have not yet leafed out so the visibility is excellent and, with a week to go, the bugs have not yet made an appearance. Additionally, the trilliums will be in full bloom – enjoy and tread carefully!

Be prepared for fun, physically challenging and technical terrain. For more information about the terrain, please see Mapper Jeff’s notes on the General Info page here

General Notes:

• Part of this forest was a sugar bush so you will encounter maple syrup tubing, some spanning quite high, but in rare cases at your knee level. The higher tubing tends to be ½” blue tubing that is quite visible, while the lower tubing tends to be 1½” black tubing which is somewhat less visible. We flagged these with orange surveyor's tape if they are in areas of obvious o-traffic. 
• On some courses you will encounter broken barbed wire fences, again we marked these with surveyor's tape to prevent people from tripping and running into it as much as possible.
• There have been a number of trail running events that have used the trail network recently. As a result, many of the trails are clear of leaves and visible in the terrain. Additionally, some sections of trail have been marked using blue or purple pin flags.
• The leaves from the fall can make the footing on the hillsides quite slick – shoes with studs are recommended.

On both days courses 1 and 2, have a short off-trail route marked by pin-flags or surveyor's tape hung from tree branches to help runners connect from one trail to another. This route will be clearly marked on the map and on the control description, but please tell your youngsters about this before they start. Explain to them what "flagging" looks like as many may have not encountered this in a competition.  

The Middle distance courses use much of the north west part of the map where there are various single track trails winding through the area. Some of these trails were used recently for a trail running race and so the visibility of the trail network will vary depending on the recent usage. There will be many controls out there, so check your codes! 

The Long distance courses, especially the longer ones, take advantage of most of the map. Runners can expect to encounter some physically challenging hilly terrain. The course lengths have been adjusted downwards to account for the climb.  Please leave some energy in the tank as the last part of most long distance courses is mainly uphill, followed by a downhill finish. Also, for those new to the Ark, the dot knolls are quite prominent. Some areas may have slower runnability, but the cliffs, reentrants, boulders, rootstocks and marshes are lovely and worth the climb.

Big Thank Yous to Mike Caldwell for allowing us to use this wonderful terrain and Jeff Teutsch for this ‘magnum opus’ of a map. Blending the right amount of detail and generalization to improve legibility works well here.  And to all the mothers out there! Happy Mother’s Day!

-Have fun! Peter and Alar

Safety Considerations

For safety reasons, all participants are required to carry a whistle with them on course. Three consecutive whistle blasts indicates that you are in need of help. Participants who hear 3 short whistle blasts while out on course are obliged to find the person in trouble and offer assistance. A start official may check that you are carrying a whistle.

Ticks can be vectors for lyme disease. Please remember to check yourself for ticks following your run and remove them ASAP! 

The Safety Bearing for both days is to head west to the gravel road (Ch. Farrellton), and then north or south to the Ark at 285 Ch. Farrellton.

Daytime highs in early May typically reach 15-20°C with nighttime lows dipping to 5°C.

Full leg coverings and shoes with good traction are recommended for this event.

In the event of a serious injury or medical issue, call 911.  For non-serious injuries, see the first-aid volunteers at the arena.

The nearest hospital is located in the town of Wakefield, QC at 101 Burnside Rd, 20km south of the Ark.