Latest News

Balgone Heughs SoSOL
Sunday 24 March 2024

Balgone Heughs SoSOL  Sunday 24 March 2024

Many thanks to all the 170+ runners who came to take part on a day when the weather was kind and Balgone was looking delightful. Particular thanks to Michael for his courses and to the army of helpers co-ordinated so efficiently by Sheila.

Most notable of many strong performances was Murray Strain winning the Brown course. Murray was formerly Britain’s top-ranked orienteer but runs comparatively few events these days so it was great to see him competing in East Lothian again.

Catering cash donations raised £115 for Mary’s Meals and this does not include the many donations made online.

Planner’s Report

There are a number of constraints at Balgone so courses were planned to allow as many courses as possible to visit the most open sections of woodland rather than spending more time than was needed in the greener areas.  The contrasting sections – craggy, open, undulating – provided some variation and allowed different skills to be tested. 

It was particularly pleasing to see so many being successful on the White and Yellow courses!

Results

  • Simple results are here.
  • Routegadget allows you to plot your route, either by hand or by downloading a gpx file from a watch or phone and to look where you and others went.
  • Winsplits Online gives another way of comparing your times for each leg.
  • British Orienteering collect results from all events and publish ranking scores for larger events.
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ELO Club Champions 2023

Trophies for our club champions of 2023 were presented on Sunday 24th March after the ELO SoSOL at Balgone. The trophies were decided by performances at the ESOC SoSOL and ESOA Championships at Corstorphine Hill in November 2023.

Our three current champions are …

  • Adult Female – Emily Atkinson
  • Adult Male – Joel Atkinson
  • Junior (Yellow course) – Jessica Naylor

No eligible juniors completed the Orange or Light Green courses.

2024 champions will be decided in November at a ranking event close to East Lothian to encourage strong competition in all categories.

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Binning Wood
Saturday 24th February 2024

Binning Wood  Saturday 24th February 2024

A bright February afternoon saw a strong turnout enjoying the challenges of Binning Wood. Despite improved weather recently the woods are still very wet and anybody who came hoping for muddy conditions will not have gone away disappointed.

Many thanks to all who came to compete, and to the large team helping stage the event. Particular thanks to Duncan Edmondson for his courses which were very well received.

Parking continues to be in short supply at Binning so it was gratifying that several people came on foot or by bike from the nearest public transport – including the new station at East Linton.

Catering contributions raised £38 for Mary’s Meals.

Results

  • Simple results are here.
  • Routegadget allows you to plot your route, either by hand or by downloading a gpx file from a watch or phone and to look where you and others went.
  • Winsplits Online gives another way of comparing your times for each leg.
  • British Orienteering collect results from all events and publish ranking scores for larger events.
Read more

South of Scotland O-League 2024

South of Scotland O-League 2024

We are delighted to announce the programme for the 2024 South of Scotland Orienteering League (SoSOL) which consists of ten events spread throughout the year.

The aim of the South of Scotland Orienteering League (SoSOL) is to promote participation in orienteering beyond the local level by providing larger, but still welcoming, events; high-quality courses; good areas; and up-to-date maps.

Competitors are invited to run any of the coloured courses and, new for this year, we will be recognising adult pairs who run on the Green courses; adult novices who run on the Orange courses; and improving adults who run on the Light Green courses.

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CompassSport Trophy
Sunday 18th Feb 2024

CompassSport Trophy  Sunday 18th Feb 2024

Thanks and congratulations to all our runners today. Lots of strong individual performances and an overall position of 8th out of 15 clubs in the CompassSport Trophy.

Our standout performer was Joel Atkinson who won his course and so scored the maximum 100 points. His brother Peter scored 96 and Benji Edmondson 95 so it was a day when our younger members did us proud.

The terrain at Birnam was tougher than is usual for this event – some very steep slopes and also dense bracken covering the flatter areas. So it’s commendable that all our runners completed their courses – no mis-punches.

In 2023 we came 5th and the lower position this year is due to not filling our quota of 13 possible scoring runners. Let’s aim to have plenty of runners across all courses in next year’s event.

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Barns Ness
Saturday 20 January 2024

Barns Ness  Saturday 20 January 2024

Planner’s Report

Despite the best efforts of the forecasters, the weather at Barns Ness was dry, surprisingly warm (well at least for winter in Scotland) and significantly less windy than predicted. It was great to see over 120 people taking part across the four courses. Congratulations to everyone that took part.

