Mystery Runner Revealed!
Monsieur Gustave des Brikke
The deadline day for the competition to launch MAROC’s new web site is passed and so all can be revealed.
The deadline day for the competition to launch MAROC's new web site is passed and so all can be revealed.
The Orienteer is Monsieur Gustave des Brikke, an enigmatic elite French competitor who is more elusive than our very own Capercaillie.
Gustave has only officially competed three times in recent years, but is rumoured to register for many more events under the pseudonym Monsieur Moriati.
It was therefore a great surprise to the international Orienteering community when our photographer captured Gustave and a capercaillie called Brian, both competing in the M21E class at the 2009 Inver Invitational International event. Although Gustave cunningly borrowed a Maroc top from a washing line in Tarland, he made a fatal error by not removing his beret and false moustache. Further evidence of Gustave’s devious character can be seen with the onions which he used to disguise the control site and to put Brian off the scent.
The competition winner
Clearly John Mason's talents are wasted in his day job and he is well deserving of the free entry to the Scottish event of his choice for the best competition entry. (Just your own race entry John, not the whole family mind!). Click on the picture to view the Caper and onions properly in all their glory.
Next best
Peter Craig, Clare Martin, Alastair Marshall and Rhona McMillan all correctly identified the real runner and the area. If they can catch me close to the cake stall at a forthcoming MAROC event I'll gladly swell the coffers of the World Schools fundraising effort and buy them each a cake.
The competition answers
- The Orienteer is not " a Coombs wearing a tea cosy" but indeed it is Finlay Langan.
- The area is Inver - the west end thereof.
The tie breaker of "What event is the runner competing in?" caught everyone out. The key to that answer lies in the web site photo galleries.
Keys to the sleuthing:
The MAROC 2005 picture gallery shows an event at Inver in November 2005 in the same lighting conditions.
The MAROC 2010 picture gallery shows Finlay Langan running in the same pose (albeit reversed) in a new MAROC O top at Braunton Burrows at the JK Day 3 in Devon.
The control was lifted from another photo from the 2005 Inver event.
A little obscure perhaps but in defence it was just a tie breaker and the competition was meant to get folk looking around the site.
(With acknowledgements to Calum Coombs, Photoshop and the computing resources of the University of Trondheim for the composite header picture.)
See other entries Categorised under: News