Day 5 South African Youth Squad

This morning we woke up bright and early for another busy day of orienteering. After eating and dressing we started on our various chores to get the cabin ready for the 194 pensioners who would be attending the Luffarligan event. 

While Nick and Rulsin put out the controls we busied ourselves with sweeping, baking, packing away our bags and setting out the computer equipment. A few attempted the strong pots of coffee later (most of which Paul drank) before our customers began to arrive. 

Once Heather and Tristan mastered the registration and Sarah W and Carla were ready in the kitchen the first group (Luan, Dylan, Tinus, Ryno, Carl and myself) started the walk 1.5km walk to the start of the courses which varied from 1.5km to 5.5km in length. This is where we discovered how fast pensioners can really move.

Once we returned and swapped with whoever had the job we wanted the next group (Heather, Sarah W, Carla, Tristan, Cameron, and Tania) set out on their courses. 

In the mean time; the kitchen started to get busy (and we learnt many different ways to either convey costs in Swedish or the easier option of telling them we only understand English), and the registration counter got a visit from a very friendly partridge (or Swedish chicken as it is now known) which we named Anderson; who decided it was a good idea to give everyone a fright (aka me and make everyone else laugh) and sit on the banister just a few centimetres from where I was sitting. 

As everyone began returning and the boys went out to control collect the girls got the job of cleaning the now filthy clubhouse yet again. Before everyone returned and ate a well deserved lunch. 

After lunch and a few games of Uno we set out on the usual bus for the shops to get all of the snacks we now adore including Fanta exotic, chips, loads of Daim, chocolates, ice cream and Mc Donalds, before returning back to the clubhouse to clean up all our things yet again before the club training and meeting that would start in around an hour. 

We snacked on our newly bought goodies, played cards and tidied up until the first club members began to arrive. Once almost everyone was here we got our maps and had a quick briefing before heading up the road in the opposite direction to earlier today to the start of the relay style training exercise, where there were many courses and lots of controls to make finding our way just a little bit harder. Sarah W, Luan and I and later on Tristan found ourselves making similar route choices and stayed fairly close together until the final legs where we raced to try get to the finish control first.

Seriously narrow and scary gap between two cliffs

Once checking in with Carl at the finish we took the 1.4km stroll back to the clubhouse where the Swedes -who had done both of the two courses and run back- were showered and waiting for their 10Mila meeting to start. We had a cup of Omo (hot chocolate) and showered quickly before retreating downstairs to chill and play cards. 

Once all the club members had left Carla and Sarah W started making macaroni and cheese and made us all even more starving by leaving the oven open to make the whole clubhouse smell of bacon.

We ate the delicious diner and started cleaning up when the real challenge began .... after teaching everyone speed over a few days we had finally taught everyone and a tournament began. We all shared wins, losses and loads of laughs before getting ready for bed after a long day. 

Written by Sarah Everett

Day 4 South African Youth Squad

After a very long and cold day for us South Africans we got a warm and well deserved semi-sleep in. As usual we sat around the breakfast table laughing our lungs out because of Paul's jokes. The rest of the morning was rather chaos as we rushed to get ready for our first session of the day. We were each  told to bring along four bright objects to use as controls and were then divided back into our groups from yesterday.

Now I can't speak for the others, but I was certainly confused. Luckily it didn't end up being complicated at all, in fact, it was amazing fun. Each member of each group ran the same course but in different directions and had to place there four 'controls' where they thought it had to be. The tricky part is, it had to be accurate as you had to meet your partner in the middle of the course and run the rest of the course where he/she had placed their 'controls' and collect them (its called KEPS-OL). Altogether a very eventful morning!

Our trip back to base was uneventfully and short as the morning run was in the neighbourhood forest. We hurried back with enormous excitement as we were about to head to the Vasa Museum, a journey that had been previously delayed. A quick sandwich or two, a change of clothes and a clean up of base, meant we got moving. After 401 to Slussen, a train to Stockholm Central and a short bus and walk we found ourselves a the much anticipated Vasa Museum. 

