Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club
Amateur Radio Direction Finding - ARDF

Training for International ARDF Competition
by Gyuri Nagy, HA3PA

I think the best name for our sport is Radio Orienteering Run as it is more than ARDF, Orienteering, or running. Being competitive in this sport requires proficiency in all three areas. We will look at physical training this month, and look at both Orienteering and ARDF next month.

With physical training, we are working to develop endurance, speed, and strength. Endurance is developed through long distance runs at an intensity of 70% - 80% for at least one hour. Speed is developed through fast, high intensity, short term practices (sprinting.) This means taking the daily running distance and dividing it into smaller parts, either 10 to 15 times at 90 - 95% intensity, or 15 to 20 times at 95 - 100% intensity. Strength is developed as a result of endurance and speed training with the addition of strength building exercises.

The year can be divided into three parts for the purposes of physical training: off season, pre-season, and the competition season. Typical training periods and activities would be as follows:

Off Season - This is the period from October to March, and the most important thing to develop here is endurance. A typical week would be four days of endurance training, one day spent developing speed, and one day spent developing strength. The last day of each week is relaxation.

Pre-Season - This is the period from March to May, and we are working during this time to develop speed and strength. Typical training consists of one day for long distance running, two days for strength training, and three days for developing speed. And again, one day is for relaxation.

Competitive season - This is what we have been preparing for and consists of the period between May and September. Since competition is a timed event, the most important thing here is speed. A training session during this time might be two days of long distance running, one day of strength training, three days developing speed (one normal training day and two days of competition), and one day for relaxation.

A typical week of physical training for an international level competitor during the competition season would consist of: