Canoe orienteering is an orienteering

Orienteering

Orienteering is a family of sports that requires navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain, and normally moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a specially prepared orienteering map, which they...

 sport using a canoe

Canoe

A canoe or Canadian canoe is a small narrow boat, typically human-powered, though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors. Canoes are usually pointed at both bow and stern and are normally open on top, but can be decked over A canoe (North American English) or Canadian...

, kayak

Kayak

A kayak is a small, relatively narrow, human-powered boat primarily designed to be manually propelled by means of a double blade paddle.The traditional kayak has a covered deck and one or more cockpits, each seating one paddler...

, or other small boat. Usually, a canoe-O is a timed race in which one- or two-person boats start at staggered intervals, are time

Time

Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....

d, and are expected to perform all navigation

Navigation

Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...

 on their own. Portages are allowed. The control points

Control point (orienteering)

A control point is a marked waypoint used in orienteering and related sports such as rogaining and adventure racing. It is located in the competition area; marked both on an orienteering map and in the terrain; and described on a control description sheet...

, shown on an orienteering map

Orienteering map

An orienteering map is a map specially prepared for use in orienteering competitions. It is a topographic map with extra details to help the competitor navigate through the competition area....

, may be visited in any order. Standings are determined first by successful completion of the course

Course (orienteering)

An orienteering course is composed of a start point, a series of control points, and a finish point. Controls are marked with a white and orange flag in the terrain, and corresponding purple symbols on an orienteering map...

, then by shortest time on course.

Canoe-O is best done in a body of water with many small islands and a complex shoreline. Frequently, two-person teams compete using one canoe. Some control point

Control point (orienteering)

A control point is a marked waypoint used in orienteering and related sports such as rogaining and adventure racing. It is located in the competition area; marked both on an orienteering map and in the terrain; and described on a control description sheet...

s are accessible by water and others by land. Route choice

Route choice (orienteering)

Route choice is a tactic in orienteering and related sports such as rogaining and adventure racing. These sports involve navigation from one control point to the next and, in most cases, the choice of route is left to the competitor. This is provided the rules permit route choice and the course...

 is important: competitors must select both water and land routes so that the controls are encountered efficiently, and neither team member wastes time waiting for the other.

Canoe-O has no international sports governing body. The United States Canoe Association

United States Canoe Association

The United States Canoe Association is an organization devoted to canoeing and paddle sports within the United States. Established in 1968, it is headquartered in Voluntown, Connecticut.It sponsors a youth cup named after one of its members Greg Barton...

 has held an annual canoe and kayak orienteering championship since 1996 and has offered canoe-O during its national championships since 1992.

Technical details

With respect to canoe-o race categories, C and K indicate canoe and kayak, respectively, and 1 and 2 are the number of seats (and hence paddlers). If a course requires or favors travel on land, canoes have an advantage over kayaks. Teams are permitted to split up, with one person going on land while the other controls the boat, thus both team members wear a compass and have a map. Map boards at each seat are popular.

Notable people

Seven-time United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 canoe orienteering national champion Aims Coney is also a ski orienteer affiliated with Cambridge Sports Union

Cambridge Sports Union

The Cambridge Sports Union was founded in 1962 by Larry Berman and Sara Mae Berman and consists of four semiautonomous sections: running, skiing, orienteering, and racewalking. The running section was founded in 1962 as a component of the Amateur Athletic Union . In 1964, the club added the...

.

Notable venues

Notable canoe-O venues include Pawtuckaway Lake in New Hampshire

New Hampshire

New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

External links

• Western Hemisphere Affiliation of Canoe and Kayak Orienteers (WHACKO)
• GouldHome.com: Orienteering (includes Pawtuckaway Canoe-O results since 1999)