Discussion: What do orienteers want to read?

A thought experiment: You are high-powered publisher with money to burn and, as it happens, a passionate orienteer. You have various contacts in the orienteering world, including some of the more colorful coaching personalities and successful athletes. You want one of these individuals (or perhaps several of them together), who you may imagine is also a gifted writer in English, to write a book about orienteering that you and your friends would like to read. So what would you want to read?

A pictorial book on the best, most regionally typical, most unusual and most notable terrains used for orienteering across the world. This might include historically notable for early mapping, new mapping styles, historic results. But mostly it would be a celebration of the diversity of terrains and the orienteering experience. Each section would include a sample map or map segment, description, photos, advice from a notable successful local on how to compete in the terrain, comments from the mapper. Also prosaic advice on where similar terrain would be found and notable events to experience it.

My previous sporting passion was rock climbing, and there are any number of superb books trying to describe the 100 best climbs of whatever. The Steck and Roper book of 100 best climbs in north america was my guide to a climbing tour back in the 80s. The Australian Simon Carter has produced a mouth watering book on Australian climbs with superb photography.

It would be harder to do the same for orienteering, but done well it would be very popular coffee table number across the O world. And the full gamut from Venetian streets, through complex terrain in glacial scandinavia, dunes in New Zealand, karst in Slovenia, granite and gold mining in Oz, pinnacles and pagodas in bohemia or New South Wales, pavement and desert erosion in the US, and all the rest.

And then the notably unusual or weird or evidence of desperation. That wonderful surfing film "Into the Liquid" showed surfing on the Great Lakes, or on freighter wakes off the coast of Louisiana. Those scenes were a celebration not of waves, but of fanaticism. Melbourne Street Orienteering comes to mind. But my experience is limited so I'm sure you all would have better suggestions.

I'd buy it.

PG's orienteering experiences, with loads of maps.


I'd buy it.

Orienteering Today, delivered on time.

Darn you feet! Before I scrolled down to see your post, that is EXACTLY what I was going to post...

Orienteringsliv is a book in Swedish that covers the author´s 58 (!) years of orienteering experience (1947-2005) - from a national, regional and club perspective. I have found a lot of entertaining stories that also coincide with some of my own orienteering 'history'. Written by Per-Johan Persson, Linköpings OK - one of the best Swedish elite clubs some years ago.

O-boka / O-boken is a Norwegian-Swedish co-production that deals with the O-scene from both a national and international level. The first two years were 2004 and 2005 - this year's book will be out in November. All the major events are covered with interesting articles and a lot of maps, results and photos. Most of the material is 'old' - in the respect that results and such have been known for a long time when the book is published by the end of the year - but it is interesting all the same to browse through and remember the year gone by...

The yearbook of Swedish orienteering (Skärmen) was published for the last time (?) in 1987. This covered all important Swedish and international championships with articles, results and maps. Particularly the map section was very much awaited when it finally came from the printers...

I suppose the suggested pictorial books/articles about maps, different terrains and peculiarities from the international O scene could fill a hole in my book shelf...

Actually I think such a book is already in print...in Norwegian.

A Norwegian orienteer houseguest last week gave me a copy of a beautiful book called O-BOKA-2005 Norsk og internasjonal orienteringsidrett sesongen 2005 Measuring a big 8-1/2"x12" it is filled with hundreds of color photos, color maps, tables and results from major events in Norway, and around the world during 2005.

The color photos are excellent, and show off the relatively younger age groups that orienteer internationally...i.e. lots of sweaty babe shots. I can't think of anything more motivating for a younger U.S. orienteer, tired of seeing pictures glorifying haggard old people, than a copy of this book.

The maps are very detailed and complete, showing the 3 top men and women's routes, and their splits on each leg. So even tho I don't read Norwegian, I can spend hours in an armchair trying to figure out why one leg was so much faster than another.

According to Christian, the book sells for about $50US in Norway <http://www.o-boka.no/> and is quite popular. With a smaller distribution in the U.S. a publisher might have to charge closer to $100...would anyone buy such a book?

I really liked the history of orienteering that was in one of the few issues of Orienteering Today that made it to me.

True Romance - "Pavi & Joe Forever" by Viktoria
O SciFi - "Remote Robo O" by Barb
O Humor - "A Funny Thing Happened to Me On The Way to the O Meet" by Eddie
O Nature - "AttackBadgers" by Swampfox
O Fashion - "Pink Tights or PJ's?" by Mark Dominie
O Porn - ????

By the way, does Orienteering Today actually get delivered in Europe/Britain? Is this non-delivery just a North America thing? (I'm trying to figure out whether to renew when I get to Britain.) When's the last OT that AttackPointers (various places) have received?

Read about the reorganization of OT at www.orienteeringtoday.com They've put out 3 issues (all 3 made it to North America) and plan to put out one more this year -- a 3 in one issue in November.

It had better be good, because my patience is just about gone.

I've only gotten two this year.

I think Pensioner expressed my sentiments exactly. I have some maps from 'famous' events from just before I got seriously into O such as the maps from WOC in 1978 (Norway) and 1981 (Switzerland) - I would love to see photos of the terrain and competition; and read the stories etc.
Would there be a big enough market for a well-done, glossy coffee table book?

Has anyone else read the Hardy Boys mystery that involves orienteering? IT is actaully pretty well done.

Wasn't there an orienteering novel written some time in the 80's called Murder at the 13th Control?

Never read it just heard about it.

Um... I read the Hardy Boys book (and I dimly remember having been consulted by the author), and I wasn't that impressed.

Murder at the 14th Control (not 13th) by Wilf Holloway is pretty decent. Too short to be considered a novel. I think I have his autograph somewhere.

Well come on JJ - it WAS the Hardy Boys after all. Let's do a survey of all the 11 year old male Attack point readers and see what they think......

Yeah, I've only received two, not three, OT this year.

Maybe they can just send 2006 subscribers the next five issues (which is what they paid for).