Download our bulletins for up-to-date information on Oceania 2025. If we revise a bulletin to correct or update information, the latest version always will be found here. You should also check the embargo notices to make sure you don’t train anywhere you shouldn’t, and look up your start time on the start lists as they’re published.
Other useful stuff
We thought it would be good to provide some extra event information early to help you plan your trip. Some of this is also covered in Bulletin 2, but there’s space for more detail here.
Read on for the details. You can also check our general event advice, and tips for making the most of your holiday.
SI Air+
All events and classes in Oceania 2025 use the SportIdent Air+ contactless punching system. You will need a SportIdent Active Card (SIAC) to take advantage of this. Rather than having to insert your card into the control station, a punch is recorded when you bring the card within a short distance (roughly 50cm) of the station. The station will beep and flash in the usual way, and the SIAC beeps and flashes to confirm the punch.
Rationale
SIACs are not optional, to ensure fair competition—this is an IOF requirement for Oceania 2025. The main reasons for this are:
- Avoiding crowding at controls: We have a large field with hundreds of starters and there is a high chance that you could be randomly delayed (or delay another orienteer) if you arrive at a busy control. Using SIACs alleviates this by allowing much faster flow through controls, and avoids the risk of timing drift between duplicate control boxes.
- Run-through finish gates: These give the best timing accuracy and finish experience – again, there’s no risk of crowding. It isn’t possible to mix and match run through and punch finishes – people stopping to punch can block the gate and risk delays or collisions.
What this means for you
If you already have your own SIAC, supply your SI number when entering as usual. You can use the same card for all events. You will be able to air punch in all events. We can check your card is a SIAC using the SI number.
If you have an older SI card or don’t have one at all, you will need to hire a SIAC from us as part of the entry process.
We appreciate this is an extra cost, and we have tried to keep those costs down. In the long term, we recommend purchasing your own SIAC to get the best orienteering experience – they really are game-changing for your flow through controls, allowing you to concentrate on navigation rather than fumbling to get your dibber in the hole.
A small tip
After holding your SIAC near a control station, it will beep and flash as mentioned above. Confirm this by holding it to your ear or looking at it straight away to see the punch was recorded. This is particularly useful when other orienteers are at the same control—you want to be sure the beep you heard was your beep!
Shuttles
Some of our events have a decent walk from parking to the event centre. We don’t anticipate this being a problem for most orienteers, but just in case, here’s what to expect:
Event Parking to EC Details Long distance 1.5km You’ll need to cross a stile and traverse some rough ground on fields and in the forest. Relay Up to 2km Easy walking along well-maintained level forestry roads. If you think the walk will be difficult for you for whatever reason, please tell us. We will be able to shuttle you closer to the event centre, but it helps us to know in advance how many people are going to use the shuttle. Please note that for safety reasons, we can’t offer this service for babies and toddlers.
Let us know if you want to use the shuttle:
Compasses
If you’re coming to Oceania 2025 from anywhere north of the equator, your orienteering compass is probably balanced for the northern hemisphere. (There are some compasses with so-called global needles, but these are less common.) A northern hemisphere needle is weighted at the wrong end for NZ, and will tend to stick against the inside of the capsule rather than rotate smoothly to magnetic north. This makes it very hard to use for map orientation or running bearings.
We are trying to arrange some loan compasses balanced for southern hemisphere, but we can’t guarantee we’ll have enough for everyone. We will have orienteering vendors on site selling suitable compasses, or you can buy one before you travel. Look for MS or S on the packaging or check with your supplier.
For people already orienteering in NZ and Australia, you don’t need to worry about this – your compass will work as normal!
Version history
| Sunday 7th July 2024 | Bulletin 1 – version 1.0 released. |
| Tuesday 6th August 2024 | Bulletin 1 – version 1.1 released. Clarified WRE status of the Oceania 2025 sprint. |
| Wednesday 4th September 2024 | Bulletin 1 – version 1.2 released. Extended previous map for Koitiata to include the northern part of Fusilier. |
| Sunday 22nd September 2024 | Bulletin 1 – version 1.3 released. Added National Controller to list of key people. Added more relay age classes. |
| Thursday 3rd October 2024 | Bulletin 1 – version 1.4 released. Changed training venue to Scott’s Ferry South. |
| Monday 25th November 2024 | Added tips under Other Useful Stuff. |
| Tuesday 26th November 2024 | Bulletin 1 – version 1.5 released. Added Hydrabad as an extra training venue. |
| Sunday 5th January 2025 | Bulletin 2 – version 1.0 released. |
| Monday 6th January 2025 | Bulletin 2 – version 1.1 released. Added information about training map pickup, and corrected classes for the ANZ Challenge. |
| Tuesday 14th January 2025 | Bulletin 2 – version 1.2 released. Clarified which winners are eligible for personal places at WOC 2025. |
| Thursday 16th January 2025 | Bulletin 2 – version 1.3 released. Updated course tables for M40 and W40 and added information about Livelox. |
| Monday 20th January 2025 | Bulletin 2 – version 1.4 released. Updated evacuation instructions. Added Livelox event links. Updated information about oversize vehicle parking at the Long. |