Quick info
Night urban orienteering in Multnomah Village, SW Portland
Start and finish at Lucky Lab pub
Registration opens 5:30. Mass start 6:30 pm sharp, 60 or 90 minutes to find as many checkpoints as you can
Beginners, families and dogs welcome! (Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.)
Cost: $15 individuals, $20 teams ($5 discount for orienteering club members)
Register online. Event day registration is also available.
Thanks for your advance registration. Doing this helps the event director know how many maps to print and streamlines your event day check in. Deadline for advance registration is 5:00pm the day prior to the event. If you miss the advance registration, no worries, you can register and pay at the event also.
Event Times
Day of event registration opens at 5:30 p.m. Early registration between 5:30 and 6:00 is appreciated! Come early to register, get your map, plan your route, maybe have a beverage.
Mass start: 6:30 p.m.
Courses close: 7:30 pm (60 minute event) or 8 pm (90 minute event)
Event overview
Come out to the Lucky Labrador Public House in Multnomah Village for CROC's annual Urban Night-O! Run or stroll the back streets, alleys, and trails of this SW Portland neighborhood on a night-time urban navigation test. Both individuals and teams are welcome at this event. We have the upstairs of the pub reserved. (Note: children are permitted in the pub until 10 pm)
Unlike traditional orienteering courses where you find orange and white flags set the day of the event, this course uses permanent objects such as fire hydrants, house numbers, and signs. At each of about 30 "check points" marked on your map, you'll have a related multiple choice question, such as: "What's the animal painted on the side of the garage? a) elephant b) walrus c) panda". Answer the question, and move on to the next control. (Oh, we should mention that the map doesn’t have street names, so that adds to the challenge. =^)
If you have done this event before, note that we change the controls every year so the course will be new for you.
Day of event registration begins at 5:30 pm, and then we have a mass start at 6:30 pm. You choose between a 60 or 90 minute time period. Find as many marked control points as possible in whatever order you like, and make it back to the Lucky Lab within the set time limit. Points are deducted for each wrong answer (no guessing) and for each minute over the time limit (don't be late!)
Scoring note: If your team finishes after 60 minutes, you will be moved to the 90 minute category.
This is a good event to do as a team as well as individually, so feel free to bring a friend.
Each team gets two maps, regardless of team size. Additional maps may be available depending on the number of participants,
Note - Due to an anticipated large turnout for this event, please try to arrive between 5:30 and 6:00 pm to allow time for registration, getting your map, planning your route, pre race hydration, etc.
Beginners at orienteering are welcome! No compass work is needed, just decent map reading skills.
You are welcome to leave any extra clothing, backpacks, or other personal items upstairs in the pub while you are on the course.
Safety
Please wear bright, reflective clothing if you have it, bring a good flashlight or headlamp with fresh batteries, and be very careful crossing busy streets! We recommend keeping your light on during the event to increase your visibility.
Results
Results will be posted on the Events & Results page a few days after the event.
Registration and other costs
Payment on event day is by cash or check only; credit/debit cards are not accepted. Exact payment is appreciated.
Fees for this event are:
$15 - base price - individuals
$20 - base price - groups of 2 or more (each team gets 2 maps)
- Subtract $5 for membership in CROC or other orienteering club
- $2 - extra copy(s) of map
What to bring
A quality flashlight or headlamp with fresh batteries
A watch/phone
Clothing appropriate for the weather. Reflective / high visibility clothing is recommended
(What NOT to bring - any GPS enabled device, such as a smartphone, is not allowed for navigation assistance at this or any other CROC event.)
Post-event gathering
After your race, stay at the pub to enjoy pizza, maybe a beer, and share your adventure with some new friends.
Event Director - John Godino
Practice/Training
CROC has a permanent training course established in this area. If you try it before the night-O, you may have an unfair advantage, hint hint! See complete details here.
Here’s an example of the permanent course map. The map we use for competitive night O looks a lot like this one.
Multnomah Village permanent orienteering course map example