Octavian Droobers

Octavian Droobers, often abbreviated to OD, is an Orienteering club in the United Kingdom. The membership area of the club is Warwickshire, Coventry and Solihull including the Warwickshire towns of Atherstone, Nuneaton, Bedworth, Rugby, Royal Leamington Spa, Kenilworth, Warwick, Alcester, Henley in Arden, Southam, Wellesbourne and Stratford Upon Avon. The club is a member of the West Midlands Orienteering Association (WMOA) and the British Orienteering Federation (BOF).

Octavian Droobers
Founded1965
TypeOrienteering club
Area served
Warwickshire, Coventry and Solihull (United Kingdom)
WebsiteOctavian Droobers club website

The club has been Clubmark accredited.[1] and currently has around 200 members, ranging from complete novices to international level orienteers.

Origins

The club came into being on the evening of Sunday October 24, 1965 courtesy of Ted Norrish, the then classics master at King Henry VIII School, Coventry. Initially as a school only club, but soon extending to take in members from outside the school, leading the way to the club becoming what it is today.[2]

Club colours and kit
Octavian Droobers club banner

The club colours are the red, yellow and black of King Henry VIII School, and the distinctive club banner is to be seen at many events. The club also has a variety of distinctive O tops based on these colours.

Governance

The club is run by Committee, which is elected each year at the AGM in October.[3] It is governed by a formal constitution which states the official club name and affiliations and also the voting rights at the AGM.

Club magazine

The club publishes a newsletter called 'The Droober' six times a year.

Events

The club stages a wide variety of events throughout the year.[4]

  • Saturday morning events are held approximately once a month from September to March. These are held on small areas of woodlands, country and local parks, and are suitable for beginners and experienced orienteers.
  • Wednesday evening events are staged most weeks from May to August. Again these are suitable for beginners and experienced orienteers, with the results contributing to a club summer league.
  • Higher profile events are organised to fit into the regional and national fixtures calendar. These are held on the club's better areas with technically challenging courses for the experienced orienteer, although still providing simpler courses for newcomers to the sport.

Mapped areas

The club has mapped a large number of areas over the years, probably just about every park and wooded area suitable for an orienteering event within its geographic boundary.[5] The club's best areas are Bentley Woods (venue for past Midlands Championships and British Night Championships) and Sutton Park (venue for 2008 Compass Sport Cup Final). Other nationally acclaimed venues are the University of Warwick campus (2008 British Sprint Championships) and Warwick town centre and castle (2010 nopesport urban league final). At the other end of the spectrum are the numerous small areas used for local events such as Abbey Fields in Kenilworth and Wainbody Wood in Coventry.

Permanent courses

A number of the areas mapped by the club now have permanent courses on them:[6]

Club competitions
  • The Club Championships are held every year to find individual champions in a range of age categories. Winners receive a trophy (held for the year) and a miniature orienteering banner.
  • The Tony Haw Memorial Cup is awarded to the leading club member on a handicap basis at the score event held annually to raise money for the Leukaemia Research Trust. The cup was donated in 2002 by Ginny and Debbie Haw.[7]

Club awards

The Club awards three trophies annually:

  • The Ted Norrish Trophy, donated by the club's founder, and awarded to a member who has made an outstanding contribution during the year. This can be based on outstanding competition results, service to the club or a combination of both.[8]
  • Bob's Dad's Trophy, donated by the late Bob Carey Senior, to be awarded to the club junior member who has achieved the most outstanding result or set of results during the year, particularly in respect of such events as the JK and British Championships.[9]
  • The Jennifer Haw Memorial Shield, donated by the Haw family in memory of junior club member Jennifer who died in 1995. Awarded to the club junior member who accumulates the most points across all the events in the West Midlands League during the course of the year.[10]

Club honours board

In recent years the club has won a number of prestigious national competitions:[11]

References
  1. "British Orienteering Clubmark". 2020-05-10.
  2. "Club History". 2020-05-10.
  3. "Committee". 2020-05-10.
  4. "Events". 2020-05-10.
  5. "Mapped Areas". 2020-05-10.
  6. "Permanent Courses". 2020-05-10.
  7. "Tony Haw Memorial Cup Winners". 2020-05-10.
  8. "Ted Norrish Trophy Winners". 2020-05-10.
  9. "Bob's Dad's Trophy Winners". 2020-05-10.
  10. "Jennifer Haw Memorial Shield Winners". 2020-05-10.
  11. "Club Achievements". 2020-05-10.
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