Jan Kjellström
International Festival
of Orienteering 2025
South Yorkshire
18th April - 21st April
South Yorkshire 18th April - 21st April

Middle Distance ⬥ Saturday 19th April 2025

Saturday 19th April 2025

Tankersley Woods

Navigating around Tankersley during a fast-paced middle distance race is as complex as the intricate earthworks that remain following decades of industrial activity on the area.

Competitors can look forward to springtime displays of bluebells among the contours in the natural oak woodland which forms much of the area. Patches of maturing shrubs and younger trees growing on reclaimed spoil heaps add some variation, keeping runners on their toes!

Tankersley is underlain by six beds of coal measure ironstone. From 1793 until the early 1880s, ironstone mining came to dominate large parts of the estate to supply the Thorncliffe ironworks. Much of the ironstone was extracted using 'bell-pits' or 'gin-pits'. The result of the working was to throw up what appears to the casual observer to be rows of giant mole-hills.   

Melvyn Jones (Historian), 1984

Location

Tankersley is situated near Chapeltown, 10km north of Sheffield City Centre, just off Junction 35A/36 of the M1. The Arena is in an open area of Westwood Country Park accessed from Greaves Lane:
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Parking will be on hard standing in the Winston and Thorncliffe Business Parks, which will also be used on Day 3. The Arena will be a 2-3km walk away, depending on parking location (route shown below). Buses will be provided to transport the oldest and youngest from Parking to the Arena.

For those using public transport, Chapeltown Train Station - a 12-minute train ride from Sheffield - is a 3.5km walk from the Arena. Taking the frequent public bus service from Chapeltown to the Wortley Road/Thompson Hill stop (10 mins) reduces this walk to just 1.1km.

Event Schedule

08:00 Car parks open
08:30 Arena facilities open
08:40 First bus to Arena for older/younger competitors
10:00 First start
14:00 Last start
14:50 WRE Flower Ceremony
16:00 Courses close
16:00 Last bus back to car parks for older/younger competitors
16:15 Arena facilities close

Travel

Select a button to view travel directions

Please consider using public transport to get to the event. Trains and buses are good and a shorter walk to the Arena is possible.

The nearest train station is at Chapeltown. Trains run to Chapeltown regularly from Sheffield, Barnsley and Leeds. From Chapeltown railway station it is about 1.5 km to join the walking route from the car parks to the Arena, but it is better to use a bus to get nearer. If you do decide to walk from the train station, go roughly north east along Lound Side and Lane End (same road) turning right along Thorncliffe Lane for the last 250m to join the main walking route at the start of Ironstone Drive.

Stagecoach Yorkshire bus number 1 goes from Chapeltown Lound Side (near the railway station) to the junction of Wortley Road and Westwood Road roughly every 15 minutes. The bus journey takes about 10 minutes. Get off when the bus turns left into Thompson Hill opposite Westwood Road:
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The walk along Westwood Road to the Arena is only 1.2 km instead of between 2.3 km and 3km from the car parks. The full route of this bus is from Jordanthorpe (south of Sheffield) through Sheffield centre and then to High Green. Other buses use the route from Lound Side to Wortley Road though less frequently.

An area in the Arena will be available for cycle parking, but please make your own arrangements for locking cycles together. From Chapeltown, cycle roughly north east along Lound Side, Lane End, Mortomley Lane and Wortley Road (all the same road though the name keeps changing) before turning right into Westwood Road which becomes Greaves Lane. The TransPennine Trail route must not be used as this passes through the competition area. Please take care and go slowly, especially when you get to Greaves Lane where you will see those walking to the Arena.

All 3 parking areas are spaces around business parks, all accessed via Thorncliffe Road:
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Please share transport as much as possible. This is for environmental reasons and because of pressure on our car parking spaces.

If travelling from the south on the M1, leave at junction 35A. At the roundabout turn left into Thorncliffe Road where the speed limit becomes 30 mph.

