Bumble at Rosaryville

[1]

February 10
Saturday

Bumble 2024 Pre-registration is required and will open on Monday, Feb. 5 at 6pm and close at noon on *Friday* Feb. 9.
There will be no day-of registration.

IT'S BUMBLE TIME!

Celebrating its 12th year, the Bumble will be held at Rosaryville State Park. The Bumble is great fun with courses for all skill levels. Come out and enjoy fun in the woods and fun snapping pics with the Abominable “Bumble” snow monster.

The main event of the Bumble is the Mass Start race, which comprises five advanced courses equivalent to beige – blue. The controls are spread over five “windows” and each course level requires a different “handicap” of windows that must be run. For instance, Beige must do one window; blue must do five. Click HERE [2] to read the full description. It is a super fun style of orienteering with options for bonus time reductions! If you have never tried it but have been successfully completing orange level courses for a while, give this a try. Click HERE [3] to see last year's course, and HERE [4] to view 2023's Bumble photos. There will also be great white, yellow, and orange courses on this former farmland with fields and forest alike.

The mass start will be at 12:00pm for those advanced course runners who want to participate. If you want to run a Bumble advanced course, but are not comfortable with a mass start, please sign up for one of the other start time windows. Mass starters, please be sure to arrive early to avoid a last-minute rush and back-ups at the park entrance gate.

Registration and downloading will be in Pavilion A. Port-a-Johns will be on-site. The parking area is large but should it fill up, there are additional lots ~600 meters (when cutting through the field) and ~750 meters away; see locator map HERE [5].

If the weather is nice, consider bringing lunch and hanging out and chatting about your courses. It is especially fun to compare window routes. The pavilion has lots of tables and there is a playground on site. We will also announce the Bumble winners and hand out their prizes.

Note that Rosaryville State Park has installed an automated toll machine – an inverse ATM – for admission. The toll machine (see photo below) only accepts credit cards and exact change $1 and $5 bills. Fees are $3/pp for Maryland residents, $5/pp for out-of-state on weekends and holidays. All Maryland State Park passes are accepted by the automated toll gate. Park staff should be on hand to help speed entry, but please have exact change on hand if possible.

Volunteer SignUps: If you can help out at this event please contact the Event Director [6].

Our Super (Bowl) Poll Is Back!: Last year, the team that more registrants wanted to win - and thought would win - did win ... Will our streak continue? You'll have a chance to vote during registration (and to see the counts as they come in).

Post-Event Social: After your run, join fellow orienteers at Topolino Restaurant [7], located here [8] just 8 miles northwest of Rosaryville.

PLEASE read ALL meet notes below for important details! (Course setter notes are now posted below)

Meet notes:

CLICK HERE [2] TO READ HOW THE BUMBLE WORKS!
White, Yellow, and Orange courses will have regular check in/start windows from 9:45am to 1:15pm. (Yes, you are welcome to register for the 11:45am-12:15pm window).
Advanced (Bumble) courses will have a MASS START at NOON. Please be ready for PRE-RACE briefing at 11:45am at the Start location (~200 meters from the pavilion).
Clothing drop available for mass start; clothes will be returned for pick up in the Pavilion.
Everyone must be out of the woods by 3:00pm, which is when we will begin picking up controls.
Bumble prizes awarded (mass start only):
- First male and first female competitors to cross the finish, regardless of course.
- Fastest male competitor on Blue and fastest female competitor on Red
Free Beginner Instruction will be offered, but please reach out to the Event Director [9] if you have a large group, so we can plan accordingly. Also, make sure to check out our Your First Event [10] and For Beginners [11] webpages. Beginners are also encouraged to watch relevant videos such as this one [12] created by QOC's instructional guru David Onkst (and Bumble course designer!) If they don’t answer any remaining questions you have, just use our Contact [13] Form and ask.
Group Leaders: Please see our group leaders webpage if you are leading a youth or large group - even though you will be pre-registering online. Please contact the Event Director [9] to inform her of your plans and numbers.
Pet Policy: leashed pets are permitted in the park but are not recommended to accompany Bumblers doing the mass start.

Also keep in mind:

We will continue to use pre-registration as the ONLY method of sign-up for our events. There will be NO day-of, on-site registration. Refunds are paid only in the case of event cancellation. We are unable to handle cash transactions at the event.
We will continue our policy of not providing WATER or food to participants at our events aside from an emergency water for first aid purposes only. So don't forget your canteens/Camelbacks/other hydration arrangements.
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).
Port-a-Johns will be on-site.

