CLYDE Urban Race 2 - Houston
Race report
In August we are putting on a series of 3 Urban events on areas around Glasgow. These races are designed to introduce people to Urban Orienteering and to provide a fun series of races to kick off the Autumn season.
Sunday 15 August - Mosshead Results RouteGadget, WinSplits, SplitsAnalyser
Sunday 22 August - Houston Results RouteGadget, WinSplits, SplitsAnalyser
Sunday 29 August - Glasgow West End
All will feature pre-printed maps and SI punching. Pre-entry is available and is encouraged (click here to enter) but entry on the day will also be welcome.
There will be a simple scoring system based on your best 2 scores from 3 events and even some prizes.
There are no set courses for particular age classes, enter whatever course you want.
Any questions contact Dave the series organiser.
Travel Directions
From Glasgow take the M8 leaving at junction 29 onto the A737 Irvine road. Leave the A737 at the junction for Houston/Bridge of Weir (about 3 miles from junction 29).
Turn right onto B789 and follow this road into Houston. in Houston turn right at the prominent roundabout just past the shops and take the 3rd turning on the right into Ardgryffe Crescent. Parking is at Ardgryffe Park (grid ref NS419664) which is about 600m along on the right. If car park full please park safely on the left hand side of the road after the car park. Assembly/registration at Clyde tent adjacent to car park.
From Ayrshire leave A737 at junction for Houston/ Bridge of Weir and turn left onto B789. follow directions as above.
IMPORTANT LAST MINUTE CHANGE TO DIRECTIONS TO EVENT
Due to road resurfacing work which commenced on 9 August, there is a diversion in place which affects access to Houston.
When you leave the A737 onto the B789 for Houston you will be diverted left at the first roundabout onto the A761 towards Bridge of Weir. It is important that you take this diversion even though the route straight on appears open as it is closed further on and you wll end up in lost in Linwood!
Carry on to Bridge of Weir on the A761 until you come to a set of traffic lights at which it is possible to turn right signposted to Houston on the B790. Stay on this road and when you reach the roundabout at Houston go straight on. Take the 3rd road on the left which is Ardgryffe Crescent and follow instructions for parking as described.
IMPORTANT EVEN MORE LAST MINUTE CHANGE TO TRAVEL DIRECTIONS!
The roadworks keep changing and according to the planner it’s getting too complicated to describe.
The best we can say is head towards Houston form the A737 junction with the B789 and look for the O signs!
Toilets
None at the event, nearest ones at Morrisons Supermarket (adjacent to the junction of the A737 and B789 above).
Details
Registration, Start and Finish will all be in the same place.
The course distances are measured as the direct line between control points, your actual running distance will be almost double this! The long course is roughly equivalent to a 10k road race.
Note that as these are all urban events all courses may involve crossing roads which have not been closed to traffic. You are responsible for your own safety, and that of any juniors in your care. The Short course will be planned to involve crossing as few roads as possible. Parents of Under 16s should either shadow them or be happy that their charges are competent to safely cross roads on their own in the heat of competition. Unaccompanied Under 16s should complete and hand in a signed parental consent form before starting. These forms will be available at registration and for download shortly.
Planners comments
Running/trail shoes with reasonable grip are likely to be suitable for this event, if wet good grip will be helpful. Houston has a number of wooded areas but these have not been used signficantly for this event as undergrowth in summer means that routes through the wooded areas, even on paths, may have signficantly more undergrowth and less visibility than is apparent from the map.
The Houston map is bisected by two rivers. The larger of the two, the Gryffe is mapped as uncrossable along its length (dark blue with a black edge) and must only be crossed at the marked crossing points (bridges). Please note that it is against the rules to cross the Gryffe at any other point, and this will result in disqualification. The smaller of the two rivers is mapped as crossable (light blue with a blue edge) and can be crossed at any point deemed safe to do so by the competitor. In the event of heavy rain immediately prior to the event further advice may be given at the start.
Rules
1. The competition will include the 3 Urban Series events, Mosshead, Houston and Glasgow West End.
2. People are free to run whatever course they wish. There are no dedicated Junior or age class courses, although age classes will be included in the results where known.
3. The scoring is simple. On each course the runner finishing in first place will score 100 points, 2nd scores 98, 3rd scores 96 etc. All runners who fail to complete the course will be given joint last place, but will still score points appropriate to that placing. Groups will count for the series, but must be labelled as such.
4. The organiser/planner/mapper of any race that is included in the competition will score 96 points
5. The best 2 scores from 3 events will count
6. In the event of a problem on any course (controls being stolen or wrongly placed etc.) the organiser and series coordinator will try and find a fair resolution. This is subject to discussion with any affected competitors and will take into account the spirit of the overall competition. Formal protests and such like will be very much frowned upon.
7. These rules may be further developed as the competition progresses.
Results
Downloadable Documents
Results for Houston Urban Race
Overall results after the first two Urban Races
Terrain description
This largely urban map was produced by local residents Donald and Andy. It is an interestingly complicated mixture of urban, open and forested terrain and the rapid changes of terrain mean you really have to keep your wits about you. The map had its first use at the AGM and street race in 2009.
Posted on 22nd Aug 10
by Dave Robertson - Mapping Officer