Easter saw the annual Jan Kjellstrom festival of orienteering, this year way up north in Perthshire. Around 20 club members made the journey and we were treated to some fantastic technical terrain, and some challenging weather – as one of the organising clubs put it: Storm Dave 0 – Orienteers 1!
We started with a Sprint Race in Perth city centre on Good Friday, and Iain ran a brilliant race to get on the podium in 3rd place M45.
On Saturday, we moved to Rannoch Forest and a tricky Middle Race, where most of us got round before the snow arrived. A mammoth effort by the organising team ensured we could all get back on Sunday for the Long Race and we saw more of the forest, with hail and sunshine in equal measures. Good fun – I think! The JK trophies are awarded for the combined Middle and Long Races – and we had 2 wins on the short courses (Dan on M35S and Cath on W50S), but top of the tree must go to a fantastic 2nd place in M16A to Fraser, against some very tough competition.
Easter Monday saw us move just along the valley to Tullochroisk, with a scenic arena with views up Schehallion. We had 4 teams running (each with 3 runners). Top of the results went to the Men’s Short team of Fraser, Jonah and Iain, who made it on to the podium in 2nd place. Brilliant result.
To get on the podium at the JK is no mean feat – most of us just had a great weekend, and finishing the courses was an achievement in itself – in testing terrain and weather – well done to everyone for turning out to represent the club.
