Poster for EVC event
EVC Event Poster
(click on it to enlarge)

Evergreen Valley College

Event #3 of 6 in the BAOC 2026 Summer Series

Date: (Sat.) Jul. 11, 2026
Location: San Jose, CA
Event Directors: - 707.567.3496,
Course Setter: Werner Haag
Type: C; 2026 Summer Series event #3: beginner course and two Summer Series courses; beginners and non-members welcome; free beginner instruction available; participation in other Summer Series events is not required (DATE CHANGED FROM JUNE 27!)

Related Event Information

Event Results Volunteer Sign-up Form (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1K9lq_dG7xO7m0UE8LVk8a9Kcc2tptqmh3HJDw8BQddM/edit) Course Setter’s Notes 2026 Summer Series Attackpoint Event Page (http://attackpoint.org/eventdetail.jsp/event_60857) Last Year’s Event

Please note that fees and time limits apply. Events are typically not canceled due to bad weather.


Notes: 
The weather forecast is for high temperatures, approaching 90°F, so you might want to try to come early.
The schedule has been changed slightly because of the expected high temperature. The details of the Short course have changed slightly.
Werner and Misha have been making exciting enhancements and additions to the map.


This Saturday event will be the third of six events in the 2026 Summer Series. However, we want to emphasize that everyone is welcome to come out and do one (or more) of the courses, regardless of whether or not you have attended, or plan to attend, other Summer Series events.

We encourage beginners to attend — no experience is necessary. The navigational difficulty is significantly eased by the semi-urban setting, so anyone should be able to complete the Beginner course.

The campus is surrounded by some open space to the west and Montgomery Hill Park to the east, where some of the first aircraft tests were conducted around the time of the Wright brothers. Thus, the courses will include navigation both around campus buildings and in open terrain.

In keeping with the Summer Series standards, we will offer Beginner, Short, and Long courses. The Beginner course will be similar to our regular White or Yellow beginner courses; the Short and Long courses will have intermediate (Orange-level) difficulty.

There are some construction areas on the campus, and the courses avoid these areas, but we have to go near those areas to make interesting courses, so please respect the red-slashed out-of-bounds areas on the map.

The conditions of our permit do not allow us to serve food at the event, so we will not be able to provide the usual snacks. Thus, this event will be BYOS (Bring Your Own Snacks).

We look forward to seeing everyone at what has been a fun event!

Note: If you're planning to bring a group larger than 10, please reach out to the , so we can plan accordingly (e.g., print enough maps).

Schedule

The following modified schedule will apply at this Saturday event:

  8:45 AM – 11:59 AM: Registration is open
  9:30 AM – 10:30 AM: Beginner-clinic instruction is available (free)  
  9:45 AM – 12:30 PM: Starts are open for all courses  
                   2:00 PM: Everyone must have returned to the Finish  
Notes:
  • The schedule for Registration and Starts has been shifted forward 15 minutes in consideration of the forecasted hot weather.
  • Participants under age 18 who register at the event must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, or bring with them a waiver signed by their parent or legal guardian. (The Summer Series event registration form is available here (14KB PDF).)

Note that you can register and start on courses anytime during the open times above. Thus, for example, you do not need to be "punctual" at 9:00 (but you can if you want, but please don't show up earlier and expect to be served).

Beginner instruction is 15–20 minute, repeating sessions ("clinics") that introduce the sport of orienteering, and provide enough instruction to be able to complete the Beginner course.

Note: Beginners are given their course maps at registration. You should get your map before joining a beginner clinic.

Everyone must return to the Finish by 2:00 PM, and then promptly go to the download tent, even if they have not completed their course. Please do not leave without checking in! If there are unaccounted people after 2:00, we must initiate a search for them.

After you finish, stick around and socialize with other participants! For beginners, this is a good time to ask questions.

Costs and Registration

Note: You will not need to register for this event if you have registered for the optional Summer Series Discount Package (https://eventreg.orienteeringusa.org/reglist/26sspackage). (It is late enough in the Series that it probably does not make sense to buy the Discount Package now.)

