From 2005 the WSX Club
League has changed, and now aims to identify the Most Improved Orienteer
. The new format is essentially a Handicap, but the system is deliberately
biased in favour of those orienteers who are making progress. The basic
mechanics of the new league are outlined below.
- Points are scored for
each event completed, based on the following formula:
| Event Score = 100
x Handicap MPK / Event MPK
|
(MPK=minutes per km)
- The League Tables (Senior
& Junior) will be based on the average of all your Event Scores, and
the overall winner will be the member with the highest average score
over the year (having completed 5 or more events).
In theory, if you
perform at a consistent standard throughout the year, your average
score will be around 100. But, if you are improving you will regularly
beat your Handicap, so your average score will be well over 100.
For example, if your Handicap was 12mpk and you managed 10mpk, your
Event Score would be 120.
- Speed factors will be
applied to the different levels of technical difficulty, according
to the table below:
| Level
| Courses
| Speed Factor
|
| 1
| White, JM1, JW1
| 5
|
| 2
| Yellow, JM2, JW2
| 3.5
|
| 3
| Orange, Red, JM3,
JW3
| 2.3
|
| 4
| Light Green, JM4,
JW4
| 1.5
|
| 5
Short
| Short Badge Courses,
Green/Blue (if a longer course is specified below).
| 1.2
|
| 5
Long
| Long Badge Courses,
JM5L (M18-20), JM5M (M16), JW5L (W18-20), JW5S (W16), Brown
(M20-M40), Blue (M18, M45-55, W20-35), Green (others).
| 1
|
For example, if you
run a Yellow course in 10mpk it will be recorded as 35mpk. These
factors apply equally to each event and to the calculation of handicaps.
They are deliberately generous in order to encourage progression
through the levels and reward improvement. (Conversely, the factors
punish running-down for those who have previously been competing
at a higher level).
- The following events
will automatically count towards the league:
- WIM/Dorset Schools
League (for juniors and seniors)
- South-West Galoppen
& SOC District Events
- Regional events
& upwards in the SW & SC regions
- BOC, JK and summer
multi-day events in GB
District events & upwards
elsewhere can be included if notified to the compiler.
Score, Relay, Night & Novelty events will not be included.
- Handicaps are broadly
based on the average MPK of your last 4 events, and will be updated
after each run. Again, the actual calculation is weighted in favour
of improvers by preventing their Handicaps from coming down too rapidly.
At the start of 2005,
initial handicaps were set as a simple average MPK of the last 4
runs for each member (adjusted for technical difficulty).
Subsequently the handicaps are updated according to the following
formula:
| New Handicap =
(6 x Old Handicap + Event MPK) / 7
|
This has 2 purposes.
Firstly, it smooths out excessive variations caused by inconsistencies
of terrain and speed.
Secondly, it effectively gives double weighting to previous runs,
which extends the time it will take the Handicap to catch up with
current performance - improving or otherwise.
- For new members, who
have not yet completed 3 counting events, the principle of double
weighting for previous events remains.
Thus, after 1 event,
your performance there sets the Handicap for event 2.
After event 2, your new handicap would be calculated as (2 x Old
Handicap + Event MPK) / 3.
After event 3, your new handicap would be calculated as (4 x Old
Handicap + Event MPK) / 5.
- New Members will initially
score 100 points for their first event. After subsequent events, that
score will be updated to equal the average subsequent score.
After they have completed 5 events, the score for event 1 will be
fixed.
For example, if a new
member scores 120, 110, 90, 120 in events 2 to 5, the score for
event 1 will be fixed at 110.
As this is the first year
of a new format, it is possible that slight modifications will be made
during the year in the light of experience.
If you have any comments
or queries, please contact Ian Middlebrook.
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