By Andrew Masalkov
We are back to the alluring Sunol Regional Park for the next BAOC Scramble Series event.
The course design motto was "no free breakfasts" — that means there always will be tough decisions on where to go and what route to choose in this steep terrain. Take a flat route and you'll get your wet feet, try to get high-value controls and you'll be forced into a brutal encounter with the pretty flowers blooming on Sunol heights. But in the end, you will find the enjoyment of being alone with the nature — it's spring, the most exciting time in the park.
Course details
The event format is a Score-O where you plan your own race and take as many controls as possible in a 90-minute or 3-hour time frame. The penalty for each 1-minute (or fraction) delay in finishing will be 10 points.
Control values are 20, 40, or 60 points, as follows:
- Four (4) control codes from #120 to #123 are worth 60 points each.
- Ten (10) control codes from #70 to #79 are worth 40 points each.
- All other (19) control codes are worth 20 points each.
There are 33 controls total, for a total of 1020 points available.
There are double e-punch units at the controls closest to the Start (#100 and #79) to avoid waiting in line to punch. (Yes, there really is a 40-point control close to the Start, but it's not easy to get to.)
The straight-line total distance to reach all the controls is around 19 km. I didn't measure climb, or look into the most optimal route, but 25+ km would be my estimate for the real land route to take them all.
Water
Water is provided on the course. Water control locations are marked in the Control Description sheet. There are also two Refreshment Points on the map marked with the cup symbol: one on the Welsh Creek road, close to control #45, and the second one is a faucet at the historical ranch up Hayfield Road, near control #34. We confirmed with the rangers that the faucet has potable water.
Map
The map used for the event is of a good quality and none of the controls are in questionable places.
The map is printed at 1:10000 scale. The contour intervals is 7.5 meters, which means the map looks less steep than it really is!
The only unexpected feature could be the newly-built fence along the creek in proximity to control #73 — I mapped the most relevant part, although it may be little bit off. The fence is brand new and is hard to cross. Rather than trying to climb it, it might be better to crawl/curl under or to go the marked crossing point.
Poison oak is growing in the park, but the course avoids it. Poison oak can be seen near several controls, but is easily avoidable.
The ground is soft and green, kind of paradise for off-road running.
Wildlife
I saw a huge band of wild turkeys resting in the woods surrounding the creek. Cattle are out there, grazing near the stream and at several random places in the park.
Note
Please observe and avoid out-of-bounds areas — rangers and nature lovers are very sensitive about disturbance we can cause to the natural inhabitants. It also may affect our ability to use this map in the future.