The Punch

Mounted or hung near each control flag is a punch. An orienteering punch is a bright red plastic device with a number of sharp metal teeth (similar to a stapler). The orienteer uses this punch to prove that they have visited all the controls by impressing the pattern made by the teeth onto a control card in the box corresponding to the control being visited. When a control is expected to receive many visitors (e.g. when it is used by several different courses), several punches, all with the same pattern, are used. At the finish line, the orienteer hands the card over to the organisers, who later verify that the punch patterns correspond to the correct controls.

These pages were last modified Jul '99 by Conor Creedon.
Comments and suggestions to c.creedon@student.ucc.ie