I attended a BOF conference at Crewe on Sat. 6 March - it was called 'Strategic Planning'. We (about 50 of us) were asked to comment on and alter, if necessary, various sections of the document that BOF was to forward to the English Sports Council, to back up its bid for sponsorship. Groups of about five were assigned to each topic and we had just over an hour to discuss the topic and formulate up to four recommendations. These were then presented to the whole conference, who then voted on them. This happened twice, with us being given different topics each time. (We had been sent the topics in advance, and had expressed preferences as to which topic groups we wanted to be assigned to.) The topics were what you would expect - environmental impact, mapping, land access, membership fees - but the overall focus was constantly on halting and reversing the decline in BOF's membership. Mike Downe (MV) had noticed an inverse relationship between the number of badge events being held nationwide and the size of the membership: is it time now to reduce the number of badge events, and see membership rise?

My piece in the last issue of SLOWprint, about how to extend the appeal of the sport, prompted a couple of responses. Pavla Fialová, our Czech W21E, says that in her country 'O' events are much more sociable than they are here: people attend in club groups - but then, she says, their events tend to be two-day events, and their season is much shorter than ours. Still, the social side is what attracts people to multi-day events, so maybe we can build on that. Sue Lumas agrees that CATIs should be tied in better to mainstream events, or even held in conjunction with them - something that seemed to work well at the Devil's Punchbowl in December, with Beginners' Reps. in attendance from other local clubs. She also suggests a 'Beginners' Pack' - now there's a good idea! In fact 'good ideas' is what it's all about - and Andy Kelly, BOF's England Development Officer, is at work seeking out and disseminating strategies that work well so that clubs can benefit from each others' successes.

So, the message is still: development! We need to attract, and keep, new members, so that our sport can thrive.

1998 has been a busy year for SLOW. We have staged a wide variety of events: the OK Nuts trophy badge event, the Southern Express Short Race Final, a FROLIC, the SE Score Champs., an event specially for a school and several Come and Try Its. I would like to thank all who contributed to the organisation and planning of those events.

To encourage more planners to come forward, we put on a training day for beginner planners, run by David May and Simon Errington, Chair of BOF Technical Committee - for which thanks to both of them. We are considering staging a training day for organisers and revamping the SLOW Organisers' Manual, also in an attempt to encourage more organisers.

We are reviewing our activities, in terms of the mix of events and training we provide, particularly with the needs of beginners in mind. A Development Discussion took place a few weeks ago and we have held a meeting with Andy Kelly, the new Development Officer for England, to share ideas. Notes from this meeting will appear in SLOWprint [see SLOWprint 122, pp. 12-14], including strategies for attracting newcomers, better contact with them and provision for them once we have attracted them.

In addition to our own events, SLOW members made a major contribution by running the start at the World Cup races held in the Lake District in May. The same team will be in action again at the World Champs. in Scotland in August 1999.

We have remapped several areas this year and had our usual very well attended social events. And - dare I say it - our usual successes in the forest - with both relay and individual wins at all major events. Particularly pleasing has been the performances of our juniors - the SLOW Junior Squad is now the envy of the South East. Near misses in the Harvester and the Peter Palmer Relay were both excellent achievements. No fewer than four of our juniors were picked to go on BOF Junior Squad tours in the summer and SLOW was delighted to be able to contribute substantially to the costs. In return the Junior Squad have already run a training day for the club and will be organising the Short Race which SLOW is hosting in March 1999. Congratulations and thanks to all concerned.

If there is one area where the club is not being successful I would say it was publicity. We have been without the services of a Publicity Officer for a year - and it shows. Securing an active Publicity Officer will be a priority for the club in the next year.

I would like to thank all the club officers on your behalf for their hard work throughout the year. Particular thanks to those retiring to a well earned rest having done their stint for a while. Also thanks to the number of club members who act as controllers for other clubs' events - a very important contribution to the sport.

If anything next year looks like being even busier: contributing nine of the major officers for next year's JK, running the start at and controlling the World Champs. and getting ourselves organised to capitalise on the interest which we hope that event will attract.

