Radio punches at the Australian MTBO Championships 2024
The first large competition for meshO radio controls — 202 riders and 625 participations across mass start, middle, sprint and long races around Canberra, with radio punches streaming to the commentator and the arena screens.
- Where
- Canberra, ACT
- When
- 17–20 October 2024
- Scale
- 202 competitors · 625 participations · 4 races
- meshO provided
- Radio controls · results screens with radio punches · commentary feed
The brief
In February 2024 the meshO team was awarded a grant from the Moira Whiteside Orienteering Bequest to develop a new generation of radio controls for orienteering. The Australian Mountain Bike Orienteering Championships in Canberra, eight months later, were the target: the first time the radios would run at a large competition.
The championships in numbers
202
competitors
625
participations
4
championship races
6
countries and territories
What meshO provided
- Radio controls on the courses, on the meshO mesh
- Radio punches streaming in real time to the commentator, Árpád Kocsik, who followed competitors through their courses
- Results screens in the arena, showing radio punches and live results in a clean, uncluttered layout
How it ran
Four formats on five maps made it a thorough test. One event ran in torrential rain, another covered very large distances, and the terrain ran the full range from open and clear to dense and hilly. Feedback from competitors and organisers was overwhelmingly positive.
What we learnt
- Range has limits. On the Stringybark map, some radios were out of reach of the network. What we learnt about where to put radios is now in the planning guide and the range guide.
- Mounts need to be strong. Several of the 3D-printed base plates broke during the carnival. They were replaced by a stronger design — today’s meshO Bracket.
Race by race
| Race | Map | Starters |
|---|---|---|
| Mass start | West Stromlo | 145 |
| Middle | Stringybark Hill | 163 |
| Sprint | Sutton Road Driving Centre | 150 |
| Long | West Kowen | 167 |
A social score event at Bruce Ridge the day before, with 109 starters, made it five maps in four days.
Participations count every start: a rider who raced all four championships counts four times. Figures from the published Eventor results.
“Having meshO technology at the carnival allowed to provide higher level of safety, the top level of informativeness for the audience, and created a spirit of true and large carnival! We were thrilled to work with fast-moving and super-innovative meshO team!”
Read the full story in The Australian Orienteer: “meshO – a success story”, December 2024, p. 44.
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