A massive thank you to Ian for helping to set out the controls, to Trina and Neil for making sure that the start and finish areas were all ready and routes marked from the registration area to the start and back from finish to download. Trina, Neil and Godfrey looked after the start and got everyone away. Thanks to Robin, Matt, Sheila and Michael for making sure that registration and download worked well out of the back of their cars; although the wind was not too bad during most of the day, it picked up later in the afternoon so it was a good call not to put the tent up (otherwise we may have had to look for it near Oslo!).

We heard great reports on the event, at the finish, at download and online; it sounds as if the courses were sufficiently challenging and varied! I appreciate that running past the start and/or finish, as was the case on the LG and O courses, is not ideal, however I was keen to have the start not too far from registration and still wanted to use the area to the west of the start so there weren’t other options.

Likewise a big thank you to Ian, Neil, Ryan and Steph for their help at the end, this really helped and meant that we were able to bring in the controls before it got too dark!

Results

  • Simple results are here.
  • Routegadget allows you to plot your route, either by hand or by downloading a gpx file from a watch or phone and to look where you and others went.
  • Winsplits Online gives another way of comparing your times for each leg.
  • British Orienteering collect results from all events and publish ranking scores for larger events.
Read more

Lochend Woods
27 April 2024

Lochend Woods  27 April 2024

Lochend is a flat wood mainly made up of conifers with patches of birch and ash. There is an extensive path network and some vehicle tracks where care is needed but it is an ideal area of juniors and newcomers.

Orienteers of all abilities are welcome to join us on the day when we will have a range of courses to suit everyone. The Light Green course crosses roads so is only suitable for those aged 16 and over or juniors who are being closely accompanied by an adult.

Dunbar is the driest, sunniest town in Scotland, but we can’t guarantee the weather so please dress appropriately!

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Festive Frolic: Levenhall Links
30 December 2023

Festive Frolic: Levenhall Links  30 December 2023

For longer than most of us can remember ELO have put on a fun orienteering event between Christmas and New Year. As well as finding the controls there has been a puzzle to add to the challenge. A mass start, a social gathering and a lively prize giving have made up for a great way to work off some of the Christmas excesses.

This year’s Festive Frolic at Levenhall on Saturday 30th December will be fun and challenging.

Orienteers of all abilities are welcome to join us on the day when we will have something to suit everyone.

Planner’s Report

The weather gods were smiling on us this morning! The sunrise around 8:30 when I was arriving at Levenhall was stunning, and although it clouded over a bit, the forecast of howling gales and squalls of rain did not materialise, fortunately, though I did hear that stringing beads onto a wire with very cold hands is rather difficult.

There is no way that I could have got all the controls and activities out by myself so thank you to those who came along early to help: Trina and Neil, Jamie Wilson, all the Atkinson family and Paul Caban. Likewise at the end, people were queuing up to volunteer to help, and everything came in and was packed away speedily. I am worried about naming everyone as I will likely miss someone but Neil and Trina again, Paul Caban again, Pete Younger, Jeff Hodgson, Tim Harding, David and Hanne Robertson, Ryan Scoular and Jonathan Ellis. Kirsten helped in various ways and without Robin’s IT set up it just would not happen. Printed results appeared plenty quickly in order to have a prizegiving before everyone froze.

Someone handed in a £10 note that she had found on the course, and thought it was probably from a competitor. If you think it was yours you can claim it from me otherwise I will put it into a charity – either Mary’s Meals or the Food Bank.

Thank you to everyone who took time to thank me, which makes it all worth while.

Happy New Year to everyone and great running in 2024.

Sheila

Results

  • Simple results are here.
  • Routegadget allows you to plot your route, either by hand or by downloading a gpx file from a watch or phone and to look where you and others went.
Read more

Vogrie Country Park
Saturday 25 November 2023

Vogrie Country Park  Saturday 25 November 2023

Vogrie Country Park is a woodland estate managed by Midlothian Council.  The Tyne Water runs through the park in a steep sided valley which can provide a physical challenge.  Vogrie usually hosts a Saturday parkrun and has a popular playground but its varied terrain and 12 mile path network make this a popular venue for orienteering, particularly for those new to the sport.  For the more experienced there are plenty of ways to navigate between controls both on paths and off them!

Results

  • Simple results are here.
  • Routegadget allows you to plot your route, either by hand or by downloading a gpx file from a watch or phone and to look where you and others went.
  • Winsplits Online gives another way of comparing your times for each leg.
  • British Orienteering collect results from all events and publish ranking scores for larger events.
Read more

Planners and Organisers needed for 2024 events

Planners and Organisers needed for 2024 events

In 2024 ELO will again offer an ambitious programme of events and activities.

Please let us know if you can help as Planner or Organiser. A few 2024 events already have planners pencilled in but many volunteers are still needed.

Don’t worry if you haven’t planned before because you will work with an experienced mentor offering advice and guidance.

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