Zara has recently been selected to compete at WOC2024 in Edinburgh, JWOC 2024 in Czechia, as well as WUOC in Bulgaria. She competed at JWOC last year in Romania and was reserve for WOC as well.
When asked how her training has been going, she said "It’s been great being at University in Christchurch as I’ve been able to train on the Port Hills. I have also really enjoyed the different maps they have to offer and being able to run on a mixture of terrain so close to home, such as the coastal sand dunes and hogsback. Additionally, there is also a great bunch of orienteers to train with.
I’ve just had a few days training on maps around Pilsen where JWOC will be held at the end of June and the Czech forest is awesome. It’s hilly with lots of negative detail and it has very different vegetation to NZ. (The ticks are not so great though as they seem to like me, my count to date is 10!)"
What does your orienteering equipment checklist look like and what would you recommend to others?
I have the usual gear like an air sport ident, control description holder and whistle. I would recommend having an accurate compass is a key item for every orienteer as a good bearing can be crucial in our sport.
Other things on my checklist are my faithful orange crocs for pre and post races and you may also catch me with my trusty blue cap. A good pair of grippy shoes, gaiters and woollen socks are definitely my go to, plus I sometimes use Gurney Goo to help keep any blisters away. Oh and of course sunscreen!
Nutrition is a crucial part of orienteering that often gets overlooked, how do you manage your energy intake so that you can perform your best for a race?
I have definitely struggled with working out what the right nutrition is for me for during training and pre and post races. It’s something that I have been working through via trial and error over the past few years. I have found eating a big meal 3 hours before exercising works well, whether that's eggs, overnight oats or peanut butter on toast, and then a banana an hour beforehand. During a long-distance race, I like to take at least one gel around halfway through. I try to take my gels with water but during a race that's not always possible which can make things a bit more challenging.
You recently trialled our GU Energy Chews, how did you find them?
I loved them! I normally only use energy gels to help stay focused or to give me more energy during a long orienteering race as I'm not the biggest fan of their texture. The energy chews however are great as they are just like lollies but have the same effects as gels. I tried the strawberry chews which contained caffeine which gave me an extra kick. I find they are an easy way to get an energy boost mid race as they don’t make me as thirsty, so I don’t always need water with them. They also come in handy two servings per packet.
I would definitely recommend them to anyone who is looking for an extra boost of energy during exercise.
