This web site is being closed down and is not being maintained.  The new web page is http://www.hmarston.co.uk

Queries about this page to RRR@NOThmarston.co.uk  
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Note - we are using the 2006 Event Centre, Dearne Valley College Sports

Significant changes are under consideration for Stage 7 (Maltby to Old Denaby): more details later

Travel to Event Centre

Public transport

Accommodation

Route description (Supporter's cars)

Route description (Participants)

Grid references, GPS data and how to clear your GPS unit

NEW: View the route on Google Earth (to be updated)

the 2006 strip (Wainwright-style) Map
(to be updated for 2007)
This is a 500 kB downloadable .pdf file, for Adobe Acrobat
Now in colour (of sorts)!
UPDATED FOR 2006 with changes marked  §
Other changes may be reported.

(see a sample, 2 of the 16 stripes, from 1998 and only 23 kbytes)

a) you need Adobe Acrobat, which you probably have on a 'modern' computer.  
If you do not have it, click this button:   
b) The map is a moderately large file that will take some time to download if you are on a telephone line (but a quarter of the time of the previous version)

Stage 1: Start to Grange 
Significant change.   Leave Event Centre, follow College road to roundabout, cross it to Manvers roundabout.  Take 3rd exit Barnsley A6023 (to right of MANVERS sign) on FP/cycle track. Pass 4 roundabouts.  Continue on FP to fork.  Bear L, then R, up slope to Blue Bridge.  Cross BR, L, then fork R across grass to lakeside path.  At end of lake, bear L (do not cross bridge) to path junction.  L along main (level) hard-surfaced FP, signed TPT.  Keep on this hard-surfaced FP, under bridges, and follow it right across a BR to a RD.  Cross RD, under metal arch, after 200 m bear L, signed Elsecar, on narrow path, cross RD (under another arch). Surfaced path, parallel to dual carriageway, to access RD to Retail Park.  Cross Rd, R of Morrisons, down slope, following surfaced path, bear R after clear area, eventually joining canal towpath.  Next landmark: Elsecar  This section is shown in pictures  There is also a printable description with map  (for best results, Save target as... and then print with Adobe Acrobat).

Stage 2
 ( Brinsworth to Catcliffe):
Site work on Europa Way obstructs route past  the airport landing lights. 
After turning down Wood Lane, turn L at end of concrete bridge, up bank to flat land (development site).  Follow black wire mesh fence, on good land adjacent to fence (keep on flat land when gully appears next to fence).  Continue to field/site corner adjacent to main RD, down steps and follow fence below main RD and R after bridge.  Then L at end of fence on path across rough land, fork R twice, emerge onto open land then L alongside hedge to FP to L of wooden fence in front of houses.  Follow FP, cross RD, FP between fences. Follow RD to Catcliffe.   This section is shown in pictures 

Stage 3
In Rother Valley Park. Do not turn right off park access road as in previous years.  Instead, follow park access RD to main RD.  Cross RD, turn R (downhill).  L along tarmac track just before stream (bridge).  Follow track to canal, merge to towpath, uphill (Norwood). Follow canal bank. 

Stage 2:
Within Grange Park, there are now even more fences.  Follow park road for 100 m, turn L and follow to road  bend and  gates in security fence.  Turn right following path/surfaced path between fences and hedge, (New bit) Keep going in same general direction, down, across park road and up following fence round football pitches, Left at corner. At end of low wooden pole fence, turn Right along edge of rough ground to SMALL path. You are now back on route.

Stage 2:
The field with the landing lights of Sheffield Airport is now fenced off (Stage 2, Brinsworth to Catcliffe). Unless the path is re-opened, follow airport access road to roundabout, under bridge (following signs for Catcliffe), past Morrisons and 2 roundabouts, continue to left turn on road towards Catcliffe - go straight ahead in line with Left kerb of Poplar Way over earthbank signed as a footpath 

Details will be confirmed on the day.

Thanks to Les Hill  and Ian Wallis for bringing some of these changes to our attention..

Changes 2003: 6 items


• Grange Park (map strip 3) - Revised again: see 2004

• Meadow Hall Road A6109  (map strip 4)
  New security fencing around warehouses and alongside the railways can hide the path (on approach to river path)

• Harthill checkpoint has been moved - after 4th stile, turn half right across field to car park by children's playground, instead of half left to follow hedge.  Leaving checkpoint, left on minor road towards main road (take snicket after pub), cross road, turn left and go right up steps, a signed footpath,  after wide drive.  Map showing changes at Harthill (in .pdf format, for Acrobat Reader)
• Approaching the main road before Roche Abbey, there is now a kissing gate on the left.
• at Swinton, the water tower (a noted landmark) has been demolished
• in Wath-on-Dearne, KwikSave is now Tesco

• Checkpoint 2 has been moved from Fence to Treeton, 1.7 km earlier, after the footbridge over the railway. All supporter's cars to be parked ABOVE the new housing estate, on Washfield Lane, Treeton.

