15 teams took part in the event, which is just about everyone who competes these days - thanks to you all for your support it was greatly appreciated.
The start was at Salcey Forest, chosen for its central location and availability of public loos.
Station A, G4CFG/P, was located approximately 10 km from the start at a bearing of 155 degrees. The transmitter was hidden in a nice boggy area just off the Grand Union Canal Walk on the north-west side of Milton Keynes, and we know how much you like Milton Keynes. Nothing difficult at this site, with a simple long wire aerial - no complications, and shouldn't have presented the crack DF teams with any problems.
Station B, G4KZU/P, was located approximately 24 km from the start at a bearing of 231 degrees. This site was a little more challenging with the transmitter hidden where two disused railways cross, south-east of Brackley. There was a fairly short way into the station, along a footpath starting from a drivable track on the east side of Evenley. However, most competitors thought a bit of a work out was in order and ran much further than they needed to. Phil and I scoured this corner of the map looking for decent sites and this was chosen because of its undisputed public access. Unfortunately, power lines were in the vicinity (shame) and these caused a bit of trouble for some competitors, though not all by any means. Geoffrey Foster found the station very quickly, he probably saw the operator's head glinting in the sunshine, and managed to get to his second site by 3.30pm, an hour before the end of the contest.
I was very pleased to observe that at my site all competitors were very quiet when clocking in and left the site discretely, without giving the game away. Peter Lisle even left his card and came back for it later because another competitor was close by. Well done Peter - to you and to your team.
An excellent tea was served by the WI ladies of Yardley Gobion - many thanks to them for their service.
Congratulations to Colin Merry and Bill Pechey who qualify for the National Final.
George Whenham
| Position | Competitor | Finish | Time A | Time B |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Geoffrey Foster | 15:30:04 | 15:30:04 | 14:31:37 |
| 2 | Colin Merry | 15:39:26 | 14:30:47 | 15:39:26 |
| 3 | Chris Plummer | 15:58:06 | 14:44:06 | 15:58:06 |
| 4 | Bill Pechey | 16:04:15 | 14:45:52 | 16:04:15 |
| 5 | Brian Bristow | 16:05:39 | 16:05:39 | 15:11:35 |
| 6 | Alan Simmons | 16:06:03 | 16:06:03 | 15:02:08 |
| 7 | Mike Hawkins | 16:09:03 | 14:56:45 | 16:09:03 |
| 8 | Tim Parker | 16:17:56 | 16:17:56 | 15:13:32 |
| 9 | Andy Collett | 16:20:01 | 16:20:01 | 15:12:21 |
| 10 | Graham Phillips | 16:20:36 | 16:20:36 | 14:53:10 |
| 11 | Steve Stone | 16:21:10 | 16:21:10 | 15:24:09 |
| 12 | Philip Cunningham | 16:27:41 | 16:27:41 | 15:10:02 |
| 13 | Graham Nicholls | 15:26:26 | - | 15:26:26 |
| 14 | Peter Lisle | 15:42:51 | - | 15:42:51 |
| 15 | Paul Clark | 15:58:49 | - | 15:58:49 |