HOW COOL COULD THIS GET? It felt like I was in a Pirates of the Caribbean film. The Vasa is a 17th century Swedish Royal warship that capsized and sank before it had even left it's home- that is Stockholm. After 3 centuries of  fading away on the seabed, the Vasa was finally, after many previous attempts, salvaged to be restored. It now sits in a completely environmentally enclosed museum, in order for it to last as long as possible for us to drool at in amazement. Today the Vasa is the largest object that has ever been restored and preserved, and is 98% original. It is the only preserved ship of the 17th century.

 

Hundreds of relics from the ship's early life had been restored and encased for us to look at and every possible method had been given to us to understand the ships history, including a short film that was in Chinese but luckily had English subtitles. All of which caused huge distraction for me as I was late for our lunch and Carl had to come looking for me. Sorry Carl. Yummy meatballs, mash and gooseberries for lunch later we headed back to base.

A journey that turned out to be a lot more eventful than I imagined it to be. You see, on the way to the bus stop, I realised that I had lost my travel card and couldn't get on any bus or train without it. After having worked through my internal crises, Carl and I dashed the 30 min walk to the train station while the others caught the bus. We must have hit a wormhole because amazingly we got there before the rest of the squad did. New card and ego restored we headed home.

Quick change of clothes and some mental preparation for the cold lying ahead, we headed to our second training session for the day. One longer than expected train ride to our destination then we ran back into the bush like the hooligans that others think we are. 

The tiny bit of rain we got lasted only but 2 sec and we had a lot of fun. Finishing earlier than expected we tried to catch the first bus back, but sadly missed it by the slightest of margins. The one and only Nick managed to persuade us to walk the first couple of stops to make the time go by, which it did. Ended up being a good time to get to know each other a bit better. 

Upon arriving at base, later than ever, we were greeted by the lovely smell of Paul's roast chicken. After dinner we played some cards while others chatted to the coaches and then crawled in for the night after this long and exhausting day. 

Written by Ryno Grove

Day 3 South African Youth Squad

On the morning of the 23rd, we finally got to sleep in after some very late and tiring days.

We started with a relocation exercise in the forests near the clubhouse.  Normally when we do relocation practise, we purposefully get people lost, but in the technical forests of Sweden, we were told that all we had to do was stop part of the way to the control. Our expectations were that it was going to be hard, as even the controller,Paul lost map contact (which was his way of saying that he got lost). I thought that the course was not as hard as I expected it to be. I was paired with Luan and we only really got lost once. On the other hand, our two injured runners; Cameron and Tinus had lots of fun. They had Carl following them and they ended up somewhere where none of them knew where they were. After that Carl sent them back down a 'distinct' path, that actually turned out be a thick forest where they experienced many horror story like events.

Once everyone was finally back, we relaxed for 2 hours and had lunch. After we ate, Tania came and talked to us individually and advised us on what to focus on for the next training.

At 13:13 we took the 380 bus and travelled east and then we caught the 334 to svartbäcken where we were going to join the orienteering school's training. The cold weather started to roll in and us South Africans were not equipped for the 4 degree weather. We stood freezing, waiting for everyone else to get ready. After that we following Nick on a quick 1.5 km run to the start.

 There were four different lopes roughly 2.4 km each.I started with the shortest loop, 13-15, which was fun and was a good to get into the map. I then ventured off and did 17-22. I was on my way to control 19 when it became  quite terrifying, the trees were creaking in the wind and there was this loud banging noise in the background, and then it started raining.

My next mishap happened at control 22 where I ended up not knowing where I was and was even thinking about blowing my whistle, when I saw an obvious feature and finally made my way back to the start. I ended off with one more loop 7-11 where I tried my best to avoid the marshes, but ended up hitting all of them. I got back with soaking wet feet and cold hands. People slowing started coming back until we were just waiting for Cameron and Nick. To keep warm we used the penguin technique and huddled together waiting. There were ecstatic faces when we saw Cameron and Nick running over the hill.

