Jug Bay
Printer-friendly version
PDF versionShareThisMay 21
Sunday
Pre-registration is required and will open on Monday, May 15 at 6pm and will close at Noon on Saturday May 20.
There will not be day-of registration.
Welcome back to Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary for 47th annual Chase, the second-longest continually running annual non-championship Orienteering race in the United States.
The Chase returns once again - celebrating QOC's successful 2022-2023 season, and full course details are below.
We again look forward to having an a normal Chase event, including the Potluck, Picnic & Party!
The event will center on a Mass Start at Noon. Starts will be allowed as early as 10am, for those not comfortable with the Mass Start format – and of course, starts will be allowed after the Mass Start until 1:30pm.
This event is free to all registered QOC members. Non-members get a discount; for this event, they register at standard QOC member rates.
Newcomers are welcome and courses will be suited for all levels from beginner to advanced.
Sorry, dogs are not allowed at Jug Bay for their sake and the sake of numerous traps and food caches used in ongoing studies by the University of Maryland and the Smithsonian.
Schedule of Events
9:30am – Early start check in and map issue opens.
10:00 – Courses open for early starts
11:20 – Early Starts end.
11:30 – Annual Meeting / Voting for Board Members
11:50 – Map Issue and Pre-Race Brief
12:00 Noon - Mass Start for The Chase
12:15pm – Courses open for late starts
1:30 – Last Start
3:00 – Courses Close / Control Pickup begins
So here's how the event will run, at least in theory:
- We've been asked to repeat this, so here goes: No pets are allowed in the park. No exceptions.
- Convenient parking is a bit limited so carpooling, where appropriate, is encouraged.
- Parking: the majority of our parking will be in the same area as last year. Instead of the area near the caretaker’s house, most vehicles will park near the northern barn, located just west of River Farm Road’s turn to the Southwest near the north end of the fenced community garden. Carpooling is still encouraged.
- Note that if you’re arriving after 10am, be alert for runners on the entrance road.
- Early starters note that you may have to navigate through the Meeting to reach required controls.
- Please don't wait until the last moment to show up since everyone needs to check in with the e-punch team well in advance of the mass start regardless of our preregistration routine.
- The size of start teams (groups of individuals orienteering together with one e-punch) on a course must be no more than four (4) individuals (juniors and adults combined).
- In addition to the Beginner Instruction available at the event, beginners are encouraged to watch relevant videos such as this one created by QOC's instructional guru David Onkst.
- Water will not be provided on the courses but will be available at the Quaffing Zone (QZ), Start and Finish.
After the loss of most early 2020 events and the COVID protocols used throughout the last two seasons, we're pleased to return to our normal Chase routines!
Sharmagh Yepremian has agreed to lead organizing the potluck.
- QOC will provide beverages along with hot dogs and buns.
- We're asking participants to bring salads, desserts, napkins and sodas (or your favorite NA beers?) to share at the potluck.
- The Potluck Signup form is here.
Back By Popular Demand - Jersey Orders: Come check out the custom QOC jerseys and confirm your preferred size and style! We'll have them on display at this event after the run. Orders must be placed by May 22; details are here.
Hear Ye!, Hear Ye!: The Annual Meeting of the Quantico Orienteering Club General Membership will take place on Sunday, May 21, 2023 promptly at 11:25am in conjunction with the Jug Bay Event in the area of the Caretakers House, Bristol Maryland.
Members do not need to participate in the Chase event to be able attend the meeting and vote. However, if you plan to orienteer, you must pre-register.
The meeting will include two votes: first, the election of officers for the 2023-2024 season, and second, a vote on updating the QOC ByLaws. Both are described fully in this document (as emailed to all current members) and summarized below.
The Nominating Committee, chaired by Jody Landers, has recommended the following slate of officers for the coming year.
We would like to thank and acknowledge the outgoing officers (Karla Hulett, Bill Wright and Dasa Merkova) for their service, and we welcome incoming volunteers listed above as well as Sharmagh Yepremian, who will be our new Outreach/Publicity Director. More details about all to be shared at the event!
As for the ByLaws vote: we are updating them to align with generally accepted nondiscriminatory declarations - see the second page of this document for full details.
Looking ahead to next season:
The Annual Picnic and Awards Ceremony will take place immediately following the running of the courses. Special thanks and appreciation to Dave Linthicum and Peggy Brosnan for graciously arranging for QOC's use of the Jug Bay area.
Event Overview
Have any questions? Feel free to reach out to our Event Director or for general questions, just use our Contact Us form. Jug Bay, Caretaker's House Area, Bristol, MD (Mass Start & Party!)
Who's registered? Check by clicking here. Sorting by column is possible too - click on the column name. Mass Start & Party!, Mass Start & Party!, Mass Start & Party! The Chase is a bodacious mass start orienteering event. Unlike our regular events, following is allowed. However, since different courses will be run simultaneously, the people you follow may not be going where you need to go! Even if they are, they might make an error. As has been the tradition for many years, the overall courses are broken-up into individual loops. A beverage of the competitor’s choice must be consumed as the race starts. After the completion of each loop, another beverage must be consumed. The confusion of a mass start, the different loops, the different courses, and the consumption of beverages, is enough to give some people butterflies.
Course Loops, Scale & Printing:
Because of the looping, many will find that they will visit the same control more than once. Be sure to punch each time it’s on your course, but remember that some older epunch cards have a memory limit of 30. Generally, the approach for a revisited control will be from a different direction. Be sure to check the codes when reaching your control. There may be other nearby controls on different mapped features. At the end of each loop (at the start area), 2 controls must be punched. The first marks the start time of beverage consumption. The second marks the end of beverage consumption and the beginning of another loop. After all loops are completed, including the afore mentioned 2 controls, a finish control must be punched. Because of the map scales and very close proximity of the finish area controls, one will generally only be able to see on the map the double circle marking the end of each loop. The ending controls will be aligned for you to move from one to the next. Start on the east side (left side when facing the water) and just keep moving westward (to the right if still facing the water). Event officials will aid you if needed. Some courses have another control very near the finish so look carefully for it before getting into the finish sequence.
