Page 39 - MERCIAN Eagle 2022

Orienteering
Capt J Clarke, IO
This year I have had the honour of being
1 MERCIAN Orienteering Club Captain, co- chaired with Major Martyn Fulford, Officer Commanding C Coy (now succeeded by Major Phillip Anderson), and also the British Army Infantry Orienteering Team Captain;
a position taken on through orienteering results, responsibilities, and relationships established in the previous 20/21 season. The 1 MERCIAN orienteering club has had another excellent year results-wise, and
the experience has been one of quality and reward for those involved.
The 1 MERCIAN Orienteering Club benefits from being ideally located to fully exploit ‘Military League South’ – a series run by the British Army Orienteering Club (BAOC) whose events predominantly take place in the favoured orienteering terrain found between Camberley, Andover and Aldershot – all a short minibus drive from Bulford.
I took over an already thriving and established club, having been run since
the previous year, partly as a rehabilitation sport for the Meeanee Recovery Platoon. Given the operational tempo of 1 MERCIAN over 21/22: Op CABRIT in Estonia; straight into training to assume the high readiness Lead Armoured Battle Group as part of
the 12th Armoured Brigade Combat Team (12 ABCT); and taking on UK Standby Battalion tasks to provide operational support to UK-authorities; the presence
of a group of motivated individuals solely focused on rehabilitation activities has been important to achieve a consistent league score – particularly during the frequent periods where the majority of the Battalion, including myself, have been deployed on the aforementioned tasks. It is testament
to their self-motivation, independence
and esprit de corps, and a committed Meeanee Platoon chain of command, that they have maintained their attendance and performance throughout.
Left to Right, Top to Bottom: Pte Turner, Pte Badland, Capt Clarke, Pte Cave,
Pte Pierce, name withheld, Pte Ramagotsi, LCpl Formoso, LCpl Holmes
In terms of headline results, 1 MERCIAN achieved 6th place in the league, one place down from the 20/21 season, but high up in the table of 60 major units in the Military League South. As a comparison, the next ranked Infantry unit was placed at 26th. Given how busy the 1 MERCIAN forecast of events has been over this period,
this was an excellent result and mission accomplished for the club.
and, due to a pay-to-enter system open
to both military and civilian orienteers, the orienteering club were, having successfully hosted the event, in the enviable position of being the only club in the Battalion to turn
a profit (a point that I hope will not be lost on our Bn 2ic for future funding rounds...)! Profits were ‘on paper’ only of course, as all proceeds were donated back to the BAOC as an act of goodwill for what is largely a volunteer organisation. The 1 MERCIAN club also assisted as stewards in two other BAOC events (also racing in them), further strengthening the 1 MERCIAN brand with BAOC.
We also took part in the Inter-unit Championships, unfortunately not achieving a notable position but giving a decent
show considering the team had only just returned from Op CABRIT, and the team having not previously
orienteered, individually,
or as a team, before. The
bespoke training session
arranged with the BAOC
prior to the Championship
was a useful introduction to
the sport, and the soldiers
that took part will no-doubt
benefit from this experience
as they conduct career
courses, the majority of which have an assessed navigational component, in the future. I was pleased to take forward a Mercian to the Infantry Corps team, and
the team again gave a solid performance
in a competition consistently dominated by non-combat or HQ units, many of which have an advantage in terms of both orbat stability (i.e., personnel availability) and FOE stability (i.e., the unit being geographically fixed) to conduct training at a frequency and duration difficult to achieve in an operationally-aligned infantry battalion.
Whilst significant work went into designing a club strip and putting together a proposal to enter an European orienteering race in Barcelona this season – sadly not
to be due to funding constraints – the
team did manage to plan and host an orienteering event, drawing in expertise from the BAOC to advise on routes and areas,
My key takeaways from this year’s orienteering would be that the sport remains vital and relevant, and one that 1 MERCIAN
is in an ideal position to exploit. Meeanee Platoon should continue to use it
as a core rehab exercise; there is nothing better than getting out into the relatively
pleasant terrain of Barossa Training Area or similar, to have a focus, a challenge and an opportunity to compete, as an important tool to aid the difficult process of recovery from physical injury. The skill set orienteering imbues is uniquely suited to military service and infanteering; physical fitness, navigation by map and compass, and decision
making under time-pressure and duress.
I would recommend commanders at all levels encourage NCOs that are likely to attend a Brecon-based career course or similar in the next 6-12 months to join the Orienteering Club in the months leading
up to it as part of their preparation. A steady drum beat of attendance at league events, with a few exceptional scores at key events, are all that are required to excel as a team and unit in both the League and Championship events.
It is testament to their self-motivation, independence and esprit de corps
LCpl Formoso (Run Forrest Run)
THE MERCIAN EAGLE
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