Radio Orienteering

Amateur Radio Direction Finding (ARDF)

Welcome to Radio-O.  Here is how it works! We provide a radio receiver with a directional antenna, an orienteering map, a compass, and a finger stick. By pointing the antenna and listening to the signal you can determine the direction of the signal.  Using this information you navigate to the transmitter and punch in with your finger stick. Only the start and finish are marked on the map and it is important to keep track of where you are.  To qualify as finishing you must find at least one transmitter on your course and reach the finish within the time limit. To calculate results -- first; the number of assigned transmitters you found, then; your time on the course. We offer beginner through advanced courses, Regular BOK fees apply, and Pre-Registration is required.

Latest News in Radio Orienteering

July 10th, 2017

North Carolina International Training and ARDF Radio Orienteering Events in Asheboro, NC

North Carolina International Training and ARDF  Radio Orienteering Events in Asheboro, NC
July 24 – 28, 2017

UPDATE 7/14/17:

Monday’s training event will focus on:

  • taking accurate bearings and drawing them on the map
  • detailed map reading
  • length ~2.5 km
  • Participants will need to have a compass, marking pencils in two colors, and a map board.
  • The exercise will include FoxOring and classic 80m and 2m skills.

Tuesday

  • FoxOring 80m, 10 controls, 4km

Wednesday

Sprint:

  • Loop “A”, 80m 5 controls, 2km
  • At the spectator control change receiver type
  • Loop “B”, 2m 5 controls 2km

Thursday
2m classic

  • designed and set by Guangdong ARDF Radiosports Club

Friday
80m classic

  • designed and set by Guangdong ARDF Radiosports Club

Everyone who is interested in Radio Orienteering is welcome to these low key events in Asheboro, NC.

We will keep the distances relatively short because of the heat and the need to be prepared for the US Champs in Ohio.

The event center will be at 1725 Gray Owl Road, in Asheboro NC.  The first day will be a training event focused on map reading and taking bearings.  The next four days will be: FoxOring, Sprint, 2 m and 80 m competitions.

Our Sister Club, the Guangdong ARDF Radiosports Club in Guangdong, China are our welcome guests and we are looking forward to this friendly international competition.

Participation costs are estimated at $10 per person per day There is no predetermined fee. Costs for the event will be shared by the participants.  All travel, lodging, and meals are the responsibility of the participants and are not included in the participation cost.  Hotels and restaurants are available in Asheboro, 15 minutes from Gray Owl.

Registration Form:

North Carolina International Training and ARDF Championship in Asheboro, NC July 24 - 28, 2017
  1. (required)
  2. (required)
  3. (valid email required)
  6. Check the events you are attending
  12. If you change your plans please return and remove your registration here.
  15. Please answer the question to prove you are human.
 

Joseph Huberman
President, Backwoods Orienteering Klub
Ruth Bromer
Event Directors, North Carolina ARDF Championship

Don’t miss the US ARDF Champs in Ohio the following week in Harrison, Ohio.

Event dates are 31 July to 2 Aug 2017, for the training events, and 3-6 Aug being the championship events.

Event Website: ARDFUSA.com

 

June 10th, 2017

Results — Jun-3, 2017, Carolina North Forest Radio-O/ARDF.

As with last time, we met by the Municipal Drive entrance to Carolina North Forest (CNF) and used a similar course layout. It was comfortable when we started but it heated up tremendously in the afternoon. Thank you to Greg Kopsch for letting us use CNF and for stopping by to say hi during our […]

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May 21st, 2017

Open Radio-O (ARDF) event at Carolina North Forest, Sat. Jun-3.

Get ready for the second open ARDF event of 2017, Sat. June 3! For more information about Radio-O/ARDF, see the BOK ARDF page. Starts 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Course closes at 3:00 PM. We will meet at the East Entrance to Carolina North Forest. Take Municipal Drive off of MLK Jr. BLVD. (Parking lot GPS: 35.936168 -79.065907, google maps link).

Open event with pre-registration required: This is an open event. You don’t have to be a BOK member but you still need to pre-register. This will ensure everyone gets a receiver. Soon after registering, we will send you an e-mail letting you know that we have reserved a receiver for you. When we run out, we’ll post an announcement on the BOK website and any subsequent registrations will be put on a wait list in case someone cancels. If you’re not a member of an orienteering club, go ahead and choose “Other O Club Member” anyway in the registration form. Here is a link to the registration page. Groups of 5 or more separate entries may register using the group registration procedure.