If travelling from the north on the M1, leave at junction 36. Drive west along the A61 (50 mph limit) and then at the roundabout turn left along the A616. At the next roundabout turn right into Thorncliffe Road with the 30 mph speed limit. Please note that it is not possible to leave or join the M1 at junction 35A if travelling from or to the north.

Car Parking

There will be 3 car parking areas and you must choose the one you intend to use when you enter. The same choice must be used for Days 2 and 3. The default choice will be Car Park A.

Please drive slowly when you get into the car parks and follow the instructions of marshals. Be aware that there will be many walkers using the same roads as cars.

There will be a few toilets in Car Park A and Car Park B, but these are for use by helpers and for emergencies. Please use toilets before you get to the car parks or wait until you get to the Arena.

Car Park A (off Newton Chambers Road)
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Turn left at the roundabout after 800m along Thorncliffe Road and then turn right with care after 100m onto Newton Chambers Road. This car parking will be used by most competitors. The walk to the Arena is 2.3km with a 40m climb from the exit of this car park plus up to an additional 0.5km for those parked furthest away.

Car Park B (off Churchill Way)
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Turn right with great care after 650m along Thorncliffe Road. This car parking is intended for those who need to use a bus to get to the Arena. Buses are only meant for any M/W14 and under and M/W65 and over who wish to use them plus those who must accompany them. Ask the organiser if you have another reason to need to use the buses. Any M/W14 and under and M/W65 and over who are happy to walk should use Car Park A which is nearer for walking. The walk to the bus stop on Thorncliffe Road will be between 100m and 400m and then there is another 250m from the bus drop off to the Arena. The walk to the Arena from this car park is between 2.9 km and 3.2 km.

Car Park C (Rotunda Area)
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Turn right at the roundabout after 800m along Thorncliffe Road. This car park is to be used by vehicles too big to fit into a normal car parking space - larger campervans and minibuses. The walk to the Arena is about 2.7km via Car Park A and the walk to the bus stop is about 150m.

Route to the Arena

Buses

Buses are being provided for any M/W14 and under and M/W65 and over who wish to use them plus those who must accompany them. Directions to the bus stop will be clear from car parks B and C. Buses will drop off and pick up about 300m from the Arena entrance. Take care crossing Greaves Lane and follow the directions of marshals. Dogs are not allowed on the buses so anyone wishing to take their dog with them must walk and use car parks A or C.

Walk to the Arena

Signs and marshals in car parks A and C will guide competitors to the walking exit. The route is via the pavement in Ironstone Drive, a path round a sports fields, public footpaths to the south of a reservoir and stream (no need to go near either), 40m along Greaves Lane, and then uphill on another public footpath. The route is possible for pushchairs, but they may need lifting down a few steps and through a narrow gap.

The short section on Greaves Lane will be marshalled, but walkers must keep in single file on the right (and then on the left on return). There will be traffic on the road and views along it are restricted – take care.

Particularly on the last stretch to the Arena on a public footpath, competitors must not stray off the path because birds may have already started nest building.

Starts

There are two Starts, as detailed below.

Start Courses Route Details
Far Start 1 to 7 1km, 40m climb A Model Area with a few controls is provided on the route to the Far Start.
There will be no toilets at the Far Start.
Near Start 8 to 24 150m level walk The Near Start kite and route to it are on public paths and the public must be allowed to walk through.

Map

Most recently used for the CompassSport Cup Final in 2021, a previous map of Tankersley can be seen on the SYO Routegadget.

The map is to ISOM 2017-2 IOF Specification, unless otherwise stated. Map scale 1:7,500 for Courses 11 to 24 and 1:10,000 for Courses 1 to 10, with a 5m contour interval. Survey and cartography by Dave Peel (Peel Land Surveys) for JK25. All maps are A4 size, and double-sided for Courses 1 to 14. The second part of the course will be facing competitors when maps are picked up, so maps will need turning over to start.