Location

Rosaryville State Park, Pavilion parking area, Rosaryville, MD (Bumble)

Registration

Registration for this event opens at 6pm on Monday Feb. 5 via this link [14]. Registration will close at 12 noon on *Friday* Feb. 9 (the day before the event). Pre-registration is mandatory.

Who's Registered? Check by clicking here [15].

Up-to-the-minute Super Bowl poll results from registrants are now available - view them here [16]!

Start Times

Start times will be by windows (to be defined for this event before registration opens).

Schedule

Saturday, February 10

9:45 am - 1:15 pm	Bumble: Registration Check-in open
10:00 am - 1:30 pm	Bumble: White, Yellow and Orange courses: start any time during this period
11:45 am	Bumble: Pre-race briefing for Mass Start (at start line) / clothing drop available; ~175 meter walk to start
12:00 pm	Bumble: Mass Start
3:00 pm	Bumble: All courses close - everyone should have finished and downloaded

Volunteers

Event Director:	Heidi Onkst [6]
Event Director:	David Onkst [17]
Course Designer:	Heidi Onkst [6]
Course Designer:	David Onkst [17]

Location Details

Bumble, Bumble, Bumble, Bumble, Bumble
Rosaryville State Park
Pavilion parking area
Rosaryville, MD
Google Map [18]

From I-495 exit 11A, head east on Rt 4 (Penn. Ave) for 3 miles. Turn right on Woodyard Rd/MD-223, then quickly move left to turn left on Marlboro Pike. After 2.8 miles, turn right on Crain Hwy/Rt-301 S, then take the first right on W. Marlton Ave into the Park. Follow O'signs within the park.

Park Entrance Fees: $3/pp in-state, $5/pp out-of-state
Google Maps Link [18]
Apple/iPhone Link [19]

Course Details

Bumble

Course Name	Length (km)	Climb (m)	No. Controls
White	2.5	45	13
Yellow	3.7	50	13
Orange	4.8	135	11
Beige	3.2	50	7
Brown	4.8	95	12
Green	6.9	115	17
Red	9.2	195	22
Blue	11.1	225	27

Course Notes

Bumble

This year’s venue - Rosaryville State Park in Upper Marlboro, MD - is a mixture of typical mid-Atlantic woods; it ranges from very fast sections to occasional slow thorny green. There are also some nice open equestrian fields. The entire park is essentially a series of rolling hills with some occasional steep gullies. Course climbs, however, are within the normal range. The park also features the historic Mount Airy Mansion, which dates back to the 18 th century and is a popular wedding site. In fact, some orienteers you know might have gotten married there a few years ago, hmm?

Map and Courses Notes

There are some nice runnable woods, but also some green thorny areas – gaiters are recommended.
Expect to see some Cyclists and Horses in the park; they were often present when we were vetting.
Recent downfall and green growth have increased, but have not been updated on the map since 2022.
Yellow, Orange and Bumblers, please respect the house on the road just SW of the Mansion – it’s small, but clearly mapped Out-of-Bounds.
Bumblers, some trails are difficult to see, and a couple may have been slightly rerouted without having been remapped – so make sure you are also looking at the contours around the trails every once in a while.
Also, for Bumblers, the roads that border the park are marked as Out-of-Bounds, except for one small 200-meter section on the western road, near the pond, which may or may not be a logical route choice for you. If you use the road, there is a small but runnable shoulder – just please be careful.
Contours are 5 meters
N/S Map Meridians are 300 meters apart

Have Fun out there and show everyone -- that as an Orienteer -- you Bumble better than anyone else!

- Dave and Heidi Onkst

Entry Fees

Individual Entries

Note: juniors = under 21

	Club Member, adult	Club Member, junior	Non-Member, adult	Non-Member, junior
	$10	$5	$20	$5

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.

Important Notes

If you wish to become a QOC member you should join online in advance via this webpage [20] (which also explains the member benefits). Membership is completely optional.
Most of our events use an 'epunch' timing chip for electronic timing. Individuals or groups without their own epunch will be loaned one for that event. Loaned epunches that are lost incur a $40 replacement fee. Epunches (also known as SI-cards or finger sticks) can be purchased from online vendors as described here [21].
Former QOC members who have let their membership lapse pay non-member fees.
Compasses are available at no charge, but if lost incur a $15 replacement fee.
Please provide collateral (such as car keys) when borrowing a compass or epunch.
Beginners are encouraged to watch relevant videos such as this one [12] created by QOC's instructional guru David Onkst

Bumble at Rosaryville

February 10 Saturday

February 10
Saturday