Well the rain reappeared with a vengeance, but fortunately it held off during our morning race.  While yesterday’s events were both at local schools, today’s venues offered something different.  Pukekura Park is something of a showpiece garden, with ornamental lakes and fountains, waterfalls, bridges, fern gullies, and lots of paths leading in all directions.  The navigating wasn’t difficult at all, with route choices mainly made around how many steps you had to do up or down, and making sure you were on the right level, as there were lots of parallel options.  As usual in a sprint, you had to take care to go to the right controls in the right order.  After a contouring leg and a drop down to lakeside level, there were a lot of close controls, and I almost found myself heading to 16 instead of 13. I gave myself a stern talking-to, and clambered up a very steep finish chute, unsullied by a mispunch.  Margi kept popping up with her camera to photograph me looking knackered from a climb.

It was a really enjoyable place to orienteer.  We caught up with our former club president, Peter H, and his young family, who are living just south of Hamilton.

Then it pelted.  We beat a hasty retreat home, and kept watching the radar, trying to convince ourselves it would clear before mid afternoon, but the big blue blob refused to budge, and it continued to pour down.  Eventually we steeled ourselves for an inevitable drenching, and headed out for Race 4.  This one took place in a historic cemetery adjoining a tertiary campus.  Everyone remained huddled in their cars until the last possible moment, then dashed for the start. The folding chairs we purchased on the first day have not had a chance to earn their keep yet; its been too wet to sit around or do much socialising.

I’ve never orienteered in a cemetery before; it’s not something we do in Australia.  I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.  Nevertheless I fronted up at the start, pleased to note that the rain was finally easing to a drizzle.  The first two controls were very simple, on building corners that required almost no navigation.  They just set you up for two fence crossings to get you into the graveyard section.  Over a stile and up a small hill, then we could see it laid out before us, so to speak. 

We had strict rules about where we could and couldn’t go.  There were individually mapped graves, rows of headstones, and “scattered headstones”, which were small ones set into the ground.  There was a sizeable hill, some sealed paths, and lots of grassy rows which were the main means of accessing the controls.  Streeto techniques applied – just turn left or right at the correct places.  We had a map flip as well, and many of the controls were easy to spot before you reached them.

I had so much fun – it was my favourite event of the four, simply because it was something different.  The rain made it memorable as well.  I would have been happy to have a bit more distance; it was over too quickly.  My result?  A respectable 13^th (having lost time trying to clumsily scramble over the first fence).  Pam did even better – a second place this morning, followed by a win this afternoon.  Despite the awful weather, today was really enjoyable orienteering.