People,
I ran this course yesterday evening, and have a few observations:
- Maprun recorded me getting to each of the controls, no problem.
- It only beeped if the phone was active. It did not register audibly when the phone was asleep. You can probably keep the phone awake if you explore its option settings.
- Without having actual controls to see, I think we should be using explicit point features as controls – “pole outside no.32” or “bus stop sign”, for example. Controls that are just mid-block are difficult to know when you have reached them. This is particularly a problem when you want to get to the control and then go back the way you came. Alternatively, we could continue to put up a bit of the red and white tape as we have been doing. A few of Ian’s tapes are still out, although very faded. It was reassuring to see these.
- It is great to be able to run an event afterwards that you might not have been able to get to at the time, and compare your results to those of others as well.
All told, I think that Maprun is a really good initiative.
Regards,
Warwick.
From: allmembers <allmembers-bounces@eurekaorienteers.asn.au> On Behalf Of All Members of Eureka
Sent: Monday, 10 December 2018 7:15 PM
To: allmembers@eurekaorienteers.asn.au
Subject: Re: [EurekaO] First Maprun Test Event is Available
I just drove around (slack, I know, but not enough time to do a full run today!) past 10 controls on my test event, to make sure Maprun is ok, and it all worked perfectly!
Maprun picks up each control when you get within about 10m of it, and there seems to be a short delay of 1 to 2 seconds before it registers. That may have been more noticeable because I was driving, I expect it wouldn’t be so much on foot.
Didn’t hear any beeps or vibration at each control, but I wasn’t holding the phone, so might have missed that.
Cheap smartphones for loan are a good idea, and I think a wifi hotspot at the meeting point so people can connect to Maprun and download the event data is also a good idea.
If Eureka decide to go ahead with this…then it would be best if the club buys 5 or 6 cheap phones that can be loaned out.
Craig Feu… had some simple ones he used at the OA conference for this purpose.
Sent: Monday, December 10, 2018 2:42 PM
Subject: Re: [EurekaO] First Maprun Test Event is Available
Excellent work and very now technology. What if some people do not have a smart phone though, can they still compete?
Date: Monday, 10 December 2018 1:35 pm
Subject: [EurekaO] First Maprun Test Event is Available
At the planning meeting yesterday at the Prendergast’s, we decided that Eureka should adopt the Maprun smartphone application to conduct the next series of BUNS.
So, before reading on, grab your smartphone and install the Maprun app from the Apple Store or Google Play! You will be asked to enter your basic personal details when you first run the app.
With that in mind, we’ve also decided to change the name of the next series to the “Ballarat Map Run”, which we feel is easier for new participants to understand readily than “BUNS”, which we almost always had to explain…
Before we start doing Maprun events with publicity in place, we decided to use one of our past BUNS events as a test Maprun event, to prove we can get it working before adding the pressure of a live calendar and new participants.
Last night, I took a couple of hours to work through Peter Effeney’s excellent instructions about setting up an event, and sent him the required files for last year’s event I set at Don Lead. Only a handful of people made it to that one, as many of the usual attendees were away in Europe at the time. It was a very gusty morning as well, and not very pleasant.
Very pleased to say that setting up a Maprun event is fairly straightforward, using Google Earth.
The test event is available now in Maprun, so anyone who wants to go and try it out, you’re very welcome to. We will be meeting at the Fidelity Club Kindergarten in Ripon Street next Sunday at 5pm to run as a group, if you want to run with company, or need help setting up Maprun on your smartphone. Otherwise, the event is open now and has no expiry date, so you can go and try it out at your convenience if you’re comfortable with using Maprun and how to start your run yourself.
The event is called “Eureka Test Don Lead”, and it’s under the Victoria>Ballarat folder. Usually it will also appear in Events Near Me.
The exact Start point is the streetsign on the Northwestern corner of Ripon and Urquhart Streets. The Finish point is the southeastern fence corner of the Fidelity Club Kindergarten, about 30m north of the Start point.
Important: Once you Start the course in the app, and you’ve visited one or more checkpoints, don’t come near the Finish point until you’re ready to finish! Otherwise Maprun will end your run.
I’ve used the “Victorian Street-O Score” format in the event, so its 20 points per checkpoint, with 10 points off per minute or part of late after 45 minutes. That’s the closest one to our usual, but we can configure our own score format as well if we want to be different.
Maprun does allow you to read the map on your screen in the app. However, if you’re like me, trying to run while reading a small phone screen in bright sunlight is no fun, and a recipe for a very short run with a painful ending…! I’ve attached a PDF copy of the map to print out. Theres also a couple of screenshots to assist with setting up Maprun, and where the Start and Finish are.
Enjoy, these are exciting times, and Maprun will add a new dimension to our urban orienteering!
