NEVER one to shirk a challenge, sportswriter RICHARD MULLIGAN reckoned local knowledge would be a winner when he tried his hand at orienteering. Here he tells how it all went wrong.

IT'S Saturday morning, it's raining. I'm up Rivington close to the Upper Barn.

Why am I here? I'm just about to attempt the course that will later be used for the British Schools Orienteering Championships.

Although quite a bit older than the other competitors I have next to no experience at the sport. But I know the area well and for this reason I have a suspicion that I can beat the field.

So it is with a confident mood that I approach competition organizer Sue Roome.

"You're not going out like that are you?" asked Sue.

"Erm, yes," I replied. She was right, considering I was about to spend the next hour running around in waterlogged conditions I could have probably done with something a little more heavy duty on my feet than a pair of light-weight canvas trainers.

For those of you that don't know, orienteering is a sport which involves navigating your way around a fixed course armed only with a map, compass and your own navigational skills.

The idea is to find controls - a small orange kite with a hole-punch to mark your control card - which are indicated on the course map.

In this case I had 24 controls to find in a fixed time limit of one hour.

"Although it is a competitive sport you do not have to be amazingly fit," says Chris Sutcliffe, who runs Bolton School's team. "So it appeals to kids or to 80-year-olds.

"You can run or just go round at your own pace, it depends on how competitive you feel."

From the off I decided on the former and was quickly making my way through the first six controls.

This was going to be a doddle.

I decided to save control seven for later as the map indicated that 13 would be the easiest to get to next.

But I was wrong, and wasted a valuable 10 minutes looking around aimlessly. By this time the kids had set off and running around as if their lives depended on it.

In contrast after wasting so much energy in getting lost I was now only running when in view of another living soul, like a naughty schoolboy in cross country.

I suddenly recalled the words of course designer Mike Ormerod, who had warned me that controls would be harder to find further along the course.

Some of the later bases were incoveniently located in or behind trees, on the wrong side of bog land and on the edge of water.

In the end I found 16 of the 24 controls, absolutely nowhere near the winner who completed the entire course in just 34 minutes.

As I crossed the line I was wet through, had cuts from thorns and nettles, and knew that I would limping for the next couple of days after running across rough terrain in a pair of trainers.

But, like the other 550 competitors, I was exhilarated.

Organizer Sue Roome said: "It was a great day, I'm just glad that so many people took part and enjoyed it.

"The Rivington course was good, but it was easy for some of the older kids. Most orienteering courses tend to be over fells, and so test you a bit more physically."

Sue is a member of the South Ribble Orienteering club, which is the closest orienteering association to the Bolton area. They help to organize and take part in competitions throughout the region during most weekends of the year.

For further information see www.sroc.org