Navshield

Please read this page before proceeding to register to make sure you have all the required information to complete your registration.

Before proceeding to registration you will need to answer the following questions:

• Are you entering your team into the 1 day event or the 2 day event?
• What is your team’s registration division?
• What is your team’s name?
• How many members are in your team?
• Would you like to order any meals?

Please note that we no longer need to register attendance of team support personnel.

Due to base site restrictions, this event is limited to the first 500 fully registered participants. Registration will close early if this limit is reached. Because of this restriction however, it is requested that entries be limited to a maximum of 16 participants per SES unit, configured in any arrangement of 1 or 2 day teams desired to allow fair access by all SES units. If space is still available, this restriction will be relaxed after the 12th June and more entrants from the same SES unit permitted.

Registrations will open early May.

If you need to substitute someone, swap teams, change meal requirements, withdraw, etc, please email us at navshield@ses.nsw.gov.au

When is it?

Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st July 2024

Where is it?

The venue is located approximately 3.5 hours north west of Sydney. The exact locations and directions to base will be revealed in your information pack emailed 1 week before the event.

Entry criteria for Navshield

Please read this section carefully.

• Due to legal requirements, all participants must be >18yrs old.
• Participants must be willing to sign an acceptance of risk statement and risk waiver.
• All participants are encouraged to carry a personal locator beacon (PLB). Specific information about how to register your PLB for Navshield will be provided in the participant information pack sent to teams one week before the event.

For more information, visit the Bush search and rescue NSW website.

The two day event starts at 09:00 on Saturday and finishes at 12:00 Sunday.

Emergency Services Division (Navigation Shield)

The Emergency Services Division is for recognised rescue services which are involved in land search and rescue. This division shall include teams from the Police, Ambulance, Rural Fire Services, State Emergency Services, National Parks and Wildlife Service, and the Volunteer Rescue Association. Interstate teams from recognised emergency services, and teams representing the Australian Federal Police, and the Australian Defence Forces, may also enter this division.

Teams in the Emergency Services Division (two day event) must have a minimum of 4 participants, to a maximum of 6 participants, per team.

All members of your team must represent the same emergency service, but team members may be from different units. For example, a Rural Fire Service team may consist of team members from two different brigades. Your nominated team name, and team number, will identify your team.

Please refer to the Minimum equipment rules page for detailed guidelines applicable to this division.

Teams in the Emergency Services Division (two day event) shall compete for the annual Navigation Shield. Only the first placed team will be awarded the winning trophy in this division.

Bushwalking Division (Bushwalkers Trophy)

The Bushwalking Division is for teams from Clubs which are affiliated with Bushwalking NSW, and for teams from other outdoor groups. Teams from university outdoor clubs, adventure clubs, scouts, church groups, and education groups, may enter this division.

Teams in the Bushwalking Division (two day event) must have a minimum of 4 participants, to a maximum of 6 participants, per team.

It is not necessary for all of the members of your team to be members of the same club. Your nominated team name, and team number, will identify your team.

Please refer to the Minimum equipment rules page for detailed guidelines applicable to this division.

Teams in the Bushwalking Division (two day event) shall compete for the Bushwalkers Trophy. Only the first placed team will be awarded the winning trophy in this division.

Rogaine Division (Two day event)

The Rogaine Division is for teams comprised of members of the Australian Rogaining Association, and its sub-branches. These teams will participate using the standard rules of rogaining.

Teams in the Rogaine Division (two day event) will be comprised of a minimum of 2 participants, up to a maximum of 5 participants.

Participants in the Rogaine Division are exempt from the minimum equipment rules, but must instead carry the minimum equipment specified by the Australian Rogaining Association.

Only the first placed team will be awarded the winning trophy in this division.

Division Four (Two day event)

Division 4 (two day event) is for all teams from the recognised rescue services, bushwalking clubs, or other outdoors groups, which do not have the required minimum number of participants to enter into one of the above divisions. Teams in Division Four must have a minimum of two participants and a maximum of six participants.

Teams that wish to enter Navshield to practice their map and compass skills, without competing directly against the highly trained emergency services teams, or the skilled, fit, and experienced bushwalking teams, are encouraged to enter Division Four (two day event). Division four provides safe opportunities for less experienced teams to participate in Navshield, without enduring the rigorous competition of the main event.

Please refer to the Minimum equipment rules page for detailed guidelines applicable to this division.

Only the first placed team will be awarded the winning trophy in Division Four (two day event).