There will be a class at 12:00. Following this, Patrick will take beginners as a group out on the course to hunt for the foxes.

Courses provided: The course layout will be similar to an 80m (3.5 MHz) classic ARDF course.

white 1 fox 1.6 km
yellow 2 foxes 2.0 km
orange 3 foxes 3.0 km
green 4 foxes 4.0 km
red 5 foxes 4.6 km

There is no brown.

Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools: Everyone from the CHCCS ARDF community is welcome. Note that this is not a school event. BOK fees apply. Free for BOK members. All others $10 ($5 for entry + $5 for stick rental). Several people going together count as one entry (just $10) and includes one map. Extra maps are $2 each. For more info, see What will it cost? Also, you must register with BOK, not on the usual registration page for CHCCS events. Students in middle school will need to go with a parent if they want to search for all five foxes.

Rain: Unlike regular orienteering meets, we may cancel this event if the rain is too heavy. If we cancel, we’ll post it on the BOK website and try to reschedule.

May 15th, 2017

Results – May-13, 2017. Radio-O/ARDF Carolina North Forest

The weather was perfect for running at Carolina North Forest (CNF). It threatened to rain just a bit but we stayed dry the entire time. We even had some patches of blue sky float by. Some orienteers arrived before noon, got instruction, felt confident, and headed onto the course early. Most of the participants took […]

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April 26th, 2017

Open Radio “O” (ARDF) event at Carolina North Forest – Sat. May 13.

2017-05-13 4:40 AM update:  The event is on!  The NWS hourly forecast looks good.  See you all out there.

Get ready for the first open BOK Radio “O” ARDF event of 2017! Everyone is welcome. We will be hosting the meet at Carolina North Forest on May 13. Starts 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Course closes at 3:00 PM. We will meet at the East Entrance to Carolina North Forest. Take Municipal Drive off of MLK Jr. BLVD. (Parking lot GPS: 35.936168, -79.065907, enter this in the search field of maps.google.com).

What to bring:
We will provide all the equipment. But bring a whistle (for safety) and a compass if you have them. We will provide ARDF receivers (registration required). You may bring your own if you have one.

Pre-registration is required and is now open:
You can register on the registration page. Even though this is an open event, everyone wishing to attend needs to pre-register. We have a limited number of receivers to loan. Soon after registering, we will send you an e-mail letting you know that we have reserved a receiver for you. When we run out, we’ll post an announcement on the BOK website and any subsequent registrations will be put on a wait list in case someone cancels. Groups of 5 or more separate entries may register using the group registration procedure.

There will be a class at 12:00.
Following this, Patrick will take beginners as a group out on the course to hunt for the foxes. Anyone in the group who feels confident can go on ahead whenever they wish.

What’s  Radio “O” known world wide as ARDF?
Amateur Radio Direction Finding. For more information, see the BOK ARDF page. At this event, we will have one 3.5MHz (80m band) course. It will have 5 regular controls (foxes) plus one homing beacon to get back to the start.

Several levels will be provided.
You can search for just one fox or more. You will be told which ones to search for. If you’re searching for more than one, you can search in a known easy order, or search without knowing the best order. Everyone gets to look for the homing beacon. There may be other options.

Course lengths:
– 1 fox: 1.8 km
– 2 foxes: 2.4 km
– 3 foxes: 3.0 km
– 4 foxes: 4.0 km
– 5 foxes: 4.8 km

Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools:
Everyone from the CHCCS ARDF community is welcome. Note that this is not a school event. BOK fees apply. Free for BOK members. All others $10 ($5 for entry + $5 for finger stick rental). Several people going together count as one entry (just $10) and includes one map. Extra maps are $2 each. For more info, see What will it cost?. Also, you must register with BOK, not on the usual registration page for CHCCS events. Students in middle school will need to go with a parent if they want to search for all five foxes.

Rain:
Unlike regular orienteering meets, we may cancel this event if the rain is too heavy. If we cancel, we’ll post it on the BOK website and try to reschedule.

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