Orienteering Event Equipment for Clubs, Schools & Course Organisers
A well-planned course depends on more than the map. Once the courses have been set, organisers need a clear and dependable way to mark each control point, confirm that competitors have visited it and prepare enough kit for everyone taking part.
This section brings together specialist orienteering event equipment for competitions, club training, school activities and permanent courses. It covers temporary control markers, fixed markers for long-term installations, traditional control cards and punches, plus options for organisations ordering in quantity.
The four sections cover different jobs:
Control Kites — orange and white markers for competitions, training exercises and temporary courses.
Permanent Markers — fixed control markers for permanent orienteering and navigation courses.
Control Cards and Punches — a straightforward manual system for recording visits to controls without electronic timing.
Bulk Order Bundles — useful when a club, school, outdoor centre or other organisation needs multiple items rather than a single piece.
From Training Session to Permanent Course
The first question is not how much to buy, but what you are setting up.
For a temporary competition or club training session, portable control flags can be placed before the activity and collected afterwards. Training markers also provide a practical option for exercises where full-size race kit is unnecessary.
A permanent course works differently. Its control points stay in position so people can navigate without an organiser putting out markers each time. Schools, parks, clubs and outdoor centres can use this type of setup for repeated navigation activities.
Traditional punches and control cards provide another option where electronic timing is not required. This simple system is particularly useful for training, schools and activities where the aim is to confirm that participants reached the correct controls rather than record electronic split times.
For events using electronic punching, see our SPORTident section for SI-Cards, SIAC and related timing products.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is used to mark an orienteering course?
Temporary courses normally use orange and white control kites positioned at the mapped control sites. Training sessions may use smaller training markers, while permanent courses use fixed markers that remain at the location.
Do I need SPORTident to run an orienteering activity?
Not necessarily. Electronic punching is widely used for competitive events, but control cards and manual punches provide a simple alternative for training, schools and other activities where electronic timing is not needed.
Can schools and outdoor centres use this equipment?
Yes. Much of the same course-setting kit can be used for school sessions, club coaching, outdoor education, youth activities and permanent navigation courses as well as competitive events.