LAKELAND Orienteering Club's annual championship took place during a lull in the bad weather.

Fortunately the woods at Roudsea, mapped for orienteering by Alan Heppenstall, had not suffered major damage from the wind, but there was a lot of standing water not on the map.

Seventy-six club members enjoyed some excellent courses, planned by last year's club champion Angela Heppenstall.

A network of paths and tracks provided interesting routes for the less technical courses (white and orange), while intricate terrain and variable visibility tested the more experienced (green and blue courses) in an area that most had not seen before.

Club members were handicapped by start time with the aim that everyone finished at 12 o'clock.

Iain Smith-Ward and Nick Howlett started seconds apart on the longest (blue) course and after a close contest, the former took the club championship.

Junior Tom Winsor, who was third on the blue course, was awarded a well-merited runners-up award, while Charlotte Somers-Cocks was first lady home on blue.

Relative newcomers Hannah Metcalfe and Joe Taylor took the prizes on the white course; Kate Farley and Cameron Arnold on the orange; and Sarah Browne and Richard Tiley on green.

Club chairman Graham Walkden presented two additional annual trophies.

Michael McIver received the Ian Blakey trophy as the most improved young orienteer (he finished some 20 minutes ahead of his father on Sunday).

The coveted 'Fast Cat' trophy for the most successful senior member went to Verena Johnson to mark in particular her wins in the Jan Kjellstrom Easter Festival.

The Club Championships mark the end of one season and the start of the new.

As always the club is indebted to landowners and others for permission to run their events - in this case Holker Estate and English Nature.

Information about the club and its activities can be found on: www.lakeland-orienteering.org.uk.