Orginally published in Hart MC's monthly magazine

Navigational Scatter Rallies: Basics

The Navigational Scatter Rally or `Night Trial' is an ideal compliment to the traditional 12-car navigational exercise. Hopefully these few words will give you a feeling for how the Scatter Rally works and what you are expected to do when competing. How then does a Scatter Rally work ? Well, they all have the same basic format but they may differ in their execution. Unlike a 12-car rally there is, in principle, no limit to the number of crews participating and each crew may consist of more than two persons, but, only ONE car !

Your aim is accumulate as many points as possible by visiting various remote locations scattered over the map(s) in the time allowed. At each location there will be a small code board which is hidden from general view. Usually the driver gets out and find a small card which might say, for example, `MayFly 94: sausages'. The navigator records `sausages' on the check sheet and then takes the driver to the next location, and so on. The cards are usually found on the undersides of stiles, behind telegraph poles, fenceposts, footpath or bridleway signs: you will be told what to look for as the checks are not designed to be difficult to find. So, how do you know where to go to find the codeboards?

At the start time each crew will get a `cluesheet' which will contain information to visit, say, thirty route-checks. There will NOT be enough time to visit them all even if you do have a helicopter, so, you have to pick and choose your route carefully to visit as many as possible. The time allowed will be three hours for the MayFly and those not returning to the finish venue will have points deducted. penalties. If you are very late then you will go OTL ! The thirty route-checks will be graded into three groups of ten. There will be ten simple map-reference checks, ten easy navigation clues and ten harder clues which are still solvable with a bit of thought. These checks might be worth 5, 10 and 15 points respectively. There may also be a manned control or travelling marshal to visit in a particular time slot. There may also be final codeboard which is worth, say 30 points given by previous information that you have solved.

The skill factor comes in as 1. solving the navigation, 2. choosing an efficient route, 3. navigating the driver round the route correctly in any time constraints and 4. getting to the finish on time. You should also put the codeboards in the correct box on the answer sheet: ask Bill about this ! That's about it really ! Any more questions then ask me, Gwyn or Bill for more information.See you on the MayFly !,
I'll be seeing you!,
John Upham

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