Chris Robinson - Chair

The first thing is the …

Compass Sport Cup National Final: The Compass Sport Cup National Final is on Sunday 23^rd May at Burghfield Common, near Reading. Please ring me to let me know whether you will be there, especially the most likely scorers. And remember - everyone can come along to take part - you run as an individual. I hope to see lots of you there. This is the big one! After our success in the regional round, we are in the grand final against Nottinghamshire (NOC), Thames Valley (TVOC), Walton Chasers (WCH), South Yorkshire (SYO) and Manchester and District (MDOC). The club needs a very good turnout for the most important club day of the year.

Other Events: There are lots of events described here. So please give me feedback as soon as you can. Remember that everyone is welcome to all these things. If you have any questions, just give me a call.

JK Relays & British Relays: We have a healthy number of teams for these competitions. You may still be able to get a run in these, but ring me as soon as possible. Information about the JK relay teams will be available on the weekend (or during the previous week). If you asked for a relay run, then you're in! See you there.

A New Team Event: BADO are putting on a 'Harris Format Relay' on Sunday 18^th April, with a mass start at 10:30 a.m. This sounds like great fun, and I hope lots of us will go. Please give me a cheque as soon as possible (no later than the JK) if you would like to take part. Here are some details:

• Butter Wood, Odiham, M3 Junction 5
• Teams of 4 runners starting at the same time
• 4 identical overprinted maps
• 'Spine' course of red standard
• Additional controls scattered around the spine
• Spine controls - everyone must visit
• Additional controls - only one member need visit
• Team's time is that of the last member to finish
• Planning control allocation is part of race time
• Cost £3 (£1.50 junior) per person, cheques payable to 'SLOW'

Scottish Relay Champs.: These are near Dumfries on the Late May bank holiday weekend. There is a national event on Saturday 29^th May, with the relays on the following day. Please contact Andrew Leaney by 25^th April if you would like to run in a relay team.

Long Distance Footpaths: The North Downs Way relay is on Saturday 26^th June this year. Contact Dick Clark if you want a fun day out, finishing with a social gathering. There are 16 people in a team. I am sure we will get at least one team out on the North Downs Way relay. Details below.

For the following I will act as the initial co-ordinator so contact me as soon as you can. I will then probably look for volunteers to help run the teams if there is interest.

The South Downs Way relay is on Saturday 29^th May. This is put on by a running club. Usually 6 people run 3 legs each! But we could do something different.

The Calderdale Way relay is in Yorkshire in early-mid December. There are 6 legs with 2 people on each leg. My old university club, JOK, take part each year.

While the Downs relays would be quite welcoming for not-so-fasties, the Calderdale is a bit tougher.

Bob Graham Round Relay: The Bob Graham Round relay is when you want it to be! Our original suggestion is 5 legs with 2 people on each leg. But we can be flexible. The relay will last about 18 hours. Interest has so far been expressed by Chris Brasher, Dick Clark, Pete Huzan, Andrew Leaney, Brian Roberts, Andy Robinson, and Trevor Jones. Ann-Marie Kjös, Anne Leaney and Heather Walton would like to be involved as well. That's not enough people yet so please think again, and let me know about the following dates (definite yes, definite no, or maybe). Finding a good date is quite difficult. If we started on a Saturday, then some people would need to be up there very early! The following dates are possibles:

• 29-31^th May - clashes with the Scottish Champs., and the South Downs Way
• 12-13^th June - clashes with the JOK Chasing Sprint weekend, and the LAMM
• 19-20^th June
• 3-4^th July - clashes with the Saunders MM
• 10-11^th July - clashes with SLOW's Frolics event
• 24-25^th July

Other Team Events: Here is early information on a couple of smaller events …..

If you are looking for an event to go to on 16^th May, then why not try the South-East Score Championships at Abbey Wood (DFOK event). SLOW have won this the previous two years. I'll make a list of interested people if you let me know.

On 27^th June is the South-East Relays at Pickwell Park, Bolney, Sussex (SO event).

Food (and Drink) for Thought: The French Champs. is on the August bank holiday weekend in Provence. There is an individual and a relay. What do you reckon?