The one day event starts at 09:00 on Saturday and finishes at 18:00 on Saturday.

Emergency Services Division (One day event)

The Emergency Services Division is for recognised rescue services which are involved in land search and rescue. The entry criteria are the same in the one day event as they are in the two day event. However, teams in the Emergency Services Division (one day event) must have between 2 to 4 participants per team.

Please refer to the Minimum equipment rules page for detailed guidelines applicable to this division.

Only the first placed team will be awarded the winning trophy in this division. Teams in the 1 day event are not eligible to win the Navigation Shield.

Bushwalking Division (One day event)

The Bushwalking Division is for teams from Clubs which are affiliated with Bushwalking NSW, and for teams from Other Outdoor Groups. The entry criteria are the same in the one day event as they are in the two day event. However, teams in the Bushwalking Division (one day event) must have between 2 to 4 participants per team.

Please refer to the Minimum equipment rules page for detailed guidelines applicable to this division.

Only the first placed team will be awarded the winning trophy in this division. Teams in the 1 day event are not eligible to win the Bushwalkers Trophy.

Rogaine Division (One day event)

The Rogaine Division is for teams comprised of members of the Rogaine Association of Australia, and its sub-branches. These teams will participate using the standard rules of rogaining.

Teams in the Rogaine Division (two day event) will be comprised of a minimum of 2 participants, up to a maximum of 5 participants.

Participants in the Rogaine Division are exempt from the minimum equipment rules, but must instead carry the minimum equipment specified by the Australian Rogaining Association.

Only the first placed team will be awarded the winning trophy in this division.

Division Four (One day event)

This division is for all teams from the recognised rescue services, bushwalking clubs, or other outdoors groups, which do not meet the entry criteria for the above divisions. Teams in Division Four must have a minimum of two participants and a maximum of six participants

Please refer to the Minimum equipment rules page for detailed guidelines applicable to this division.

Only the first placed team will be awarded the winning trophy in Division Four (one day event).

Entry is free for Emergency Services teams. NSW SES is funding the event for all Australian emergency services. This includes event fees, Saturday breakfast, a ration pack for the field (a 12 hour ration pack for 1 day participants and both a 12 hour & 24 hour ration pack for 2 day participants) and a meal after the event (Saturday dinner for 1 day participants or Sunday lunch for 2 day participants).

Emergency Service participants can also purchase additional catered meals at base if desired (see details below).

For participants who are not in the emergency services the entry fees are $64 per person for either the 1 day or 2 day event. We can provide, at extra cost, catered meals at base and ration packs for your meals while in the field. See below for details and costs.

Payment options

Non-emergency service participants will receive an email containing a payment link after registering.

Entries close

Entries close at 18:00 on Wednesday 5th July 2024 or when the participant cap is reached – whichever comes first!

Refunds

If your team wishes to withdraw from the event, please inform us before 18:00 on 5 July 2024 and we will give you a 100% refund.

If you wish to withdraw from the event or change a team member please contact us via email: navshield@ses.nsw.gov.au

If Navshield is cancelled all participants will receive a 100% refund.

Late entries and changes

Once registrations close, either due to reaching the 500 participant cap or the closing date of 5th July, late entries or changes of team members / meal orders will only be possible by emailing navshield@bsar.org.au.

Additional late fees may be payable for some late changes. Late team entries made after the closing date will incur an additional team fee of $55. 

Merchandise

We will not be doing merchandise this year.

Catering

Catering will be provided by Salvation Army Emergency Services catering.

Meals should be pre-ordered during your online registration. Vegetarian options are available, but should be pre-ordered online. When you register you will also be asked if you have any other special dietary requirements such as gluten free – we can’t cater for everything but we will try our best.

You will be provided with disposable plates, cups and cutlery. You can bring your own plates and cutlery but we might not be able to serve your food on it as we have a lot of meals to serve in a short space of time and unfortunately serving on people’s own plates is much slower.

Tea, coffee, hot chocolate, biscuits and fruit cake will be provided from 06:00 until 22:00 each day.

Meal times and prices are as follows:

Field ration packs

Field ration packs are available so participants can have food provided while they are on the course. These are 12 hour “Meals Ready To Eat” (MRE) for 1 day participants or  24 hour dehydrated food ration packs for 2 day participants. These are available for purchase online during registration and will be given to you when you pick up your team envelopes from the registration tent at the base site before the event start. Please note that while we have a limited supply of vegetarian and gluten free ration packs, which will be offered on request only, we will not be able to cater for all special dietary requests. It is recommended that participants who have special dietary needs should consider self-catering for their time on the course.

