Event Schedule

Sunday 01 September 2013

08:30  Check-in and packet pickup open, 2.0 km N of Camp 20

09:00  Maps are available for route planning, all divisions

09:40  Briefing and instructions

10:00  Start, all divisions, foot and bike

13:30  Food service begins

14:00  Finish, 4-hour divisions

14:30  4-hour teams not finished are disqualified

14:40  Awards, 4-hour divisions

18:00  Finish, 8-hour divisions

18:30  8-hour teams not finished are disqualified

18:40  Awards, 8-hour divisions

19:00  Food service ends

19:45  Sunset

Our Sponsors!!

This event has been made possible by the following businesses and organizations. We are delighted to offer a sampling of their products as prizes for this event. Please patronize their offerings and services, and contribute to their programs:

• Event description
  • SPORTident scoring
• Staff
• Terrain
• Hazards
• Safety
• The map
• Course specifics
  • Aid
  • Water stations

• Classes and categories
• Scoring and awards
• Weather and clothing
• Directions
• Rules
  • Allowed equipment
  • Required equipment
• Suggested equipment

1. Event description

Get Lost!! in Jackson DSF is a rogaine. About 45 checkpoints scattered over the eastern portion of the Demonstration State Forest (excluding active timber harvest areas and other areas closed to the public) will be circled on a map and marked on the ground by orange and white orienteering markers. Each location will be equipped with a SPORTident station, which creates a record of your visit on a small electronic card each participant will carry.

Each checkpoint has a point value, which is equal to the checkpoint number rounded down to the tens. For example, Checkpoint 68 would be worth 60 points. The objective is to score as many points as you can within the time limit by visiting checkpoints along your planned route. There are point penalties for returning late. Maps are issued well before the start, so that teams have time to plan their route.

2. Event staff

Administrative Director: Vladimir Gusiatnikov

Course Designer:         Vladimir Gusiatnikov

Emergency Medical:       Laura Tremaine

Food Chief:              TBA

3. The terrain

The terrain of Jackson Demonstration State Forest is 197 km² of ridges and canyons; elevations range from 20 m to 670 m. The entire area is forested with evergreens. There is a well developed road network and a small number of singletrack (narrow) multiuse trails; all roads and trails are open to bike use. Most of the valleys have streams with running water at most times of the year.

Going through these woods is almost always slow, and almost always possible. Visibility is uniformly low. Poison oak is abundant in the understory. The eastern part of the area, which we will utilize for this inaugural event, is less popular than the rest of the State Forest; you will probably not see many users besides fellow rogainers.

There are several minimum-security corrections facilities, called Conservation Camps, within the State Forest. They are marked out of bounds on your maps.

4. Potential hazards

Poison oak is omnipresent in JDSF. This plant produces an oil which may cause a delayed skin irritation reaction. Know what it looks like, avoid contact, and treat exposed skin areas with a product such as Zanfel Poison Ivy Wash. This plant strongly prefers north-facing slopes.

Coastal Northern California is the nexus of marijuana production in the United States. The Demonstration State Forest is continuously logged and well patrolled, so unchecked grows are unlikely. However, if present, these operations are likely to be run not by the relatively mellow locals but by cartels, which are very likely to employ armed guards. Immediately exit all areas in which any type of plant appears to be cultivated.

Logging is active along the western edge of the area used for this event. The two active timber harvest areas are marked on your map. Do not enter them or travel along the associated access roads, also marked out of bounds on the map and signposted in the terrain.

The rogaine area is bisected by California Highway 20. A number of roads in the State Forest are open to vehicles, including logging trucks and equipment. Please be extremely careful while crossing the highway, and beware of the possibility of traffic while walking or riding along forest roads.

Hunting is allowed in the Demonstration State Forest during our event. Please wear an orange vest that we will provide.

Ticks, if attached, are best removed by yanking out firmly with tweezers. If you later develop a rash, get tested for Lyme disease. Keep the offending tick in a plastic bag for the doctor if it managed to stay with you after the event. Usually ticks take more than several hours to transmit any diseases such as Lyme through their mouthparts into your bloodstream.