The following fees apply at this event:

  $3 for each junior on the Beginner (White) course
  $8 for each adult on the Beginner course
  $5 for each junior on the Short or Long course  
$15 for each adult member on the Short or Long course
$20 for each adult non-member on the Short or Long course
  $1 for a compass rental (optional)  
  $5 for an electronic fingerstick rental (if you don't own one; each group will need one to complete the course)
$15 for the lowest-cost individual one-year BAOC membership (optional)  
Notes:
  • Do not register for this event if you have registered for the Summer Series Discount Package (https://eventreg.orienteeringusa.org/reglist/26sspackage).
  • You can register at the event or online before the event (see below).
  • Juniors are age 8 through 20 (under age 8 is free).
  • At the event, we can accept payment by cash, check, or credit/debit card (but no electronic payments — e.g., PayPal, Venmo).
  • Groups going on a course together must register at the event. (The online registration system can't deal with groups. 🙁)
  • The fees above do not apply to a second course, but you must end up paying for the more expensive course (i.e., the Short or Long course after the Beginner course).
  • Members of other orienteering clubs can pay the "member" fee. (We hope your club would do the same for our members. 🙂)

More information about event pricing is available in the club FAQ. All the prices are also shown on the Summer Series registration form (PDF/14KB), which you can print and fill out in advance to save some time at the event. (You will need one entry form for each group of people going on a course together.)

Optional Online Registration

Online registration has closed, but you can still register at the event.

Notes:
  • Online registration is not required​—​you can register at the event.
  • If you want to see who your competition will be, you can see who is registered for this event (https://eventreg.orienteeringusa.org/reglist/2026ss2dvc) and for the Summer Series Discount Package (https://eventreg.orienteeringusa.org/reglist/26sspackage) (but keep in mind that others will register at the event).

Location at the College

The parking area is the NW lot, and registration is at the Library plaza, both like last year. See Parking and Driving Directions below.

Restrooms and water will be available near the Assembly Area.

What to Bring

For the Beginner (White) course, comfortable outdoors attire and shoes are fine.

For Short and Long courses, shoes with good grip on the sole are recommended (but shoes with hard cleats are not permitted). Part of the Short and Long courses will be in off-trail areas outside the paved campus. Luckily the grass was recently mowed on most of the hills and surrounding area, so the running should be much nicer than it would have been. However, some areas have not been mowed, so long pants and gaiters will be nice to have, but not necessary.

A compass is not necessary, but can be helpful — and can improve safety — so is recommended. We have compasses available for a $1 rental fee.

We time the courses with the SPORTident system, so each entry/team needs to have a SPORTident E-punch fingerstick. If you don't have your own, you can rent one at registration for $5 (note that there's a significant charge for a lost rental). (Use of the "E-punch" system is easy. You can learn how at the event, or read about it here.)

Courses

The course details are below. (The Short course has gained 0.1 km and 1 control from the previous stats.) 

    Course      Length   Climb  Controls
    Beginner    1.5 km    30 m     10  
    Short       3.2 km    55 m     19  
    Long        5.1 km    90 m     25

Beginners should be aware that the course lengths shown are the cumulative straight-line distances between controls. The climb numbers represent the amount of ascending that would be done on the "optimum route" (in the Course Setters' opinion), without regard for any descending. Because you won't travel in straight lines, and might not follow the optimum routes, your actual distance and climb will be somewhat more than what is shown above, and will depend on your route choices (and any errors you make).
For the Short and Long courses, keep in mind that you can earn Summer Series points only from the first course you run at the event, and only if it's one of the ranking courses. That is, you will not earn points if you run the Beginner course first and then one of the ranking courses.

The Beginner course is for beginners and young children. This is a great warmup if you're trying orienteering for the first time. You get to see the map before the start and experience how everything works. After the Beginner course, if you want some more, you can do either of the other courses (as long as you pay the difference in fees, start before 12:30, and finish by 2:00).

Participants can choose either the Short or Long course to earn points for the 2026 Summer Series. The courses will use a combination of quick navigation through the campus, and regular, terrain navigation through the ample surrounding natural areas.

