Navigation Skills Course

Hi Folks,

As per requests at the AGM, we’re arranging to make some navigation skills training available to all club members.  Given the nature of the sport I see this as key to becoming a more competent mountain biker and is a skill that could be useful in many areas outside of mountain biking.

The Trainers:
Maria (Maz) and Martin Frater – have extensive experience in outdoors training and leading groups in mountain environments and have previously taught at the Dounan’s Outdoor Centre in Aberfoyle.

Course Structure:

• Theory session: 2 – 2.5 hour session in the club hall
• Practical session: 4 hour session in the Trossachs (Callander/Aberfoyle area) putting into practice what the classroom session has covered.

The intention is to make the course as practical as possible so you have a chance to absorb and cement the navigation skills and make them useful on future rides (Trailquest anyone??).

Course Content:

• Getting to know a map – important features
• Map Scales
• Setting a map
• Intoduction to “The Compass”
• Taking Grid Bearings
• Taking Magnetic Bearings
• Magnetic Variation

By the end of the session you should be happy in your own navigation ability in basic summer conditions.

 Proposed Dates:
Theory: Wed 13th July

Practical: Sat 16th July

 Don’t worry if you’re interested but can’t make these dates.  Assuming the initial sessions go well, we’ll be running future classes to ensure that as many paid up members as possible have access to the training.  Maz and Martin are quite flexible on the courses so, depending on the level of interest, we could run a couple of classroom sessions first followed by 1 practical session at a later date.

Costs:

• TBC but maximum of £10 per session (max of 1 theory and 1 practical session per member)

We’d look for this contribution towards the costs for employing 2 qualified and experienced trainers for delivering up to 6.5 hours of professional training with a low student:trainer ratio.  For comparison, a similar course from Tiso would cost you £65.  The club will fund the balance of the course fees.  To make this good value for the club ideally we require at least 8 people to sign up for each session.

Next Steps:

• Advise if you are able to attend the theory class only or both the theory AND practical session  (Sorry: no practical without having done the classroom one first!!)
• If you can’t attend the first session but are interested in future sessions then please let me know and I’ll keep a note.

In summary, I think this is a great opportunity to get some really useful training in essential skills which will keep you safe in the hills and give you the confidence to tackle a few “epic” rides this summer.

 Cheers,

 Graham