The park land surrounding Jug Bay is a flood plain with distinct drops to deep and sometimes intricate stream valleys. Navigation may require following a compass bearing for a long distance. Most of the forest is very open with good visibility. Green on the map tends to be mountain laurel, holly or deadfall and thorns. Courses pass near areas with thorns so wear good protective clothing. Man made point features used for controls are scattered about. Some are solitary on flat ground and will require a good attack point. Other point features are clustered or are amongst the intricate reentrants. Mapped towers tend to be ruined wooden hunter stands. Mapped distinct trees may be deciduous or coniferous and are just larger than the surrounding trees. Trails that exist tend to follow the tops edges of the stream valleys. The valleys vary with a mix of good to adequate runnability but can sometimes be marshy. Depending on your route, some streams will be difficult to cross without getting wet. Even on the flat lands away from the stream valleys if heavy rains precede the event, large, mapped pools may form; without preceding rains, these will otherwise be dry. Several linear marshes on the maps will require precision navigation and vary in actual width—if not wet, linear marshes and intermittent pools will have decomposed/discolored leaves. The field areas near the start can vary depending on when they were last mowed. 3-4 foot tall grass is possible in May. If you pass through the fields, be careful of occasional 2-4-inch-tall woody stalks hidden in the grass. They are from shrubs that had been mowed in the early springtime or the fall. There are also newly planted trees in some of the rough open fields that are not on the map except for a vegetation boundary—these saplings have protective plastic sleeves around their bases.
Individual Entries
Note: juniors = under 21
Group Entries
Participants are welcome to orienteer together as a group (up to the maximum for that event; usually 4). Each member of a group is charged their individual rate as shown above, up to a group total of $30 (maximum), and each receives a map. A group receives one epunch. Individuals or groups desiring to compete on a second course after completing their first can do so for a reduced fee of $2/map subject to approval at the event by the Event Director.
President: Don Fish
VP of Competition/MD: Craig Shelden
VP of Competition/Permits - MD: Mike Newman
VP of Competition/VA: Charles Carrick
VP of Competition/Permits - VA: Matt Smith
Treasurer: David Levine
Secretary: Beatri Bennett
The two event Vice Presidents will have the draft schedule available for meet directors and course setters to sign up – so please check your calendars and come ready to help plan next season.
We have some fun events planned, some new approaches to old favorites, and some new terrain – our strength is our volunteers – and we’re looking forward to working with you!
Location Registration Registration for this event opens at 6pm on Monday May 15 via this link. Registration will close at 12 noon on Saturday May 20 (the day before the event). Pre-registration is mandatory.
Start Times Participants will register in advance for one of three start options: Early, Mass Start (the recommended choice!), or Late.
The Early and Late options will avoid the Mass Start.Schedule Sunday, May 21 9:30 am Mass Start & Party!: Check-in opens 10:00 am Mass Start & Party!: Early Starts begin 12:00 pm Mass Start & Party!: Mass Start Volunteers Event Director: Iva Zicha Course Designer: Nadim Ahmed Location Details
Jug Bay
Caretaker's House Area
Bristol, MD
Google MapFrom the MD. Rt. 4 Capital Beltway exit, head south/east on Rt. 4 for 8 miles (where you cross over U.S. Rt. 301), then 3 more miles south (into Anne Arundel County) on Rt. 4 to the "Plummer Lane" exit. Ignore all "Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary" signs and continue on Plummer Lane (which becomes Pindell Rd.) for 2.0 miles, making a hard right turn at 5 mailboxes. Take the paved "River Farm" road for a mile though the O' map terrain; after the road become dirt, look for parking in the field a bit before the house by Jug Bay.
Google Maps Link
Apple/iPhone LinkCourse Details Mass Start & Party! Course Name Length (km) Climb (m) No. Controls White 2.5 35 13 Yellow 3.3 50 12 Orange 5.4 65 21 Beige 2.9 35 11 Brown 3.5 45 14 Green 5.8 60 23 Red 7.2 65 27 Blue 8.9 135 31 Course Notes Mass Start & Party!
As indicated, there are 1-3 loops per course. Some maps/loops are to be shared across course colors—hence they are named with a letter. Yellow and White beginner courses, have only 1 loop each and are not named with a single letter like the other course loops are. Before the start, you will be given a map—do not look at it. On the paper different map loops will be printed at either 1:5,000 or 1:7,500 scale. Most courses show loops on both sides of the paper. You must run the loops in the order denoted on the map—on the paper, see “Order--> ???” where “???” are the letter names of the loops (i.e., Q R S). To help you, mnemonics have been associated with courses running more than one loop. For instance, Green course orienteers may have the mnemonic of “RUN”. They will start with loop “R”; when that’s complete, they need to race Loop “U”, followed by loop “N”. Continuing the example, Red course orienteers may have the mnemonic of “FUN” so they would race 2 of the same loops (“U” and “N”). Due to paper size limitations, the loops may be printed in a sequence different from the mnemonic; but orienteers must proceed in the loop order of the mnemonic for their course. Blue competitors have a map exchange after their first loop. It will be the orienteer’s responsibility to read the map to find the order of the loops for your course.
Bee Alert: There are active beehives in or near both of the large barns so keep your distance to avoid unwanted encounters.Entry Fees Special Fees apply to this event; see above for details.
Club Member, adult
Club Member, junior
Non-Member, adult
Non-Member, junior
$10
$5
$20
$5