Be sure to read the Course Setter's Notes for more information about the courses, the map, and mandatory road crossings on the Long course.

The Map

We have a new ISSprOM¹ map, thanks to Misha Kreslavsky. The contour interval is 2.5 m. The scale is 1:2500 for the Beginner course. The scale is 1:4000 for the Long and Short courses, with one (complicated) two-level building complex magnified (scale TBD) on the back side of the map. Be aware that the map is rotated 30 degrees from magnetic north for ease of printing — that is, the edges of the map are not parallel to magnetic north-south.

See the Course Setter's Notes for more comments about the map. In particular, the mapping of two-level areas is explained.

In the areas outside the campus, the grass has, for the most part, been cut, and will be short.

The courses might go near construction areas. Please respect the red-slashed out-of-bounds areas on the map.

Two-level Buildings

Everyone, including Beginners, should be aware that all the courses enter two-level buildings. Thus, everyone should read the Course Setter's Notes for the explanation of how two-level buildings are shown on the map. (This is arguably a rather advanced aspect of orienteering. We hope the beginners will be able to figure it out.)

Water

Water will be provided only at control #16 on the Long course. None on the other courses. There are some fountains in the campus, but they are not shown on the map. (On the Short course, there are working water fountains between controls 15 and 16 if you can find them.)

We expect that most people will complete their course quickly enough to not need water while on the course.

However, you should consider carrying some water if you expect to be slow.

Hazards

There is no poison oak on the Beginner course; one control on the Short course has possible exposure; and several controls on the Long course have possible exposure.

The school is not in session, so foot traffic should be light, but yield to pedestrians and watch for car traffic around the parking lots.

Portions of the courses will be in off-trail areas outside the paved campus. Uneven terrain due to ground-squirrel holes is probably the biggest hazard in those areas. (See What to Bring for related comments.)

(There is no longer a homeless encampment in the mapped area.)

Request for Volunteers

Let's keep the momentum going for the Summer Series after the super popular Presidio and DVC events. This is my call to action to get some volunteers for Evergreen Valley College on Saturday, July 11!

I need help with event setup, registration, beginner clinics, starts, and control pickup. If we get enough volunteers it'd be great to have extra people to hang out either at registration or the Finish to encourage our participants. Nothing makes you want to come back more than a new friend with a smiling face!

You can look at this spreadsheet (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1K9lq_dG7xO7m0UE8LVk8a9Kcc2tptqmh3HJDw8BQddM/edit) to see what tasks are available, and to sign up for your favorite one.

All volunteers will be able to run a course, and will get first access to the stockpile of snacks I plan to bring. 😊

– , Event Director

2026 Summer Series

Points for the 2026 Summer Series will be awarded to all the individuals (not groups or teams) who complete either the Short or Long course as their first course of the day (i.e., not after the Beginner course). The results for the two courses will be entered in the respective Summer Series standings.

You can see the standings after event #1 at the Presidio of San Francisco here. After June 27th, you will be able to see the standings after event #2 at Diablo Valley College.

Details of the Summer Series scoring system are available here. (Note that we need your birth year if you want to be scored properly.)

Driving Directions

The approximate coordinates for parking are 37.3026,-121.7665. Here's a Google Map (https://maps.app.goo.gl/XTudv1N3pTDzNeVW8).

From southbound Highway 101, south of the I-280/I-680 interchange, take exit 381 to Yerba Buena Rd. Turn left onto Yerba Buena Rd. After 2.5 miles on Yerba Buena Rd, turn left onto San Felipe Rd. After 0.25 mile, turn right onto Paseo de Artoles. At the third possible left turn (were there's a road at the right), turn left into the parking area. The parking lot you want will be on your right.

Parking

Park in Student Lot 2 at the northwest end of the campus.

Parking fees do not apply on Saturday as long as you park in a Student Lot.

Note: Parking in a Staff Lot could result in a fine.

_______________

¹ ISSprOM = International Specification for Sprint Orienteering Maps — see the Course Setter's Notes.