• At Thorpe Hesley, after going down through a housing estate, work half left past one hedge and up to a gap in a second hedge. Then straight up to the ridge where the path goes left (previously we went half right to the ridgge after the gap in the second hedge).
• After Fence, the turn off the main road goes straight onto a cycle path leading to the railway viaduct - yet another annoying 'improved' section! There was a good paddle there!
• After Rother Valley Park, the canal towpath from Norwood is open again (last year there was a diversion down the road)
• After Swinton, after leaving the side arm of the canal, the new path to Dearne Valley College is now the preferred route (the old route alongside the railway is not viable, especially after dark - it may even be closed off). Up to the road, left, right and pick up the new path (last year under construction) at the first corner.

at Dearne Valley College Sports.  THIS IS A CHANGE FROM 2005. Start and Finish, showers & food at finish. DVC Sports, 4 km from the finish in previous years, is signed from the Manvers roundabout (SE 454008) on the A6023. Grid Ref SE 455003, Postcode (for Sat Nav systems) S63 7EW - Manvers Park, Wath upon Dearne, Rotherham. Link to Google Map (Note: this is NOT the Dearne Valley Leisure Centre, east of Mexborough). Click here for .pdf version to save and print

Accommodation (possible lift from Rotherham and public transport)

To view the route, using Google Earth.
a) Go to the Google Earth website, download and install Google Earth (requires broadband internet access to operate)
b) Save the route file (right click on this link, select Save Target As and save the file 06DEC09_RRR_GE_CP.kml to a suitable folder, e.g. My Places in My Documents, the default folder for Google Earth). 
c) Open Google Earth and File Open the file you saved.  You will see the route with start, checkpoints and finish. (start and finish are very close together to the north of the route; route is anti-clockwise)  For clarity, it is best to switch roads OFF (untick box).
d) When you exit Google Earth, decline the offer to save unsaved data, or you will get it in duplicate next time.

Navigation round the route (participants)

We try to specify the route in advance, but late changes may have to be made, even on the day, if dictated by circumstances.

1. Written description, in the LDWA tradition, or right click here and Save Target as ... or Print target (to print it properly)

2. The "Wainwright-style" diagrammatic map, in which the route works UP each sheet.  Note: the new start is on Strip 16, rather than Strip 1
The map is in .pdf format Warning:  500 k bytes
This schematic will be available in full as hard copies on the day.
This version may not be fully updated, but it has been updated for the change of event centre to DVC Sports
There is also a printable description of the changes caused by moving the Event Centre, with map  
(for best results, for either map, Save target as... and then print with Adobe Acrobat)
2-strips for clarity, compared with the usual 4 strips on A4 sheets (4 sheets each with 4 strips)

3. A schematic map (1 Megabyte) provides an overview of the route and is provided to show the checkpoints, to aid relocation (in the unlikely event of you going astray).

4. OS Grid references of around 160 key points to mark up the route on the OS Maps - use the route file, which splits the course into 8 stages, with abbreviated descriptions of what happens at each waypoint and provides 10-figure grid references  (not updated to include route changes to stages 2 and 3 - they should be fairly straightforward)

5. GPS waypoints in OS format for Garmin GPS units using the precise format required by PCX5 software.
Also loadable to newer Garmins (which can't use PCX5), Magellan and other GPS brands using inter alia GPS Utility  5 Dec: GPS files have been updated to include route changes

6. GPSU files: If you have GPSU (even if you don't have a GPS unit) you can download a map and display the route.  Download the following three files into the same directory, open GPSU and select the first (.txt) file. txt  map  calibration Click on the 'map' icon and you should have the route displayed in front of you.  The Start C-001 is the waypoint to the SE of the northmost waypoint L-002.  Alternatively, the resulting map is available as an acrobat file.  You can then transfer the information to your own copy of the map; these versions are inadequate for navigation.  

7. GPS waypoints in .aef format for Anquet maps.  The file, created by GPSU, is said to contains the waypoints and routes as Anquet paths.  Or as a single Anquet route.  Or as a series of paths derived from each stage (only stage 1 at present for test purposes).   Unfortunately, I have not been able to check whether Anquet reads the files properly.

To clear your GPS of Round Rotherham waypoints, use the Clear data set.  Each year there are changes, so it is best to get a clean start.  Also, you may want to load other waypoints, e.g. the Munros, before your next run.  Download the file for the appropriate year 2004 2005 , upload to your GPS unit and then selectively delete all waypoints with the Wreck icon (code 7).    This procedure has been tested with a Garmin GPS12 using GPS Utility.

If you require a different GPS data format, contact me, henry@NOThmarston.co.uk (without NOT, and include a Subject and Body text - unexplained attachments are treated as spam)),  and I will try to generate it for you (using GPSU).

8.  The route in pictures.  We are building up a set of pictures to show the route as you will see it.  So far, we have the new access route from Rotherham, the new part of Stage 1, change on Stage 2, part of Stage 6 and the finish
The route in pictures: Access
The route in pictures: Stage 1
The route in pictures: Stage 2
The route in pictures: Stage 6
The route in pictures: Stage 8