The trip back from the start point was not as care-free as the way there. The ground was slippery and muddy and there was much slipping and falling. I tripped over a rock and fell face first down a hill, grazing my knee and embedded it with dark mud. Paul however won the injury prize, slipping on a tree trunk and splitting his shin open on a branch. It was a slow hobble back! When we got back we were finally able to put on warm clothes, while the adults talked about travelling plans. I went in  Nicks car with Paul and Tania while everyone went back on the bus. We stopped at the shop to stock up on supplies before heading back to the clubhouse. Paul then went with Nick to the hospital, whee he got 7 stictches. Back at the clubhouse we finally got to try the sauna. Warm and refreshed we settled down to play some Uno and then tucked into pork chops made by Ryno and Tinus.

Written by Sarah Wimberley

Travel Days South African Youth Squad

Gathering together at the airport, we arrived all excited and looking forward to the tour ahead.

Once checking in our luggage and having the paparazzi (aka. Parents) taking our team photos and some individual photos, we headed across to security... where the long lines awaited us, which also included a old (we think British) lady fighting with us as she was trying to push in-front the masses of the youth squad.A quick snack and a short browse at the book shop, we were ready to leave.

As we all embarked on the First adventure (8 hours) to Dubai. During this journey 20 000 leagues above the sea we dined like economy class passengers. The flight consisted of many movies of newly released films which both touched us and scared us.

The flight then landed in Dubai to be greeted by 20 degrees in the middle of the night. We then headed into the airport where we found the nearest gadget shop and 'window' shopped to our hearts' content. Ryno managed to buy himself a new watch for the trip. We then went and found our gate which was on the far end of the airport. After finding seats, we went and bought coffee and other hot drinks to tide the weary travellers through the night.

The next flight was a shorter one, but many of us did not realise. I slept for most of the flight and I even almost missed lunch. Thankfully Carl grabbed me a sandwich. We landed and felt ready to leave the airport... until Tinus forgot his wallet on the plane and had to go back for it. We then moved to customs where the lucky people who had EU passports got to go in the fast queue. The rest of us peasants had to wait in a longer line and then be asked questions about our trip before we were allowed in the country. After a quick bathroom trip, we were heading for the doors. We could smell the Swedish air... until we had to stop to buy bus passes and data cards. Carl bought milk for the meal that night. Due to problems with data cards, we left the airport 40 minutes later.

We caught the first bus to Marsta Station where we had to run to catch the next train. We had a 30 minute train ride to Stockholm City. At the Stockholm City Station, we had to climb a huge escalator and go up two more all while dodging people with our suitcases and stopping every two seconds to do a head count. Eventually we reached the correct platform where we took a train to Slussen. We then went to the bus stop for our new favourite bus, the 401. We took this bus to Hellasgarden where our long journey finally finished. Everybody then got their first look, for some people first in two years, at the clubhouse for OK Ravinen, the place we would call home.

The next few minutes was a bustle of people moving to get a place to put their bags and mattresses. Nick Barrable, our host, then came to the clubhouse. We then all had to get ready for the first training event in Sweden. We left our front door and ran around 150 meters where we reached the start. Nick ran with us as a group and explained some of his orienteering process for the first few controls after which we set of by ourselves. My run did not go very well. I started by heading to the wrong control and had to turn around. I then got confused and lost the way to the actual control. When I eventually found my first control I exited the wrong way and ended up missing two of the controls. I'm blaming it all on a lack of sleep!The rest of the course went relatively smoothly.

Once everyone was back, we discovered that Carl he had bought sour milk, so Sarah and I had to go with the Nick to the shop. After navigating automatic doors and the terror of almost having to do a self check out, we left with the milk and brought it back to the chefs. That night it was Dylan and Cameron to cook. After around 40 minutes of bickering we got the Tuna Mate we were promised... almost. Instead of Tuna Mate it looked more like soup with the occasional piece of tuna and pasta. The dinner continued with Cameron and Dylan arguing who did what, leaving the rest of us laughing.

The weary orienteers then got ready to go to sleep, some people for the first time in 2 days. We had arrived in Sweden!

Written by Heather Wimberley

Day 2 South African Youth Squad (Race Day)

On the morning of the 22nd of April there were a certain few who had quite an early and exciting wake up as Carl, Tania, Carla and Cameron rushed to pack a lunch and prepared to catch the 6:34 bus to our first competition. The rest of us followed about an hour later (as we had a later start time) and we set of for the +-2 hour trip of bus, train, train, bus to Bro station. A few fortunate were able to hitch hike with the fellow orienteers to the event centre from the station, and the rest had an early warm up for the event with a 2 km walk. The temperature was well in the single digits when we arrived and set up camp.

