Navigation for ESAR – where to Start
For the race you will be required to know how to plot UTM Grid coordinates from the race instructions onto your map. You need to know how to determine the bearing to a checkpoint and then set the bearing onto your compass. And lastly, you should know how to interpret a topographic map.
If you unsure about your abilities in any of these skills, I would highly suggest, you take a training course on navigation, read a book on how to use a map and compass, or ask a friend who knows how to navigate to teach you. Though you will not get hopelessly lost in this race, having the required skills will minimize the risk of traveling in the wrong direction, or navigating in circles.
Once you have learned some of these basic skills, go out and practice. Learning how to navigate and actually doing it – in the field are quite different. It’s like riding a bike, people can show you how to ride, but you need to actually do it, to learn it.