Compass Sport Cup Regional Round: This was held at Hindleap Warren, a very nice south-east area, on 10^th January. Our biggest rivals were Southdowns, and thanks to some excellent performances we were able to win. The closeness of the competition made it very enjoyable and exciting as the results were being worked out. (Scorers by Club and Course.) Well done to everyone who turned up. Even if you do not score, I believe you still make a valuable contribution to the club's spirit on the day. Particular highlights included:

• Malcolm Fisher at the cutting edge of the Black course
• Andy Robinson still managing to get among the scorers on the Black course
• A clean sweep by the senior ladies on the Blue, with many more ladies in support
• Sarah Brown on the Green course, SLOW's 'most valuable player' on the day
• The juniors on Light Green and Orange, particularly Chris Howard and Tom MacDonald winning the Orange with identical times!

British Night Championships: These were held at Penhale Sands, Cornwall, on 20^th February. People have spoken about this being one of the most difficult night events for a long time. See the event report below. So congratulations are in order to the following:

• Christine Robinson W40L 1st
• Edward Catmur M18A 2nd
• Tom Fry M18A 5th
• Simon Evans M20L 2nd
• Paul Canham M40L 5th
• Andy Robinson M45L 4th
• Richard Catmur M45L 10th
• Chris Fry M50L 7th
• Mike Murray M55L 2nd

This gives me an opportunity to remind you about the night/day relays in September! The Harvester is on the 11^th at Soudley, Forest of Dean (nice and close), and the Junior Team Relay is on the 26^th in Humberside.

A big thank you to all those of you, both BOF and club members, that have already renewed their membership. It really does help me, especially with JK organisation very near. However, club members who have not yet renewed will find a reminder in this copy of SLOWprint. Unless you renew now this will be the last copy of SLOWprint that you will receive.

The annual relay is scheduled for the above date and I am organising the SLOW entry. In an earlier issue I floated the idea of running a "couples" team and/or an elitish team. You might well say that trying to get 32 people out on the day is a trifle optimistic, when finding 16 fit, available and willing participants can be a struggle. You would be right. If this slightly whimsical idea doesn't quite work out we can always fall back to the regular formula of producing a single competitive team. In either event what I need is runners, some of whom are prepared to rise at a peculiarly early hour, who would enjoy a "trail" run of anything between 8km and 17km.

Be aware that the Shamrock O-Ringen is also on this weekend.

All of the regulars are welcome and any new members who are interested then just make contact with me. I'll be at the JK Saturday and Sunday.

Training sessions take place every Tuesday evening from the Thames Hare and Hounds Clubhouse, Richard Evans Memorial Fields, Kingston Vale. Meet at the clubhouse at 7.15 pm; training starts at 7.30 pm. Hot showers, useful chat, and a drink/meal at the Duke of Cambridge, Kingston Hill, round off the evening.

Training Weekend - Lake District: BOF is arranging a training day at Great Tower and Grizedale East on Saturday 24 April, and on Sunday 25 April there is a SROC Badge Event at nearby Torver. So far 16 members of SLOW have decided to go. Some of the group will stay at the Youth Hostel in Hawkshead (may be fully booked by now) and some will stay at B&B in the Hawkshead area. BOF have placed a maximum of 120 on the numbers for the training so if you want to join us, please contact me as soon as possible and before the end of March at the latest. Charge for the training is £5 including maps. You will also have to pay for travel, accommodation, etc.

British Nights Championships and Day Badge Event, Penhale, Cornwall, Sat. 20th and Sun. 21st February: Penhale at night?? We couldn't resist it! But it was much more difficult than I'd imagined: there are no line features to speak of, the dunes are completely random in shape and structure; if you lose contact with the map for even 10 m you're lost, and relocation at night is almost impossible. Conditions were made more difficult by the heavy rain of the previous months, which meant that gullies had turned to streams and marshes to lakes ... I decided to retire after my first control, which took 52 minutes! The level of retirals was very high - over 30%, so I didn't feel too bad. The next day was so much easier by comparison, even though the weather was (what felt like) a Force 9 gale with squally showers. But I turned in a respectable time (by my standards!) and was delighted to find out that my husband had been caught out by the only map error - a patch mapped as sand was in fact rough open, and this caused him to get lost, whereas I'd been confused by the same area at the JK '97, so knew where I was. (It's not often I beat him at orienteering!)

