Mountain
Bike Orienteering (MTBO)
(description courtesy of the IOF)
Mountain bike orienteering is an endurance sport attracting both
orienteering and mountain bike enthusiasts. The most important
orienteering skills needed are route choice and map memory.
Extremely good bike handling and ability to cope with steep
slopes both up and down is an absolute must for a top level
athlete. Mountain bike orienteering can be practised in many
different types of terrain. The essential requirement is a large
number of paths, tracks and roads offering the athlete
challenging navigation. Navigating between control points means
matching map to ground at high speed, correctly interpreting the
maze of paths and tracks.
As an environmental safeguard,
competitors may not leave paths and tracks.
Mountain bike orienteering is
the newest of the orienteering disciplines administered by the
International Orienteering Federation. It started in the late
1980s at club level in countries where mountain biking was a
popular outdoor sport. In 1997 national championships were
already run in 12 countries - and the number is rapidly growing.
World Championships in mountain
bike orienteering are organised every second year from 2002
onwards.
Equipment:
- MAP: The map provided by the
organiser can be a special mountain bike map, a ski
orienteering map or an amended foot orienteering map.
- COMPASS: The compass is
attached to the competitor's arm or to the map holder.
- MAP HOLDER: A map holder
(map case) attached to the bike or to the competitor's chest
makes it possible to view the map at high speed without
stopping.
- HELMET: A hard helmet is
compulsory.
- BIKE: Competitors use robust
mountain bikes. For safety reasons, the condition of the
bike (e.g. brakes) is checked by the organiser before the
start.
- TOOLS: Competitors may carry
tools and replace spare parts but may not seek or obtain
help to carry out repairs.
Mountain bike
orienteering is in its infancy in Canada,
but here are some links to what's going on elsewhere in the
world:
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