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How a Book Example Is Born

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 with an idea. 

At first, it exists only as a rough sketch. At this stage, the goal isn't to create a beautiful map but to capture the core concept: which terrain features are needed, what decision the athlete makes, and what lesson the reader should learn.

The next step is a working draft like the one shown here. The main landforms are added, the key features are placed, and the story gradually takes shape. There are still very few details—only what is necessary to communicate the main idea. See Figure 

Figure 9.12:
Failure to Notice Catching Feature 


Example description:
David ran downhill, expecting to see the control. When it did not appear, he stopped and assumed that he had already passed it (point 1). Looking back, he noticed a shallow re-entrant with a hill and a marsh (a). Believing he was looking at the area beyond the control (b), he turned around and ran uphill, where he spent considerable time searching for the control.

However, this assumption did not withstand a simple check. 

Had David really been at Point 2, he would have seen the end of the steep slope and the beginning of the flatter ground below (c). Since these features were not visible, he could not have been below the control.


Only after that comes the final stage: refining the story, adding map details, and polishing the graphics. I'll show the finished version later. Right now, this example is at the working-draft stage.

This example belongs to the chapter on Error Recovery Strategy, and more specifically to the section on  Decision Checking During Error Recovery .

I consider this topic especially important. In my experience, many major time losses are caused not by the original mistake itself, but by the first incorrect decision made while trying to recover. That's why I decided to devote an entire chapter to this subject.

Confident Orienteering – Book 3: Techniques and Tactics in Races  is planned for release at the end of 2026.

If you'd like to learn more about the project, you can find more information here:

Buy Confident Orienteering – Book 1:Fundamentals here: 

Buy Confident Orienteering – Book 2: Planning Reliable Routes here: 


Aleksandr Alekseyonok, July 28, 2026.




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