The Great Valmiera Adventure rounds off a beautiful summer
On Saturday, August 24, all orienteering enthusiasts, athletes, families, children, young people and active people gathered in one of the most beautiful towns in Vidzeme - Valmiera, to indulge in the Lielajam Valmieras adventure. The start of the competition was given in the meadows of Dīvaliņas and the further distance roads were known only to the author of the track and an active lifestyle supporter - Reinim Bērziņam. Each of the participants had the opportunity to choose the most challenging distance from the ones offered - 2-hour Better4U, 4-hour D8 Corporation, 6-hour Isostar orienteering distance, or complete a 14km rogaining run, or go on the adventurous 4-hour xRace adventure rogaining using legs and bike.
It should be noted that the rogaining competition gathers more and more orientation and active lifestyle supporters every year and it is a great way to spend a holiday in good company and in the fresh air. Rogaining is basically a cross-country orienteering team sport, where the team has to create a sequence of visiting the checkpoints depending on the checkpoints that the goal is to reach. Checkpoints have different value expressed in points and usually the most valuable are the more difficult points to reach.
A total of less than 600 participants took part in all distances. A total of 45 teams competed in the longest and most difficult Valmiera rogaining Isostar 6h distance in all groups. The winning team - "French Toast Mafia", in which Inese Kokoreviča and Rolands Rudītis started, spent the distance in 05:58:10 and accumulated 185 points, which is an excellent result today. On the other hand, the duo “Iedzīves mednieki” took the second place, who finished with a total of 186 points and received one penalty point, resulting in the second result. The third place was won by the team “Vijolīšu grava”, who were only 5 points behind the 2nd place.
In the D8 Corporation 4h distance, over 130 points were collected by two teams - the winners "RwA/STK" (140 points) with Jāni Priedīti and Elīnu Aģi. On the other hand, team “Iesācēji” scored 130 points.
The duo from the “Stonkas” team convincingly won the shortest 2h Better4U distance with 54 points, leaving behind the teams “PE PEEEK” (53 points) and “Saulkrasti Showel Racing Team” (49 points) in second and third place.
“O-Run” won the first place in the men's rogaining race - Atis Krūmiņš, leaving behind - Aināru Skrubi. On the other hand, Daiga Krēsliņa stood out in the women's competition, who also finished with 40 points, just like Atis.
59 teams started in the 4-hour xRace adventure rogaining. The team “Lūzumpunkts” with Uldis Žimantu and Albertu Jasānu had a chance to climb to the top step of the podium, which collected a remarkable 239 points. Team “4V” followed in second place with 211 points and team “mežā galvenais” came third, only 1 point behind second place!
We are happy that the adventure and orienteering competitions not only allow you to feel the excitement and spend your free time in the fresh air, but also give you the opportunity to get to know Latvia from a completely different side, exploring natural landscapes and views that have not been seen before.
When the summer is over, we invite you not to lose the positive habit - to relax actively and to register in time for the Riga autumn rogaining, which will take place on November 9. On the other hand, fans of active entertainment will definitely be interested in the “Lāčplēša kross” event, which will take place on October 12 and where several hundred adventurers go to the track every year!
The competition was offered by Valmiera City Council, supported by ISOSTAR, D8 Corporation and Laima.