by David Hogg

May 2019 is the 50th anniversary of the first official intervarsity competition in the sport that is now known as rogaining. The origins of this competition, and indeed of the sport of rogaining itself, can be traced back to a weekend in 1947 when the five members of the Melbourne University Mountaineering Club (MUMC) embarked on a competitive 24 hour walk through the hills east of Melbourne. Despite the low numbers, the competition proved popular and was repeated the following year, this time attracting about two dozen competitors in teams of two or more.

The 24 Hour Walk continued to grow in popularity and remained a highlight of the MUMC event program for over 40 years, also attracting participants from the equivalent clubs in Melbourne’s other universities, Monash and Latrobe. The idea was also exported to Adelaide, when an MUMC member moved there and became active with the Adelaide University Mountain Club.

In the early 1960s, MUMC was the only club belonging to the Melbourne University Sports Union that did not participate in an intervarsity competition. The Club therefore initiated a move to establish an intervarsity 24 Hour Walk, with the support of its counterparts at Monash and Adelaide Universities. Unofficial competitions were conducted from 1964, while the Club endeavoured to gain approval from the Australian Universities Sports Association (AUSA) for conducting the event on an official basis.

The 2019 Intervarsity was held in conjunction with the ACT Championship in Bournda National Park and Nature Reserve near Merimbula NSW on 18-19 May.

Superb warm sunny weather on the weekend ensured that the scenic coastal terrain was at its best. The hash house was situated at a disused adventure park featuring a scenic lake and golf course.

It was a special occasion for the 50th anniversary of the Intervarsity. David Hogg, who organised the first official intervarsity in 1969, presented the trophies to the winners and placegetters.

ACT again provided the bulk of the 13 Intervarsity teams, with 10 teams from Australian National University (ANU). Tony Newman and Mikey Dimuantes, were first in Mens Open, second place overall and winners of the 13th Nigel Aylott University Championship.

First mixed Intervarsity team was Kelvin Peh and Holly Ashburner of ANU, whilst the women's IV winners were Alice Schacher, Zoe Oldfield and Rhea Papadopoulos from ANU. Results are posted on the: ARA website.

Most artifacts from the first official Intervarsity in 1969 have survived, due to the meticulous record keeping by MUMC Historian David Hogg and the Victorian Rogaining Association (VRA) archives setup and managed by Chris Solnordal.

The Intervarsity course was set on the Daylesford 1 inch to 1 mile scale (1:63,360) topographic map.

The course consisted of 25 controls, separate Start (S) and Finish (F), plus 3 Hash Houses. The map can be read in conjunction with the control descriptions and event information: page 1, page 2, page 3.

Details of the Intervarsity event invitation and planned program, the entry form, and directions to the event.

The 2019 World Rogaining Championship (WRC), will be organised by the Iberogaine Association of Spain, on 27-28 July. The event is centred on two of Catalunya's top ski resorts: La Molina and Masella, with the competition area straddling the Spain/France border in the Pyrenees Mountains.
The combination of high altitude, steep slopes and 40% open terrain will be very different from any previous WRC. Currently 49 Australians have entered.
The event website for WRC2019 is: www.wrc2019.cat/en.