General Information
Participation Options
Ottawa O-Fest 2023 will offer Age Class races and Recreational courses. Choose which you prefer when you register online for the event.
Middle and Long
Age Class Races
Ottawa O-Fest 2023 has male and female age classes from 10-and-under to 90-and-over. The age class races will follow our popular Chase format. For the Middle event on Saturday everyone will have a pre-assigned start time. For the chase start on Sunday, participants will be given a start time relative to how far they finished behind the Saturday winner on their course. For instance, if the winner's time in your class was 35:40 and your time was 37:50, (2:10 behind the winner), then you will start 2:10 after Saturday's winner on Sunday. This means that the first person to cross the finish line in any given class is the winner for the weekend. Awards will be given based on total time for the two days.
Recreational Courses
Ottawa O-Fest 2023 offers 2 recreational courses on both Saturday and Sunday, one at a Novice and one at an Intermediate level. Participants will register online, in advance, for the Novice or Intermediate Course. Participants will be allowed to start at any time, from 11:15 to 12:00 on Saturday and from 10:15 to 11:00 on Sunday. Participants will be permitted to go out on course as a group, though each participant will be registered separately and have their own timing stick.
Middle and Long Age Class Races versus Recreational Courses
| Age Class Races | Recreational Courses | |
|---|---|---|
| Registration Options | Male or Female age classes from 10 and under to 90 and over | Novice or Intermediate class |
| Starts | Pre-assigned start times for Middle, assigned start times based on Middle results for Long | Start on your own or as a group at any time within the defined start time window |
| Awards | Based on Total time for both Middle and Long | No awards |
Knock Out Sprint
This one is new to us too! We are still working out what classes there will be, but rest assured there will be something for everyone! The races will be sprint format, so there won't be a need to worry about technical difficulty (none will pose a threat of getting lost!) or length (they are all short and sweet - and fast if you are so inclined). We will continue to update here with information as we navigate our way through this new territory! Be excited - this will be fun to participate in and fun to watch!
Schedule
| Date | Event | Location | Race-Kit Pick-up Opens | First Starts | Courses Close |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, August 5 | Middle Event | The Ark, Farrellton, QC |
9:30 am | 11:00 am | 2:15 pm |
| Sunday, August 6 | Chase Start Long Event | The Ark, Farrellton, QC |
8:30 am | 10:00 am | 2:15 pm |
| Monday, August 7 | Knock-Out Sprint | Ottawa, exact location tbc |
9:00 am | 10:00 am | tbc |
Terrain
The Ark
The Middle and Long events will be taking place on a new map at The Ark, near the small town of Farellton, Quebec. Jeff Teutsch has been working on this map for Orienteering Ottawa and we are excited to finally have an opportunity to use it. We hope you love the hilly, rocky, feature filled terrain as much as we do. The forest is open, making for good running, the hills are plenty, to slow you down, and the orienteering is fantastic!
Ottawa Sprint Map
Andrew Cornett has created a new sprint map in the east end of Ottawa, using a few different business and school campuses combined to form an ideal location for hosting a knock-out sprint, where we will be doing multiple short quick sprint races. We look forward to sharing this new map with you for our new format race.
Accommodation
There are many options for camping, hotels, motels, and Airbnb's in the Ottawa and Gatineau area. Please visit Ottawa Tourism or Tourism Outaouais for more information.