Course and Spot Settings
This page explains how to place spots or checkpoints for an event and configure courses and categories.
If the roles of Event, Course, Category, and Spot still feel unclear, read Understand the event structure first.
Setup flow
To create a playable course for an event, configure the following three steps.
- Place spots - Put checkpoint spots on the map
- Create a course - Group spots into a course and set scores or order
- Create categories - Apply competition rules such as time limits and punch methods to the course
You can start with either spots or courses. You can also add spots while creating the course.
Place spots
Add a spot
- Smartphone App
- Web
You can add and edit spots from All Spots on the event management screen.
- Move the map so the place where you want to add the spot is centered
- Tap Add
- Enter the spot name
You can also import spots you have kept in the app as My Spots (see My Spots and Public Spots).
After opening event editing, the spot editor at /events/{eventId}/spots opens.
- Click the place on the map where you want to add the spot
- The spot name is set automatically as a sequence such as 001, 002, and so on
- Edit the spot name and description from the list on the right
On the web, you can also drag a spot to move its position.
Spot fields
| Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Spot Name | Name of the checkpoint, required |
| Description Text | Detailed explanation of the spot |
| Image | Photo of the spot, also useful as a reference for Camera Punch |
| Video URL | Link to a video such as YouTube |
If the spot name, image, and location are already set, you can tap or click Auto-generate Description to create a description with AI. This works in both the smartphone app and the web app.
Import spots
Instead of placing spots one by one manually, you can import spot data in bulk from a file.
| Format | Description |
|---|---|
| CSV | Four columns: name, description, latitude, longitude encoded in UTF-8 |
| IOF-XML Ver3 | Standard orienteering format. You can import courses and spots together |
| My Spots | Select and import spots you have kept in the app (photos are imported too; no plan required). See My Spots and Public Spots |
Data with the same spot name is overwritten. Latitude must be between -90 and 90, and longitude must be between -180 and 180.
Export spots
Configured spots can be exported in CSV format. This is useful for reuse in other events or for backup.
Create a course
Course types
- Score
- Score (Free Start and Finish)
- Fixed Order
Participants visit spots in any order and compete by score. This is the standard rogaining style. Each spot has a score, and participants freely choose which spots to visit and in what order. A start spot and a finish spot are required. The goal is to collect as many points as possible within the time limit.
This is a score course without fixed start and finish spots. Participants can start and finish anywhere. It is suitable for permanent courses and other events without one fixed start location.
Participants visit spots in a fixed order. (formerly called Point.) This is the standard orienteering style. The visit order is fixed, the first spot is the start, and the last is the finish. Participants visit every spot in order and compete by time.
Steps to create a course
- Smartphone App
- Web
- Open Course Setup on the event edit screen
- Tap Create New Course
- Choose the course type: Score, Score (Free Start and Finish), or Fixed Order
- Enter the course name
- Add spots to the course and set scores or order
- On the event Overview page, choose Add Course
- Select the course type
- Enter the course name
- For a Score course, enter scores for each spot and specify the start and finish
- For a Fixed Order course, double-click spots to add them in visit order
Course settings
| Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Course Name | Internal management name. It is not shown to participants |
| Radius of control circles | Size of the spot circle shown on the map (50m (default) / 30m / 18m / 10m; 10m is not available on the Web). Change it from the "Control circle size" option menu on the course edit screen |
Copy a course
You can duplicate an existing course to create a new course within the same event. This is handy when you want a course with the same spot layout but different scoring or a different start and finish (for example, changing the scoring between a "Beginner course" and an "Advanced course").
Steps to copy
- Open the course edit screen
- Open the More menu from the "…" (iOS) / Other (Android) button at the top right of the toolbar
- Choose "Copy Course"
- A confirmation dialog opens. Enter a name for the new course (the default is "Copy of <original course name>", which you can change later)
- Confirm with the "Copy" button, and a new course is created within the same event and appears in the course list
On the Web, you can copy a course the same way with Duplicate on the event overview page (Organizer Plan required).
The confirmation dialog shows the following note.
Enter a name for the new course. Spots and quizzes are shared with the original course (not duplicated).
What is carried over and what is shared
A course created by copying is split into settings each course holds independently and settings shared with the original course. It is important to understand this distinction.
| Type | Contents | Behavior after copying |
|---|---|---|
| Independent per course (carried over and separately editable) | Course type, each spot's score (scoring), quiz assignments, start and finish designation, and spot options such as pause | Freely editable on the new course, and it does not affect the original course |
| Shared with the original course (a single entity) | The spots themselves (location, name, QR punch settings, category assignment), the quiz content, and spot images | Not copied; both courses reference the same entity. Editing one is reflected in the other |
A copy is not a "fully independent copy". The actual spots and quizzes (location, name, question text, image, QR punch settings, and so on) are not duplicated; they are shared with the original course. If you change a spot's location, a spot name, or QR punch settings after copying, the change is reflected in both the original and the new course. This is not a bug; it is the same long-standing mechanism by which multiple courses within one event share spots.
What is described here is a feature that duplicates one course within the same event. It does not copy an entire event as a separate event (there is no such use). Also, you cannot copy a course to a different event (the destination is always within the same event).
