Confident Orienteering

  S-shaped route If you are planning an S-shaped route, take a closer look at the point of maximum deviation on the first curve — the point from which you intend to return toward the leg line. (point A on the figure) From this point, mentally move the next curve to the opposite side (red line). The S-shaped route can then be viewed as one larger curve. This may reveal another option: from the same point, you might be able to run in the opposite direction along a better arc. There is a more general principle behind this. Once you have deviated from the leg line and start reconsidering your route, the leg line should no longer determine how you compare the alternatives. It may even interfere with the evaluation. At that moment, your route choice should be reconsidered from your current position . A good example comes from the recent Estonian Long Distance Championships, from the women’s elite course. The winner, Marianne Hauge, chose an S-shaped route , while the silver medalist, Sig...

Looking for Reviewers for the complete Confident Orienteering series The Confident Orienteering project is now approaching its final stage, with Book 3 completing the current three-book series . The first two books have received very encouraging feedback, but I feel the series is still not widely known enough among top-level athletes and national-team coaches. Before the project is completed, I would especially like to hear how the three books work together as a series from the perspective of experienced coaches and elite orienteers. I am therefore looking for a small number of reviewers — active elite athletes and experienced coaches — who would be willing to read all three books and give an honest professional assessment of the series as a whole . I will provide all three books free of charge to the reviewers. Of course, I do not expect the review to be entirely positive. I am looking for an honest professional assessment, so critical comments, disagreements, and suggestions are a...

How a Book Example Is Born A few days ago, I shared this sketch in my Orienteering Technical Training group and asked for your ideas about what it showed. One of the suggestions was that the sketch showed two different athletes : one who had  stopped before the control, and turned uphill; and another who had stopped, noticed the edge of the slope (indicated with orange line), and also headed uphill in search of the control. I was really pleased to see that interpretation because it meant the main idea had already come across, even in such a rough sketch. In fact, though, it's the same athlete . The red line shows what actually happened, while the blue line represents the route the athlete imagined after making a wrong assumption. Believing that he had already passed the control, he turned around and started searching uphill. This example is about why that decision was illogical. I'd like to give you a small glimpse into how the book is being created. Every example begins...

  Struggling with the Same Orienteering Mistakes Again and Again? If you keep making the same navigation mistakes despite trying different approaches, the good news is that these problems are usually solvable. In many cases, systematic errors are not caused by a lack of talent or concentration. More often, they come from an ineffective navigation strategy. Over the last few years, I have spent a lot of time analysing navigation mistakes — both my own and those of other orienteers. One of the main conclusions is that many errors can be prevented through better planning and better route execution. This is exactly what I am writing about in my books. Book 1 explains the fundamentals of confident navigation and how to build a reliable navigation strategy. Book 2 focuses on route planning, route execution, and reducing the risk of mistakes before they happen. Book 3 is currently in progress and will focus on racing situations: what to do when conditions become difficult, when something ...

   The Long Route to Print A strange feeling. Today I received the French edition of my second book  "Planning Reliable Routes" . The translation and printed edition were prepared by  Fabrice Lapergue  — huge thanks to him for that. I already had the first book in French — the only printed copy I own so far. And now I’ve received the second one. It’s also in B5 format but about one and a half times heavier — larger in volume, with more pages. It’s a weighty book. Together, the two weigh almost a kilogram. And it feels… strange. Of course, I still need to make the English print edition — the original version. Only then, I think, will the project feel truly complete. The book deserves to exist in print, to stand on a reader’s shelf at home. But those first seconds were very emotional, and even now, more than an hour after unpacking the parcel, I’m still under the impression. I didn’t expect to feel such strong emotions — a mixture of deep fatigue and enormous grat...

CONFIDENT ORIENTEERING A Systematic Approach to Minimising Errors This is a clear and simple navigational approach. And that is exactly why it works. WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? Let’s look at how much work we actually do during the course. Here are the main tasks: — We plan the route. — We execute technical actions — taking bearings, reading the map. — We check control descriptions. — We constantly monitor where we are. — We choose our running line — around trees, bushes, rocks. — We think about the whole course as a whole and manage our energy. — We get distracted by competitors — both in our class and in others. — Sometimes it becomes direct head-to-head racing to the finish. — We get physically tired. — We get mentally tired. — And all of this happens under pressure to perform . THIS IS A LOT. THIS IS WHY SIMPLICITY MATTERS. In heavy load, complex systems fail. It is like in aviation. Complex electronic systems may work well in normal conditions. But in bad we...