GLOSS – Northala Fields, Sunday 22 June

Part of the Greater London Orienteering Summer Series (GLOSS), a series of races run by the clubs in and around London.

The GLOSS events are perfect for beginners and families and there is a interclub competition for the prestigious London Bus trophy for those who are members of an orienteering club.

Northala Fields was opened in 2008 and covers 27.5 hectares. It was created using waste from the original Wembley Stadium and the White City shopping centre. The park has transformed these materials into wildlife habitats and recreational facilities. Read more about Northala Fields on Ealing council’s website.

Location	Northala Fields
Address	Car Park 1, Smiths Farm, Northolt UB5 6AH
Latitude/longitude	51.539, -0.3707
OS grid reference	TQ130834
Maps	Google Maps, OpenStreetMap

Toilets are available near the park San Remo cafe, at the southern side of the mounds (what3words ///farmer.sling.moons)

It is forecast to be extremely hot. Please bring refreshments and use sun protection. You can leave refreshments by assembly. We will aim to have limited water and cups at download but can’t guarantee this. Northala fields is generally open with little shade.

Assembly

Assembly will be based immediately next to the car park, in a small tent.

Map

1:5000 ISSOM map. Mapped by Don McKerrow in 2014 with extensive updates and conversion to ISSOM-2017 by Frank Townley and Steve Clelland in 2025. Running in shorts is permitted although be aware there may be some small areas of nettles near some of the controls on the Extension course. Due to a printing error, the map states it is 1:4000 but the actual scale is definitely 1:5000.

Travel

Tube: The nearest station is Northolt (Central line on the London Underground, 1.2km from assembly, a pleasant walk via Northolt Village).

Bus: Bus E10 travels along Kensington Road (stop Horseshoe Crescent if coming from Northolt, stop Smiths Farm if coming from Ealing). Buses 90, 120, 140 and 282 stop at the Target Roundabout (900m from assembly – please avoid walking through the park). Buses E6, E7, E9, 120 and 282 stop at Adrienne Avenue (700m from assembly). 

Transport for London website: https://tfl.gov.uk/ for journey planning and travel updates.

Cycling: Bike racks are available throughout the park. Near to assembly there are bike racks near the children’s playground (what3words ///toward.passes.forget)

Driving: There are two car parks for the park (charges apply, pay using paybyphone), both car parks are likely to fill up fast and are shared with other park users. The car parks have always been full by lunchtime at weekends. Car Park 1, by Kensington Road is adjacent to the event assembly. If parking in Car Park 2, please walk along the pavement rather than through the park, to Car Park 1 and the assembly.

Free parking is available on surrounding streets, e.g. Ealing Road and Rowdell Road in Northolt Village are recommended (Ealing road is blocked to cars at the bottom of Belvue park) . However there may be limited spaces and so public transport is strongly encouraged. Bags can be left and will be supervised.

Entries

Entries via SiEntries

Registration	Between 0001 and 1145
Start Times	Between 1000 and 1200

Courses

Course	Straight-line distance	Difficulty
Yellow	1.7km	Easy navigation. Suitable for children and beginners. Navigate along line features such as paths, walls, fences.
GLOSS	3.1km	Harder and uses navigation skills to find controls on any mapped feature. Suitable for those wanting a challenge. The timing for this course is used for the interclub competition.
GLOSS with extension	5.4km	There is an extension loop for those wanting a longer run after doing the GLOSS course. The extension section timing is not included in the interclub competition.

The GLOSS with extension course has road crossings and therefore is unsuitable for unaccompanied under 16s.

Start Times

Starts from 10:00-11:45

Courses close 13:30

Contact

Organiser –