Success Home and Away
The orienteering calendar is now back in full swing after the summer break, and FVO athletes were well placed in three different events in three different countries.
It was a red letter day for east Glasgow club STAG, who celebrated their 1000th event since 1982 with a two person relay in Tollcross Park, and the five FVO teams on show were all in the top half of the rankings.
Alison and Chris Smithard were 2nd overall (43.38) with Chris having the quickest time on the opening leg while Mark Johnston and Hanna Brindley were 4th (47.38) as the leading "family" team. Under 14 duo Hannah Inman and Esme Finch were 6th (48.54) as the top junior pair, and Rachel Kirkland and Mark Wood were one place back (49.30), and top SuperVet pairing. The blue and gold cavalcade was rounded off by Jack Cheyne and Simon Finch, with a 14th place (55,46) finish.
The Bank Holiday weekend in England saw CLOK and EBOR staged the White Rose weekend, one of the few events in the calendar to straddle two orienteering regions, with races in Cleveland and North Yorkshire , and Paul Hammond helped himself to the M50 silver medal, with 2nd place finishes in both Middle (38.32) and Long (52.21) stages, as well as a 3rd in the Night Score which started the weekend, but didn't count in the overall rankings.
Andy Llewellyn was also present, as he tested out a recent injury, and although he didn't finish either forest stage, he was 6th in the Night race at Oliver's Mount, Scarborough, before rounding off his campaign with a silver medal (19.18) in the Sprint race at the tow's Italian Gardens.
Marcus Pinker meanwhile was back at home in the south of Ireland, for a poignant conclusion to the Irish Championships. The initial festival in May was abandoned after the sudden death of an event official, and Marcus was 6th (145.32) in the Men's Elite race. His remarkable career shows no sign of slowing at the top end, and this was his 37th start in the Emerald Isle's biggest race, stretching back to when he was a tyro M14.
He did finish the weekend on the podium though, as he and his CORK-O team mates were runners-up in the age-handicap relay in a time of 103.35, with Marcus 4th (39.54) on the second leg.