The percent of ticks that can carry Lyme among all ticks in coastal California is low; the incidence of Lyme among these ticks is also low. Lyme is effectively treated with antibiotics. If left untreated, Lyme can evolve into a serious systemic disease that often leads to disability; fortunately, many of its effects are reversible with treatment.

Finally, beware of cyclists and equestrians on singletrack trails. Cyclists, yield to foot travelers; both, yield to equestrians. Friendly, respectful interaction with other trail users is key to our future ability to use the Demonstration State Forest.

Chances of heat-related problems and hypothermia are both exceedingly small at this time of the year.

5. Participant safety

Participants will be responsible for their own safety while taking part. Of course, event staff will try to help you if we learn that you are seriously injured or otherwise need assistance, but there is a good chance you would be waiting a long time for help, and we don't have the level of staffing or expertise necessary to quickly and expertly handle many emergency situations that might arise, so your best bet is to be very careful not to get injured. If you are not comfortable assuming the risks involved in prolonged exertion while traveling through rugged terrain under various and possibly unexpected conditions, then you should not take part in the event.

Each person will be required to sign a liability waiver when registering online or upon checking in for the event. A parent or guardian must sign for a minor.

The organizers are not in a position to review each participant's preparedness to participate and will not do so. However, if it comes to the organizers' attention that a person or a team is poorly prepared for the event, the organizers may deny entry to that person or team in the interest of the safety of all the participants and staff of the event.

The team aspect of the event is perhaps the best safety instrument. Team members must stay together within unaided voice distance, and must approach checkpoints at the same time. Not staying together will yield disqualification. If you would like additional reassurance, team up with a friend.

There is a tiny bit of cellphone coverage by AT&T and Verizon on ridgetops, none at the start/finish. Highway 20 has frequently spaced call boxes, all of which are operational. Participants are advised to carry cellphones. If there is an emergency, call 911 or use a highway call box.

If a team has indicated an emergency, it is the duty of all other teams who are nearby and hear the distress signal to help the team or participant in distress.

We will have a licensed EMT on site, and there is a possibility there will be additional medical help. The State Forest is closest to the city of Willits, which has a hospital with an ER. For more advanced medical facilities, you'll have to travel to Ukiah, about 23 miles south of Willits.

Each team will be required to fill out an intention sheet, which is a copy of the competition map, with their intended route. The actual route taken does not have to exactly match the intended route. Intention sheets are due at the briefing 15 minutes before the start.

We will provide water on the course. However, to be on the safe side, all participants should carry enough water to sustain them for three hours.

Consuming enough salt will mean the difference between being sluggish and not thinking clearly, and being sharp and enjoying the experience throughout the whole duration of the event. Take salt pills or eat salty food starting at 3 hours into the event at the latest; 200–400 milligrams of sodium ion per hour are advised. Drinking only plain water depletes sodium in your body. Other electrolytes may also help prevent cramps. We suggest carrying electrolyte pills if you plan on participating in one of the 8-hour divisions.

The safety bearing is south or north to California Highway 20; this will be noted on the competition maps.

We have a safety, emergency/accident response, communications, and search/rescue plan you may peruse. Information on this webpage supercedes the Safety Plan, where contradictory. If you have any questions about information in this section, please contact our Administrative Director.

6. The competition map

The map will show elevation contours, all roads and trails, and streams. It will be at 1:25,000 scale with 12 m contours. We will offer high-legibility printing. The whole area will be on a single map sheet. We do not feel that waterproof paper is needed for this event. We will provide plastic map cases of appropriate thickness.

There are two classes of roads shown on the map, and a single symbol for singletrack trails. The more established roads are nicely graded, and are so good that they are passable for most low-clearance passenger vehicles. They are shown with a solid wide black line, consistent with the specifications of the International Orienteering Federation for mountain-bike maps. The rest of the roads are shown with a long-dash, wide black line; they are slower, but passable for four-wheel-drive vehicles. The singletrack should probably be a solid narrow black line according to the specifications, but we show it with a long-dash narrow black line to avoid confusion with the driveable roads.