We are doing this to comply with NSW emergency services policy that emergency services personnel are provided meals for the duration of the event, regardless of whether they are at base or in the field. They are being offered as an option to the non-emergency services teams at cost.

The contents of the ration packs are:

12 hour MRE (for 1 day participants, $31.14):

• Main meal (Lunch). One of:
  • Butter Chicken
  • Beef Casserole
  • Chicken Italiano
  • Chilli Con Carne
  • Chunky Chicken and Vegetables
  • Spaghetti Bolognese
  • Vegetable Curry
• Cream crackers
• Cereal bar x2, Wholemeal cereal bar, chia bar
• Fruit bars x2
• Steak bar, peppered
• Jam sandwich biscuits
• Vegemite
• Lollies
• Mentos
• Peaches in juice
• Flameless heater pack
• Tissues
• Hand wipes
• Spoon
• Total weight: 0.9kg

24 hours “Strive” ration packs (for 2 day participants, $27.12):

These are 24 hour dehydrated food ration packs supplied by Strive Foods. They contain a breakfast, lunch & main meal plus a range of snacks and a hot drink. Whereas the 12hr MRE packs can be eaten ‘on the go’, the Strive packs are dehydrated and will require boiled water to use. Several varieties will be available but we cannot guarantee quantities of specific ones.

Refer to Strive Food Website for more information.

Catering arrangements for Emergency Services Members

Participants in the 1 day event will get the following meals provided. You will not have to pay for the following catering:

• Saturday breakfast
• 1 day field rations (12 hour MRE)
• Saturday dinner

Participants in the 2 day event will get the following meals provided. You will not have to pay for the following catering:

• Saturday breakfast
• 2 day field rations (12 hour MRE and 24 hour Strive Ration Pack)
• Sunday lunch

If you would like additional meals catered during your stay at Navshield you will need to pay for them. You can order this during registration.

Final comments

The prices charged for participants fees, meals and MRE's are covering our costs only. NSW SES will not be making a profit on the event. 

This event is limited to the first 500 fully registered participants.

General event rules

The primary objective is to navigate using only map and compass to as many checkpoints as possible during the time available. Team points are scored for each checkpoint that you locate. However, the checkpoints are scored differently depending upon difficulty. So good route planning is important. The team with the most points in each division at the end of the event will be awarded the winning trophy in that division.

Competition rules

1. Checkpoints and scoring:

1. Before the event begins participants will be informed of the location of the checkpoints by 8 figure grid references.
2. This information is provided to you, along with unmarked maps of the course, when you arrive at Navshield and visit the registration tent.
3. It is your team’s responsibility to plot the checkpoints onto your map(s).
4. (UPDATED July 2022) At registration all teams will be given a “Route Intentions” sheet and two Navlight tags. These tags will record your visit to checkpoints (see 1.9).
5. The only navigational aids allowed are magnetic compasses, watches (with time functions only), pace counters and the official event map as supplied by the organisers.
6. Radios are permitted (for communication only). Radio based tracking and GPS functions are not permitted.
7. Mobile phones are permitted. The use of mobile phone based navigation aids during the event is not permitted.
8. GPS, altimeters, electronic compasses, non-official maps and other navigational aids are not permitted.
9. Teams record a visit to a checkpoint, or radio checkpoint by punching their electronic tags with the electronic punch at the checkpoint.
10. Each checkpoint and radio checkpoint will have a points value.
11. To score a checkpoint all members of your team must pass within 20 metres of the checkpoint and both tags of the team must be punched.
12. Teams can score normal checkpoints once onl
13. All teams in the one day event must visit a radio checkpoint at least once during the event.
14. All teams in the two day event must visit a radio checkpoint at least once on both Saturday and Sunday.
15. Two day teams can use base as a radio checkpoint only between 06:00 and 09:00 Sunday. It scores no points, but the team will avoid the penalty for not visiting a radio check point (see rule 1.17) if no other radio check point is visited on Sunday.
16. Two day teams can score radio checkpoints twice by visiting them on Saturday and Sunday.
17. Any team not reporting to a radio checkpoint each day will incur a penalty equivalent to 25% of the team’s score.
18. Points will be deducted for every minute, or part thereof, that a team is overdue after the event finish time. The points value of this penalty will be announced at the start of the event.
19. Any team more than 1 hour late for the finish of their event will be retired from the event and must immediately return to the nearest radio check point or base.
20. If multiple teams have the same points score at the end of the event then they will be ranked according to their finish times.

