Report

Thanks to Sion Matthews for this report.

Last of the winter Navigation Runs, the Spring Navigation Run had another good number of entries. Lee went and put the symbols out an hour ahead of the crews, whilst Sion and Endaf signed everyone on. After a short crew briefing, they were given their packs. The area used has some of the best lanes Anglesey has to offer with a straight forward route using some NAM (Not As Map) diagrams.
The route instructions used mostly map references with one Tulip section, which most people got to grips with very quickly. Symbols where mostly easy to see with the odd sneaky one placed for deciders.

Starting and finishing in the Church Bay Inn, the route was divided into 4 sections.
Section 1 - “Church Bay” to “Llanrhyddlad”. The route passed through the small beach white leading to the back of Llanfaethlu, then a layby and up towards Rhydwyn, looping back to Lllanrhyddlad using a small white, then NAM1 on the A road (layby on left).
Section 2 - “Llanrhyddlad” to “Mynydd Mechell”. Heading southwest towards Llanddeusant before slotting left for Llanbabo with its NAM2, then a loop through Carreglefn, which is now a 20MPH zone, ending up near Mynydd Mechell.
Section 3 - “Mynydd Mechell” north to “Llanfechell”, looking for a slot left in the village heading back towards Llanfairynghonwy, followed by the laybys and NAM3 on the A5025 before heading back towards Lllanfechell.
Section 4 - “Llanfechell” to “Church Bay”. A small white was used in Tregele, then the coastal road taking in NAMs 4, 5 and 6, through Llanfairynghornwy and ending up back where it all started at the Church Bay Inn for 22:00 hours.

Results are below, and a special well done to Emyr and Aron on the win, only missing some sneaky symbols (74). Aron and Tom recorded a dud symbol on the short-cut road of NAM 5 losing a point (73). Will and Rhian missed the Llanrhyddlad loop missing 3 valuable points (71.5)
Jill and Paul were potential the winners but missed the Rhydwyn top loop and the Llanbabo NAM2. A case of what could have been! (71). Lee and Sion also missed the Rhydwyn loop but lost out 4th on furthest cleanest missing a “village symbol” in Llanrhyddlad (71). John and Iwan had a good run and were the only ones to get NAM2 correct which require a full clockwise encirclement of the triangle, recording the first “L” twice. But they then slotted left in Carreglefn missing out the North loop here, missing out 3 possible points (70.5).
Owain and Deian doing well until they missed a lot of the laybys in section 3 on the A5025 (68). Gethin and Carwyn missed the Llanfaethlu layby and Tregele whites (67). Andrew, Gwion and Moi missed the Llanfaethlu layby and missplotted a loop before the laybys in section 3. They also missed a yellow symbol which was placed in amongst some Daffodils. (66.5). Robin and Huw missed the Rhydwyn loop along with some other NAMs (62).
Dyfan and Llifon missed some random ones along with the laybys in section 3 (61.5). Osian and Gruffydd missed the Rhydwyn loop, Tregele white, and an error on NAM 5 (59.5)

There were 81 points available, although there were four sneaky “gateway” symbols no-one spotted. The results are fairly close, being a simpler route with an easy-to-see symbol on each road, so small mistakes made big position changes. Well done to all on an enjoyable route. We were out in several places making sure the competitors were following the rules and behaving, which they were.
Sincere thanks to Sion for organising the event and for the report. A big thank you to Jamie Jones and Endaf Davies for DSO duties and general helping out; Lee Matthews for symbol setup and pull down; and to Church Bay Inn for use of their facilities.

Many thanks to all the competitors for supporting the last seven Navigation Runs, by the numbers we get and the feedback, we seem to be doing something right. There’ll be a summer break now, although I do have some ideas in mind, so keep an eye out on the C&A Facebook page.

RESULTS.
1. Emyr Owen / Aron Jones; Suzuki Vitara - 74 points.
2. Aron Evans / Tom Lindstrom; BMW E36 - 73 pts.
3. Will Hughes / Rhian Hughes; VW Amarok - 71.5 pts.
4. Jill Clarke / Paul Clarke; Nissan Qashqai - 71 pts. *
5. Lee Threadgold / Sion Jones; Peugeot RCZ – 71 pts.
6. John Evans / Iwan Evans; Ford Focus ST – 70.5 pts.
7. Owain Hunt / Deian Williams – Ford Fiesta – 68 pots.
8. Gethin Williams / Carwyn Hughes; Ford Focus – 67 pts.
9. Andrew Emberton / Gwion Annwyl / Moi Williams; Ford Transit – 66.5 pts.
10. Robin Jones / Huw Jones; Renault Kangoo – 62 pts.
11. Dyfan Williams / Llifon Williams; Toyota Auris – 61.5 pts.
12. Osian Gwyn / Gruffudd Madrin; Toyota Yaris – 59.5 pts.

Reserves:
Geriant Jones / Cameron Hazelgrove; Suzuki Swift.
Adam Barton / Gethin Rees; Ford Fiesta.

*= furthest cleanest. Maximum points available was 81.

Information

With the evenings getting lighter and clocks going forward the following weekend, the Spring Navigation Run will be the last until next autumn. This event is being organised by Sion Matthews and will not be a qualifier for Duncan's Romer, but will still be enjoyable with good plotting and map-reading practice for beginners and experts alike.
For a change of scene, the event will start and finish at the Church Bay Inn, Rhydwyn, LL65 4ES; map reference 114/306 894.5. The what3words location is ///dealings.yatching.factories
Sign on at 18.30 hours, and route handouts at 19.00 hours. Finish at 22.00 hours..
You will require OS map 114 (Anglesey/Ynys Môn), plus the usual navigation aids of poti, romer, pen/pencil, etc.

Drivers and navigators need a valid club membership, expiring 31st October 2023. Renew or join at Membership Application