The source of all data for this map is the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. For our next event in Jackson State Forest, a bid for the 2014 U.S. Rogaine Championships, we expect to create a Get Lost!!-standard map, hopefully with lidar contours.

Maps will be printed to magnetic north, and will have a UTM grid (no indication of true north).

7. Course specifics

There will be about 45 checkpoints, totaling 1600 points. The optimum distance to get them all will be between 50 and 55 km along straight lines; distance along trails will be greater. Climb on this route will be about 6% of the distance traveled. We hope that nobody is able to get all checkpoints, but if really strong mountain bike riders show up this may not be true.

The number of points awarded for visiting a checkpoint is the first digit of the checkpoint's code, times 10; for example, Checkpoint 68 is worth 60 points. The penalty for being late is 10 points per minute, or fraction thereof. Teams finishing more than 30 minutes after the deadline will be disqualified and will get a score of 0.

Most locations are technically easy to moderate, while a small number are hard. We will assign values to checkpoints based on their combined navigational and physical difficulty. In other words, don't expect a gimme from an 80-pointer.

Each checkpoint will be equipped with an orange and white orienteering control marker and a SPORTident electronic station. There will not be sign-in/intention sheets at checkpoints. Water stations, if not at checkpoints, will not have orienteering markers.

To punch at (score) a checkpoint, put the SPORTident card through the opening. If there is no confirmation beep nor a light flash, use a paper punch attached to the control marker to punch your map. If you are unable to find the checkpoint but think you are in the right location, take a picture. All checkpoint locations will have been verified with GPS.

All team members must punch the SPORTident station within 60 seconds (first to last) in order to claim credit for the checkpoint.

8. Classes and categories

There will be four event divisions, the 8-hour bike, the 8-hour foot, the 4-hour bike, and the 4-hour foot. Solo competitors are allowed in the 4-hour division, but not in the 8-hour. The maximum team size is 5 members. A team that has a member born in or after 1999 must also have a member born in 1995 or earlier.

There will be the following gender classes:

• Men;
• Mixed; and
• Women.

A mixed team is one that has members of both genders.

There will be the following age categories:

• Open;
• Juniors (each team member born in 1993 or later);
• Masters (each team member born in 1973 or earlier); and
• Supervets (each team member born in 1958 or earlier).

Every team is eligible for awards in the Open category. Some teams may fall into multiple age categories. In this case the team is eligible for awards in all categories in which they meet the criteria.

Logical combinations of the above classifications will constitute awardable categories, for example, "8-hour bike Supervet Women" or "4-hour foot Junior Mixed". Categories with few teams will not be consolidated for the purposes of awards.

9. Scoring, results, and awards

All teammates must stay within unaided voice distance and all must approach a checkpoint in order to claim credit, within 60 seconds (first to last). If one team member is unable to continue, the whole team must report to the start/finish. A new team may be formed and it may then go on the course, but it will be unable to claim credit for checkpoints already visited.

The number of points awarded for visiting a checkpoint is the first digit of the checkpoint's code, times 10; for example, Checkpoint 68 is worth 60 points. The penalty for being late is 10 points per minute, or fraction thereof. Teams finishing more than 30 minutes after the deadline will be disqualified and will get a score of 0.

Teams will be ranked within their division, age, and gender categories according to their total score. Among teams with identical scores, the earliest finishing team will be ranked highest. Teams that are disqualified or do not finish do not get a place.

(Every team that finishes within 30 minutes of the time limit, and does not break certain rules, gets a score. You don't have to stay out for the full 4 or 8 hours! You can finish earlier if you feel like it.)

Upon finishing, teams should proceed to a SPORTident download station. Points will be tallied, and each team will receive a copy of their score sheet that will contain checkpoint-by-checkpoint split times, the total straight-line distance traveled, and the approximate climb.

