Once upon a time…no, try again… in a galaxy far, far away .. no, try again.. it was a dark and stormy night … no, but you get the idea. Bryan H. and Brian A. thought that it would be a good idea, following our participation in the Freo and Midland suburban jaunts, to set a Metro March-type novelty event. Various ideas were tossed around and we concluded that somewhere like Mandurah would be a good idea as it is bit closer for our fellow rogainers from Bunbury and other places south. So Mandurah it was.

Having selected a general area Bryan H took a quick reconnaissance trip, found a park for the Hash House location and set some rough boundaries. We then took a look at the road directory, made a scatter of approximate locations to look for things to make life interesting, and sent Bryan off to do some detailed investigations. A few freebie trips on the train as a senior’s card holder and some further reconnaissance in search of geocaches (some errant side tracking activity) with Jane to keep him on track and we had a range of control features selected. Photos were carefully taken of every feature - even though some mug did remove the sign for the muffin shop after the photo was taken.

Brian A. then headed south with packed lunch and waterbag and did some vetting and made a couple of minor changes. A map was carefully drafted and sent to Paul D. of Juffy Maps who so ably assisted us to get the map into production We intended this to be a family friendly event with enough for a group of large and smaller people to collect a few controls and have a good time and, at the same time, to set a few challenges for those who might be in it for the long run.

Controls were positioned on historical and hysterical features from south of the estuary to way up the north, overlooking the ocean, the canals, the estuary, suburbia, the railway station, and the chip shop. Coffee shops were also included - we had to resist marking them with a “C” on the map. The overall thought was “This should be a hoot”.

And a hoot it was. The day was specially selected for the weather. It was warm enough for the ice cream shop to be a temptation and sunny enough to enable all to enjoy the delights of wandering around the town. Three of the controls scooped the pool of all 74 teams while some of the more isolated only managed to be visited by four teams. The controls were sometimes fairly obvious if you went to the right place, but some required a little more looking about. On cycling around to check progress, Brian A. was rewarded by the sight of a group of about four teams standing around scratching their heads, looking at their maps, and gazing about. A few not so subtle coughs were made to suggest that the short post less than a metre high that a few were almost tripping over might be worth looking at for some Cathode Protection.

It’s always pleasing to see smaller competitors out and about and enjoying themselves with Mum and Dad and this event had a goodly share of family groups. Coming across a group a bit further north than Brian A. would have expected he was pleased to find that this was their first event and they were having a great time. Rogaining really is fun, Vince.

After the walking came our mini-hash house barbecue and it is here that we should express a huge thanks to Ronelle and Amanda who buttered, sliced and cooked all those buns, onions and sausages. We must also thank the pre-event packers at the shed, the truck driving crew, Barrie T. who assisted with the admin, those who helped with the packing up, and those stalwarts who helped unpack the truck. It is always appreciated that we have people to help and we would encourage all who have not put themselves down to volunteer for something to do your bit.

The setters had a good time, and from the feedback on the day, we think all who entered had a good time too. While not the same as a bush event urban rogaines are fun too and we look forward to seeing where the next one will be held.

Brian Austin, Bryan Hardy and Jane
Hardy, the setters, vetters and general layabouts extraordinaire.