Beginner's Corner
New to Orienteering?
You'll find lots of information on the Orienteering USA website.
The Delaware Valley Orienteering Association (DVOA) has a nice collection of articles on training and racing.
Haven't used e-punch before? This photo guide will show you what to expect. Click a photo to read the details.
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8. Download!
8. Download!
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7. Finish
7. Finish
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6. The Controls
6. The Controls
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5. Start
5. Start
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4. Check your stick
4. Check your stick
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3. Clear your stick
3. Clear your stick
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2. Registration worker collects Safety Card
2. Registration worker collects Safety Card
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1. Fill out your Safety Card
1. Fill out your Safety Card
https://neoc.org/o-articles/beginners-corner?start=5#sigProIdb9cf882fe8
If you have a NEOC "loaner" finger-stick, be sure to return it before you leave.
by Peter Amram
Continually remind the child to hold the map properly: flat; in the "weak" hand; thumb on present position; and oriented correctly. This is the most important technique for any beginner to master. Cheerfully, ceaselessly, insist that the map be held properly.
Encourage an interest in the contour lines even if it means interrupting progress on a leg to notice a nearby hilltop or spur or reentrant.
by Peter Amram
Originally appeared in the NEOC Times, Volume 35, No. 2, Feb/Mar, 2005
Hold the map properly. If you hold the map properly, it will show you where to go.
Hold the map with your "weak" hand, that is, with your left hand if you are right-handed, and with your right hand if you are left-handed. That way your "strong" hand is free for other duties, like punching in at controls and reaching for cookies.
by Peter Amram
Originally appeared in the NEOC Times, Volume 35, No. 3, April/May, 2005
The most important control on any orienteering course is the first one. Experience has shown that problems on #1 often presage difficulties throughout the course, or at least until the orienteer has had time to "settle down" sufficiently to see the map and its scale clearly and to relate both to the surrounding terrain. Conversely, a secure approach to the first control is the foundation for a clean run with accuracy throughout.
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