th
 This event is a
with a
. You will have 3 hours to find as many controls/points as you can. If you prefer a shorter hike, you are not obligated to stay out the full 3 hours. Numerous controls are near trails.
 You may register and compete individually or as a team.
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You may pick up your maps as early as 9:30 AM. You have up to 90 minutes to copy the controls and to plan your route.
 The Mass Start is at 11 AM from the parking lot just east of the playground.
 The penalty for being overtime (past 2:00 PM) is steep: 5 points per minute or part thereof. There is NO “grace period”. Control pick-up will start by 2:30.
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There are 25 controls. Their point values are: o #1-5: 5 points each o #10-19: 10 points each o #20-29: 20 points each TOTAL: 325 POINTS
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Your place will be determined by total points. Any ties will be broken by the faster time.
 You may visit the controls in any sequence.
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Elite Runners: Enjoy your ‘visit’ to the far W and SW areas of the park which have rarely been used in local or national competitions! The areas west of Hawn Park Road tend to be more open and have less climb than the rest of the park.
 Other Runners and Hikers: More than half of the controls and points are ‘within reach’ south and southwest of the Start. Most are near Hawn’s maintained trails. Overall, I have tried to feature the best rock features of Hawn – enjoy them!
 SAFETY o There is water at three controls (check your clue sheet). Many orienteers carry their own water. o For a 3-hour event, carrying food is highly recommended. o SAFETY DIRECTIONS: From the western 2/3 of the course, the safety direction is
NORTH to paved highway 144. From the eastern part of the course, walk
NORTHWEST to find 144. Once you hit 144, turn right (EAST) back to the picnic area. o Do not expect cell phone coverage though I intermittently had coverage. o Carrying a whistle is strongly recommended. Please use it only if injured or extremely lost. If you hear a whistle, you MUST stop and offer aid.
Regardless of when you finish and how many points you have earned, PLEASE CHECK-IN at the Finish so that we know that you are safely out of the woods. DO NOT “extend” your hike past 2 PM. We will be concerned for your safety and we will need to assemble a rescue party. Also, some controls will be picked up starting at 2:30 PM.

HAWN STATE PARK MAP NOTES
You will be using the full
map of Hawn State Park. In preparation for a 2002 A-meet, cartographer Zoran Krivokapic extensively updated the original map drafted by SLOC member Tim Guetersloh in 1982. More recent updates are NOT on this printing of the map.
 All properties beyond the map are Private Property and Out of Bounds. Some boundaries are fenced and marked, some are not. As the park expanded, sometimes old “State Park” signs were not removed. Do not freak out if you see a boundary sign far from the park boundaries – you have not been transported! 
 When running on an 11-year old map: Contours, rock features, and streams ARE VERY
RELIABLE; vegetation and trails are LESS RELIABLE. I did find the rock features to be mapped very accurately and consistently.
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TRAILS: Hawn State Park maintains four trails, all east of Hawn Park Road. These have been highlighted on the Master Maps. Most of these trails were on the 2002 map but certain pieces are new or moved. All other mapped trails now vary (unpredictably) from
“Very Good” to “Very Indistinct.” I have NOT updated them on the map. Some of these older trails will be useful, but with the woods so open, you will rarely “need” them for speed or navigation.
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VEGETATION: I have NOT updated the mapping of the vegetation. Compared to most
Missouri areas, blackberries, multi-flora rose, green briar vines, and poison ivy are quite rare. o Areas mapped white, light green, and slash green allow fast running although there may be some underbrush or scrub oak. o Areas mapped “rough open” yellow (especially with green slashes) tend to be slower due to high weeds and grass. o Any sides of Pickle Creek (which runs E and NE from the western edge of the map) that are mapped medium-green or dark-green can be thick with green briar vines – avoid! o The wide EW power line mapped rough open is crossable but the woods usually offer faster running.
 MAPPED FENCES: Sierra Club volunteers have removed MUCH of the mapped fencing.
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CREEK CROSSINGS: You will be able to cross Pickle Creek and River Aux Vases (SE corner of map) nearly anywhere. If you take time, you can often find a place to keep your feet dry. At the Mass Start, I do suggest that you run south across the two bridges rather than get your feet wet in the first 5 minutes.
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CLUE SHEETS: The details on the Clue Sheet can be VERY useful. For example, it is “very nice” to know that a control is on top of a 5m rock face instead of at the base of it. 
Please ask SLOC members or me for help in reading any of the clues.