2. Banned actions and safety breaches:

1. All members of a team must stay together (within voice contact, about 100m) at all times during the event.
2. A penalty of up to 50% of your team’s score will be imposed if your team members are found not together.
3. The minimum personal and team gear must be with the team at all times. Leaving packs at a central point while looking for checkpoints is unacceptable. Not carrying the minimum personal and/or team gear at all times incurs a penalty of up to 50% of the team’s score.
4. Participants in the rogaine divisions are exempt from the minimum equipment rules, but must instead carry the minimum equipment specified by the Australian Rogaining Association.
5. Once the event has commenced all support teams, and their vehicles, must remain at the base site until the event has finished.
6. Driving on the course is strictly prohibited for safety reasons.
7. The consumption of alcohol during the event is prohibited.
8. Any participant found to be intoxicated as a result of the consumption of alcohol or drugs; either prior to, or during, the event will be disqualified from the event.

3. Injuries:

1. If any member of a team is unable to continue, the other team members must provide assistance.
2. If possible, the team should attempt to make their way to the nearest radio checkpoint or back to base.
3. The rules committee will then advise if the rest of the team is able to continue Navshield in their entry division.
4. If any team finds an injured person they must assist if required.
5. Points can be awarded in lieu of time lost helping an injured person from another team. This does not include assisting injured members from the same team.

4. General rules:

1. All teams are to be covered by their own insurances.
2. NSW SES Bush Search and Rescue Unit does not provide insurance to participants.
3. Participants must be willing to sign an acceptance of risk statement and a risk waiver before they start the event.
4. All team members are to meet the membership requirements of their organisation.
5. Teams are required to follow minimum impact bushwalking principles.
6. Specific information about the event location is provided in the information pack. You are expected to read this information and to familiarise yourself with the specific hazards which have been identified for the location.

5. Rules committee:

1. A rules committee will be formed prior to the start of the event.
2. The rules committee will be comprised of a minimum of three people.
3. The rules committee shall be comprised of the Safety Officer, Event Coordinator, and Course Setter, plus additional volunteers as required.
4. The rules committee will determine the order of precedence for every team in each division at the completion of both events. This will be based upon team points, finish times, and any penalties imposed.
5. The winners in each division of both the one day event, and the two day event, will be only announced after the rules committee has judged the final team scores.
6. The rules committee shall hear all complaints and claims which are lodged within 24 hours after the completion of Navshield.
7. A decision will be made on all complaints and claims that are lodged within the allotted time, and prior to publishing the final team scores.
8. Decisions made by the rules committee shall be considered final.

Conduct and behaviour

All teams, and those attending Navshield in a support capacity, are expected to behave in a responsible manner at all times whilst at Navshield. Please show respect and courtesy towards others at all times, and remember that you are representing your organisation. Volunteers, NPWS staff, local property owners, and members of the public, may be present at Navshield and should also be treated with respect.

There is an opportunity for your team to socialise on both the Friday night and Saturday night during Navshield. You are welcome to enjoy yourself at base whilst you are not participating in the event. The organisers of the event would like to encourage you to network with people from other organisations during Navshield.

The consumption of alcoholic beverages is permitted during these times whilst you are not participating in the event. All alcohol must be BYO. However, the organisers of the event will not tolerate you drinking to excess, and putting yourself, your team members, and the community at risk.

Please keep noise to a minimum after 10pm.

The organisers may prohibit your participation in the event if you are:

• drunk and disorderly
• quarrelsome
• intoxicated
• violent
• using, or in possession of, prohibited drugs.

Best in service awards

In the Emergency Services Division a separate perpetual trophy will be awarded to the best team from each emergency service. A minimum of three teams representing a single emergency service are required for the best-in-service trophy to be awarded. For example, if three or more teams representing Police enter Navshield (including NSW, Interstate, and Federal Police Forces), then the Police team with the best overall score in the Emergency Service Division will be awarded the Perpetual Best in Service Trophy for Police.

Best in Service Awards will be presented at the completion of both the one day event and the two day event.

Attendance awards

Attendance awards recognising those who have competed in past Navshields will be awarded to individuals competing in the Emergency Services Division, Bushwalking Division, and Division Four. These will be awarded at the completion of both the one day event and the two day event.

Awards will recognise 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 Navshields, regardless of whether individuals have previously competed in the one day event or the two day event.

Attendance awards are not awarded in the Rogaine Division.