The earliest start from our group was Cameron at around 10am, and the latest was Luan at 12:05.

 As I prepped for my 11:59 start, I was amazed at the amount of people at the event, hundreds after hundreds of orienteers filling the main field. We all felt a bit nervous, as the day before we struggled on the under 12 course. I was about to attempt an under 18 course... As I set off I started slow and tried to just make sure I knew where I was going. At first it was really difficult, almost like it was our first time orienteering, as I was trying to find what worked and didn't work for me.

I eventually got into a routine of bearing, distance, finding catch feature and using attack point as I progressed from leg to leg. I started to get more and more comfortable with the terrain, and after one or two minor errors I started to really enjoying myself  with hitting my control better. Close to the finish I caught up with Tinus (who hurt his ankle again) and we both finished strong.

Our trip to the museum has been postponed so we all discussed our route choices. Most of us felt it was a new and difficult experience of the Swedish forests.

After a nice warm shower we all settled down and started to relax as Tania went over  routes with a few of us, and helped us to realise the once dreaded forests weren't actually so bad. With a few comparisons learnt quickly from our many mistakes.

We all played a friendly game of ultimate frisbee (Myself, Ryno, Tinus, Tristan and Cameron VS Carl, Carla, both Sarahs, Heather and Luan in which our team won 8-4). Tristan and Heather started on the dinner and the rest of us played a game of Uno as the sun was setting.

Written by Dylan Fenthum

Day 1 South African Youth Squad (afternoon)

After lunch we rode the 401(our favourite bus) again to Slussen. We then jumped onto the green line train Farsta and finally caught a bus to Agesta where we met Nick. There he gave us maps that were based off a course he planned a week ago.

We split up between the three different courses. I did course 11 to 17 where I had the fright of my life. There it lay. Basking in the sun. I was running so fast everything was a blur and when I saw it, it was almost too late.  The snake was small but probably deadly. Adrenaline shot through me and I did a graceful leap and by the time I landed it had slithered away. Still full of adrenaline I did the next few check points faster than I've ever run before. The pace only succeeded in getting me lost. Fast and furious soon turned into lost and furious (copyright Dylan).

Back at the start, we cooled down and stretched our sore muscles. Cameron adopted a homeless soccer ball named Sibusiswe Wannabe Jabulani. (yes that is the full name). Its tatty and irregular shape did not stop it from rolling into our hearts. None the less it found its way back outside within the hour.

Back at the start, we cooled down and stretched our sore muscles. Cameron adopted a homeless soccer ball named Sibusiswe Wannabe Jabulani. (yes that is the full name). Its tatty and irregular shape did not stop it from rolling into our hearts. None the less it found its way back outside within the hour. While this was happening Carl had disappeared into the forest only to come back empty handed. We left him behind with Nick (don't worry he caught a different bus).

We then journeyed to the shops. we thought it was closed but we were actually at the wrong door. We loaded up with chips, chocolate and Mc Donald's and headed back to the club house. We played frisbee until the sun set then went to explore the other side of the road where we found an outdoor gym and a lake while Sarah and Luan made supper which we thoroughly enjoyed.

Written by Carla Collins     

Day 1 South African Youth Squad (morning)

On the morning of the 21st of April 2018 the group of South Africans woke up for their first morning in Stockholm, breakfast was a DIY job but it was also very rushed. Once we were out of the clubhouse we caught our usual bus [bus no. 401] to Haga for the 5km Park Run

After that, we walked about 20m to do our morning training session, which consisted of 3 loops of controls about 1km in distance for each. On Tinus's very first loop while out rolled his ankle.

The gentleman who started Park Run in Sweden.

I found that the training sessions were pretty easy compared to some of the other sessions that we have done so far. The terrain in Sweden is completely different to the South African terrain, mainly in terms of the mapping and contours. I really enjoy the surroundings in Sweden, they're so much more interesting to South Africa's surroundings.

Written by Cameron Ferreria