The ride symbol has been used to show minor paths to make the map more legible - these are usually slightly easier running than the surrounding terrain.

Black crosses on the map represent man-made hides of assorted sizes.

Terrain Notes

Tankersley Woods has a rich industrial heritage and once contained factories and railways. During the war it was heavily bombed. It now contains a wealth of detail with many bell pits, bomb craters and myriads of paths created by local people spread across mixed vegetation comprising natural oak woodland with bluebells through reclaimed spoil heaps with maturing shrubs and young trees.

The area has been worked for coal and iron, which has left complex slopes covered by the scars of hand-hewn "bell-pits" and other earth-works from the 19th century and before. These days the area is used by dog-walkers, cyclists and trail-bikers, making a large number of paths. In the most active biking areas the path network is very complex. The mapping of these paths is good, but small new paths can be created quickly.

There are brambles in parts of the area, but most are at ankle-length, are pretty runnable and have no bramble screen. There are some areas of thicker brambles in the far south of the map.

Part of the area - used only by the longer courses - is used for paintballing. None will be taking place during the competition, but there is a substantial amount of associated clutter in this area e.g. oil drums, small huts, ropes and net screens/fences. Some of the screens are quite extensive; where they are an obstacle they are marked with a purple overprint line on the map.

The terrain at the end of the courses is unlike the rest of the area. It is semi-open scrubland with some dense thickets and undergrowth where the paths and rides are usually significantly faster than the surrounding area.

Provisional Course Details

Course Classes Start Distance (km) Climb (m) Controls Map Scale Tech Diff
1 M21E Far 6.1 245 30 1:10,000 5
2 M35L Far 5.7 225 31 1:10,000 5
3 W21E Far 5.0 155 25 1:10,000 5
4 M21L M50L Far 5.4 165 27 1:10,000 5
5 M18E M20E Far 4.4 155 22 1:10,000 5
6 W18E W20E Far 3.6 100 18 1:10,000 5
7 M40L M45L Far 5.5 185 30 1:10,000 5
8 M55L Near 4.8 180 27 1:10,000 5
9 M60L W35L Near 4.2 155 23 1:10,000 5
10 W21L W40L W45L Near 4.2 160 19 1:10,000 5
11 M65L W50L Near 4.1 145 22 1:7,500 5
12 M16A M35S M40S M45S W55L Near 3.7 150 19 1:7,500 5
13 M18L M20L M21S M50S M70L Near 3.5 130 19 1:7,500 5
14 M55S M75L W35S W60L Near 3.5 110 20 1:7,500 5
15 M60S W16A W40S W45S W65L Near 3.1 105 15 1:7,500 5
16 M65S M80L W18L W20L W21S W50S W70L Near 2.5 110 12 1:7,500 5
17 M18S M20S M70S M75S M21V W55S W60S W65S W75 Near 2.2 55 13 1:7,500 5
18 M85 M80S W18S W20S W70S W80L W21V Near 2.0 70 13 1:7,500 5
19 M90 M95 W85 W90 W95 W80S Near 1.3 35 9 1:7,500 5
20 M14A M16B Near 3.4 105 19 1:7,500 4
21 W14A W16B Light Green Near 2.9 125 14 1:7,500 4
22 M12A M14B W12A W14B Orange Near 2.5 90 12 1:7,500 3
23 M10A M12B W10A W12B Yellow Near 2 75 12 1:7,500 2
24 M10B W10B White Near 1.4 30 12 1:7,500 1

Officials

Planners - Maria Mackenzie & James Meredith (EBOR)

Controller - Michael Chopping (RAFO)

Assistant Controller - Colin Drury (SYO)

Mapper - Dave Peel (Peel Land Surveys)

Organiser - Mike Cope (CLARO) 

Assistant Organiser - David Jolly (HALO)

IOF Adviser - Tony Thornley (AIRE)