But the most remarkable thing about the night event was that vandalism almost ruined it! Between the Controller's checking all the controls on the Saturday afternoon, and his (fortuitously, as it turned out) returning an hour before the first start time to check one that he'd missed earlier, about eight controls in the start area had been swapped around. The Controller put back the starts half an hour, and had the controls replaced, and what could have been a disaster turned out to be an excellent event. Facilities at Penhale were marvellous, with the organisers having arranged for us to use the hot showers at the Perran Sands holiday village - can we always have hot showers, please?

Ginny Catmur

Over the last two years SLOW has been steadily upgrading its timing equipment. The Seiko stopwatch-with-printer that we have used for many years has begun to show excessive signs of old age and we have replaced it with a Tag-Heuer Chronoprinter. This new device has several advantages over its predecessor. It incorporates a printer of a much higher quality than the old Seiko; furthermore, the printer can be paused (while the paper is changed) and will catch up when restarted. It can also store up to about 1,100 finish times in an internal memory which can be transmitted online to a personal computer or downloaded later. This facility was used successfully for the first time after the OK Nuts Trophy Event at the Devil's Punchbowl, enabling us to publish results on the Internet by 11.00 pm the same day.

Observant orienteers will have also have noticed two new clocks at the start of that event: one is a Westerstrand 'beeping' start clock and the other is a Grayson automatic call-up clock. Both of these could do with more satisfactory mounting arrangements - any ideas? The club has also recently bought two radio clocks for use at events. These pick up a radio signal from a transmitter near Coventry to ensure that they remain absolutely synchronised with GMT (or BST if appropriate). The intention is that they will be used to synchronise the Start and Finish clocks at events without the need for them to be set up in the same physical locations. We first came across this application whilst running the Starts at last year's World Cup races in the Lake District, where it saved a lot of frantic travelling between widely spread locations, although the signal reception was somewhat erratic. Incidentally, these particular clocks also measure the temperature via local and remote sensors - creative suggestions for a possible use are welcome!

The club banner, which has made a few appearances flapping limply from the top of a fishing pole, has now been equipped with a proper frame and should debut at the JK.

Chris Fry and Alan Leakey

Just before Christmas my wife and I decided on a week of lazing around in the Morocco sunshine courtesy of Jules Verne Holidays. Imagine my surprise when checking into our hotel in Marrakech I noticed, lurking behind us in the queue and looking somewhat bashful, Captain Pete, apparently with the same end in view. I remarked to him that I didn't think newly appointed captains of prestigious orienteering clubs such as SLOW ought to be indulging in such obviously hedonistic activities. Naturally he was suitably embarrassed but mumbled something about planning to do some walking or some such nonsense, or so I thought.

Later in the week, after an exhausting morning exploring the souks of old Marrakech, I was reclining by the pool sipping my afternoon tea when I happened to look up and notice two rather scruffy-looking individuals covered in dust and wearing scuffed boots and Helly-Hansens, who from this ridiculous attire could only have been English. Closer inspection revealed them to be Captain Pete and Piers Newbery (member of JOK/TVOC). They had just that moment arrived back from a three-day trek in the High Atlas mountains. These mountains rise impressively behind Marrakech and are spectacular (as I had discovered the day before on a luxury coach trip).

Apparently Pete and Piers had climbed Jebel Toubkal (4167 metres), the highest peak in North Africa. They had spent two nights in a mountain hut at 3200m when it had been so cold as to require 4 layers on legs and 5 layers on top. But the clear starry sky compensated for this. From there it was about a 6 ½ hour round trip. The hardest part had been negotiating the enormous scree fields. Snow had not really been a problem and was only abundant on north-facing slopes. They had seen Richard Branson's balloon taking off (as I also had from outside Marrakech).

Pete was about to stumble off to a 'hammam' for a clean-up but I suggested that we ought to get in a training-run first - just to get his legs moving again. Not a man to resist a challenge from an aspiring M55 when he is totally knackered he gallantly agreed. So off we went round the townships in the outskirts for half an hour or so. I thought it was a fair handicap. At least we were both about equally adept at keeping just ahead of the hoards of small boys wanting to waylay us.

So that's how different orienteers spend their hols! Seriously though, Marrakech in the winter is a great base for a holiday, as strenuous or relaxing as you want it to be.

Frank Lyness