"Copy Course" is an Organizer Plan feature. If you have not subscribed, a 🔒 appears at the end of the menu item; tapping it only shows the prompt to register for the Organizer Plan and does not perform the copy. Note that this feature is not available for Rogaining Camera records and Safety Tracking events.
The course name is an internal management name that is not shown to participants. Give it a name that is easy for the organizer to tell apart, such as "Beginner (scoring A)".
Note that statistics such as the play count of the new course are not carried over; they start from 0.
Spot type, number, and label
Tapping a spot on the course edit screen opens an edit screen with the items that define the spot's role in the course.
| Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Type | Control / Start / Finish / Start & Finish / Not Used. A newly created spot is Not Used and is not part of the course until you change this. If a spot you placed is not visible to participants, check this first |
| Number (points) | The points on score courses (-999 to 999), or the control number on Fixed Order courses |
| Label (optional) | A short label shown on the map instead of the number. Used only when the type is Control |
| Select quiz / Points | The quiz assigned to this spot and the points for a correct answer |
Auto Scoring
On score courses, Auto Scoring in the course edit screen menu assigns points to all spots at once. It requires the Organizer Plan when 11 or more spots are targeted (free for 10 or fewer; the menu item still shows 🔒 but runs).
| Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Minimum Score / Maximum Score | The range of points to assign |
| Total score | Distributes points so that the total of all spots equals this value |
| Allow Duplicate Scores | When off, avoids giving two spots the same points |
| Also Assign Scores to Currently Unused Spots. | Also assigns points to spots whose type is Not Used |
| Score Weighting | Combines distance from the start (or from the center), isolation from other spots, and randomness so that far or isolated spots score higher |
On the Web course edit screen, you can set a time limit and compute the best route (the highest-scoring route achievable within the limit; not available for courses with 25 or more controls). It is a useful sanity check of the point distribution and time limit.
Create categories
A category applies competition rules to a course. You can create multiple categories on the same course with different rules such as time limit or punch method.
For detailed settings such as punch method, team settings, and mass start, see Category settings.
If you want to organize the difference between courses and categories, also see Understand the event structure.
Detailed spot settings
Secret spots
On score courses, you can hide the score or the location of a spot from participants.
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| Hide Score | The score of the spot is not shown to participants |
| Hide Circle and Score | Neither the spot circle (location) nor its score is shown on the map |
Pause spots
You can place spots on a course where timing stops. How timing stops, and the menu item you use, depend on the course type. In both cases, tap a control in the course editing screen of the smartphone app and choose the item from the menu that appears (this cannot be set on the Web). To remove the setting, choose Reset pause control from the same menu.
| Fixed Order (untimed leg) | Score / Score (Free Start and Finish) (pause control) | |
|---|---|---|
| Menu item | Pause until next control | Set as pause control |
| How timing stops | Punching that control stops timing automatically, and punching the next control resumes it automatically | After punching that control, participants pause the timing themselves while they are near it, and resume it near the same control |
| Plan required | None | Organizer Plan (without it, the item shows 🔒) |
| On the map | The leg line and the controls at both ends are blue | The control is blue |
In both cases, the paused time is deducted from the recorded time. For what participants do, see Join and Play an Event — Pause.
An untimed leg is useful for crossing a road with heavy traffic (stop timing at the control just before the crossing and restart it at the control on the other side), for crowded places where running is unsafe, or for a rest partway through a long course.
- Do not set it on the last control. The leg from the last control to the finish would not be timed, and rankings and recorded times would be wrong (the pre-publish check reports this as something to fix)
- It cannot be set on a control that is visited more than once in a loop. Doing so makes the course incomplete, and participants cannot open the play screen ("Pausing time at repeatedly visited spots is not supported." appears). The pre-publish check also reports "This course has a problem."
- If a participant skips the control at the end of the leg with Skip next spot, timing resumes at the moment they skip
A pause control is useful at places where participants stop for sightseeing, shopping, a rest, or a meal. It cannot be used in team-play categories (team time does not deduct paused time, so the pre-publish check reports this as something to fix).
Quiz spots
You can set a multiple-choice quiz on a spot. Participants answer it when they arrive and can earn additional points for a correct answer.
| Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Question | The quiz prompt |
| Choices | 2 to 6 choices and the correct answer |
| Explanation | Explanation shown after answering (optional) |
| Points | Additional score for a correct answer. This is set on the spot edit screen inside the course, not on the quiz (the same quiz can be assigned to different spots with different points) |
| Image / Video | Image or video related to the question |
Quizzes are created and stored per event (Quiz Setup on the dashboard). Assign one to a spot with Select quiz on the spot edit screen inside the course, and set the points on the same screen.
Beacon Punch
Instead of GPS, you can detect punching with a Bluetooth beacon, specifically Eddystone-UID. This is useful for indoor events or places where GPS accuracy is poor. Beacon settings (Namespace ID / Instance ID / detection range) can be configured only on the spot edit screen of the iOS app. The Android app and the Web have no beacon settings screen.
QR Code Punch
Punching by scanning QR codes (event QR mode, per-spot override, printing QR codes) is covered in QR Code Punch.
Combo Bonus (award points for combinations of checkpoints)
The Combo Bonus, which automatically awards points for combinations of checkpoints, is covered in Combo Bonus.
Import a KML vector overlay
Importing vector shapes (lines and areas) from KML files is covered in Map Management — KML vector overlays.