Who are we?
Loch Eck Orienteers is the orienteering club for Argyll, Scotland. We have a core of very active members, including some that compete at international level, but we also welcome newcomers to the sport. The club covers the whole of Argyll, with bases in Dunoon, in the south-east and Oban, in the north-west.
Recently, links with local schools have been established with the help of ABOP (Argyll & Bute orienteering partnership). This is a partnership between EckO, the Argyll & Bute Council and Stramash (read more about ABOP).
Events
A spring series of about six events is usually held in April and May; after that the midges are often too fierce and the bracken requires a periscope to find the way through! An Autumn series follows when conditions improve. We also plan to have a few events during the winter months.
We have recently started to enter relay teams at major events like the British Champs, Scottish Champs, CompasSport Cup and 11 Person Relay. More members are now travelling to events outside of Argyll and so details of these now appear on our event list.
We have a Grade 2 Controller in the club - Lynne Walker (who is also the chair of the board of directors of the Scottish 6 Day Company) and four grade 3 controllers.
Maps
EckO embarked on a large mapping programme recently, and we now have 23 maps and more in the pipeline. This mapping project will allow the club to continue the provision of local orienteering for local people. All maps are printed on waterproof paper and pre-marked with the course.
One of the Argyll & Bute orienteering partnership achievements was to get an orienteering map produced of every school in Argyll.
Coaching & Training
We have several qualified coaches and frequently run sessions to help people develop their orienteering skills. This includes planning, organizing and computing skills as well as out in the forest.
Communications
Paul Frost is our newsletter editor, website developer & publicity officer; we have succeeded in getting articles printed in the local paper. The website is now the main means of communication, as it can be updated so fast, and unlike the newsletter, it doesn’t get thrown out with the newspapers.
History
EckO was formed in 1984. In the Dunoon area there were two prominent orienteers - Hilary Smith and Jean Ramsden. They provided the driving force for the inauguration of the club.
In the first six or so years of the club membership was healthy. At that time there were many outdoor education centres in the area. Staff working in the centres were attracted to the sport and had already supported C.A.T.I. Events run by staff at Ardentinny Centre in the 1970’s and early 1980’s. A crisis came in the mid1990’s when club membership had dropped. At an A.G.M. the current membership voted to continue as a small club, with the main aim being the provision of local events for local people.
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