North Island Schools’ Orienteering Championships.
During the April holidays, the NISSOC was held over two days of glorious Hawke’s Bay sunshine and one day of less glorious overcast. However, the Napier Boys High School team shone on every day.
Day One was the sprint, held at Tamatea High and Anderson Park. NBHS dominated, emerging 55 points ahead of the pack. Day Two were the long distance races on the tricky Waipoapoa map where more than one pretender was found out in the rocks and gullies. Behind another strong team performance, NBHS extended their overall advantage by 58 points. Day Three at Te Awanga was the relay, where hearts are broken and underdogs growl. NBHS displayed remarkable professionalism winning four medals in three races and leading the scoring by a further 48 points.
NBHS were North Island champions for the 11th time in the 22 years of this event. The winning total (472.5) and margin (166.5) are both records for the event since it was expanded to a three day series. Attention now turns to the New Zealand Schools’ Championships in Waikato in July.
