Occassional thoughts about orienteering
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| okansas.blogspot.com Occassional thoughts about orienteering |
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Wednesday, April 23, 2003 More Tio Mila stuffI spent my lunch hour checking out Scandinavian web pages to see what I could find about Tio Mila. I found a lot of stuff. Here are a few short translations...Capser's memories I made my debut in the first team in 1990. I was 17 and in great form. I got the first leg and realized that if you start with the lead pack, you should finish in the lead. Ever since 1984, I'd dreamed of leading Tio Mila and I made sure I did that. Half way to the first control I was in the lead and I stayed in the lead for 2/3rds of the course. The feeling of being in front and driving, having the pack behind, can only be understood by those who've experienced it. Wonderful! But, my lack of experience stopped me, with a 3 minute boom on a forked control.....The second team finished 88th and was rewarded with a picture in the Lidingö newspaper. Casper Giding is a strong orienteer and was a club mate when I ran for IFK Lidingö. As a junior he was one of the absolute best in Sweden. You probably get a sense of his self-confidence. At the age of 17 he expected to win the opening leg of Tio Mila. I just checked the Swedish rankings at Alternativet and he's listed at 169 in Sweden. That's quite good (to give you an idea, Steven Hale is 200 right now). I ran Tio Mila in 1990 for IFK Lidingö. But, while Casper made his debut in the first team, I was in the second team. We had a decent race and finished 88th. I don't remember the picture in the local newspaper, though. Bjornar's memories Even though I didn't run Tio Mila until I was 18, I sat at home and listened to it on the radio. I stayed up till the very early morning and listened to the Swedish radio. The hope was that NTHI [a Norwegian university team] would be in the lead.... We listened to Tio Mila from the house. The radio reports brought the excitement home. We heard the whispering voice of the radio commentator, "quiet, they are coming now. I can see the lights over a knoll. But, they're turning away. It is quiet. Now it is happening, they're booming." Tio Mila is a great radio sport! Bjornar Valstad is right. Tio Mila is a great radio sport. It might sound silly -- listening to orienteering on the radio. But, it really is good. Swedish radio has reporters out in the forest every few kilometers. They report, whispering so as not to give away their location to the runners, as the top few teams come by. Then you hear music for a while as the runners head toward the next radio control. There is a rhythm to the coverage that is remarkable. There is a special feeling while you listen to the music and wait for the next report, wondering what is going on...knowing that while you're listening, the runners are racing through the dark forest. posted by Michael | 8:41 PM 
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