Top teams in all divisions, classes will get prizes from our sponsors. Event results, splits, and RouteGadget will be promptly made available online.

10. Weather and recommended clothing

September is the warmest month in coastal Northern California, although it is quite foggy, especially during morning hours. Temperatures rarely reach above 90 °F (+32 °C); the average high for early September is 64 °F (+18 °C) and low, 49 °F (+9 °C). It's T shirt weather day-round! Rain is exceedingly unlikely, but possible.

There are no heated or air-conditioned indoor facilities in all of Jackson Demonstration State Forest.

11. The rules

Although they don't explicitly cover bikes, Orienteering USA Rules for Rogaine Competition and the International Rogaining Federation Rules of Rogaining will be in effect, supplemented by this information. When there is a conflict between the two sets of Rules, U.S. Rules take precedence.

Here are a few rules highlights:

1. Team members must stay together (within unaided verbal contact) the whole time they are on the course (Orienteering USA Rule 5.5).
2. All team members must go to each checkpoint visited by the team (IRF Rule B16).
3. All participants are required to respond to a distress signal and to assist a participant who is injured and needs assistance (Orienteering USA Rule 10.2).
4. All participants are responsible for their own safety while they participate, and participants should make themselves aware of the hazards associated with the weather, rugged terrain, health risks of extreme exertion, equipment malfunction, and remoteness from emergency assistance.
5. Except in case of emergency, all participants must check in with event staff before leaving the area; in case of emergency, an evacuated participant or her/his team members should notify event staff of the situation as soon as possible after attending to the emergency.
6. Points will be deducted from the scores of late returning teams, and teams finishing more than 30 minutes late will receive a score of zero (Orienteering USA Rule 9.1).
7. A team may be disqualified for infringing these rules (Orienteering USA Rule 8.1).
8. Solo participants are allowed in the 4-hour divisions (exception to Orienteering USA Rule 3.1 and IRF Rule B1).
9. GPS devices and altimeters (such as GPS tracking watches) may be carried on the course (to allow tracking analysis afterward) but not used for navigation by teams. If carried, any such devices that have a display must be presented to race officals to be sealed (after tracking is activated, if desired) before the start. Without going into the details of the sealing method, we can say that participants with GPS watches and altimeters should plan to carry them, not wear them. This is an exception to Orienteering USA Rule 5.2 and IRF Rule B7.

   Most cellphones nowdays have GPS on them. We will rely on your honor not to use it to aid your navigation.

10. It will not be allowed to have equipment caches arranged for you on the course. Carry all you may need, including spare inner tubes. (Orienteering USA Rule 5.8 and IRF Rule B13.) You are also not allowed to discard trash or unwanted equipment, except into trash bags at the water stations.
11. Any participants or teams seen entering active timber harvest areas, or traveling along roads marked out-of-bounds, will be disqualified. Riding bikes off trail, riding closed/forbidden roads or trails, or riding unmapped shortcuts is not allowed (however, you may dismount and carry your bike).
12. Please observe trail etiquette. Cyclists, yield to foot travelers; both, yield to equestrians. Friendly, respectful interaction with other trail users is key to our future ability to use Jackson Demonstration State Forest.

12. Suggested equipment

Each team should have a cellphone (AT&T or Verizon), a compass, bottles or other containers able to carry at least 0.5 liters of water per team member, food/energy snacks, salt tablets, a first aid kit, and a space blanket. For bike division participants, we suggest bike map holders such as this one.

Just wanted to say thank you guys for such a fun event. It was a great navigation exercise and an awesome workout. I have also never been at an event with such great food! I don't even eat that well at home!

—Stephanie, Team Racing With Giants

We have a limit of 50 participants, dictated by the permit. We expect this event to sell out.

We will offer long-sleeve tech shirts with this design to all participants. All food during and after the event is included in the registration price.

Pre-registration is open. Team members may enter together (be entered by the same person), or separately. If you would like to go with a team, but don't know your teammates' names yet, you can enter yourself and other members can join the team at a later time.