May 19, 2024

The festive Halloween Night Score Orienteering event at the University of Montana campus is a highlight of the fall GrizO calendar, and a big hit for participants, drawing over 90 orienteers this year! 

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First-time course setter Emily Johnson set 34 controls scattered throughout campus, with a 60 minute time limit to get as many of them as you wanted, in any order. Controls were worth different numbers of points based on distance from the start and finish, ranging from 10 to 30 points, for a maximum possible total of 700. To add to the fun, a number of controls had candy bowls for participants to enjoy, in keeping with the Halloween spirit. 

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A whole 18 teams and individuals got all the controls for the maximum 700 points. Of those, the fastest time was posted by Henry Reich, who flew around the course in 22:36, just under a minute faster than UM's own Ben Conley. In a close battle for 3rd place, Ben Brady edged out Chris Caldwell by a mere 20 seconds. The fastest female finisher was Kate deBlonk, who got all the controls in 33:28. A special shout-out to Kelli Fry, who blazed around the course in 30:50, only to realize that she missed getting one of the controls. 

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Correena Streets made her debut as event director, with assistance from Emily Johnson. Correena and Chris Caldwell provided beginner instruction. The UM orienteering team (Ben Brady, Ben Conley, Jack Barkley, and Kate deBlonk) took the lead on collecting controls. ​

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Up next is our free club member event at Blue Mountain on November 15. Don't miss it! 

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Maps and Routes: https://www.livelox.com/Viewer/GrizO-UM-Halloween-Night-O/Halloween-Score-O?classId=1077633&live=false&tab=player

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Pictures: https://photos.app.goo.gl/fUy3U6xnD4aeYQVZ6

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