THE AUSTRALIAN ORIENTEER
THE FIRST EDITOR lan Baker
A
s Orienteering got going in Australia there was a need for an occasional newsletter to give news of upcoming events; at this time there was a bush event just once a month, though they soon became more frequent. As time went by the newsletter got bigger, we needed more copies for the growing membership. At Action Printing in Melbourne, Lawrie Barnett and his assistant Connie provided a more professional service and the newsletter became an A5 size publication with photos and other illustrations, published six times a year.
would take my layout and assemble it into artwork which I then checked before printing plates were made. I never kept a tally of the many hours this entailed – the answer might have frightened me.
Oct 1985 cover – World Championships in Bendigo.
June-July 1979 – the first issue.
By the end of 2020, Ian Baker had completed 2386 events as competitor, organiser or course-setter.
The content expanded. There were feature articles on all sorts of things to do with Orienteering and related topics. Louie the Fly ( John Lewis) and I had founded the O-Gear shop in the expectation of becoming incredibly rich as just about everyone in Australia took up the new sport; we had a regular page to promote our sales. We also were successful in attracting some advertising to help cover the costs of the newsletter
After the 1985 World Championships based in Bendigo, Victoria, I was feeling burned out. As well as managing the magazine I provided coming event details to the major Melbourne newspapers and results summaries of Sunday bush events. I also had a regular spot on “Sports Roundup” in drive time on ABC radio which was repeated on Saturday “Grandstand”. I was happy to hand over to David Hogg, not knowing that I would return some years later.
Our strategy was to publish a 36-page issue within our budget, with any additional funds from advertisements used to print extra pages and some in colour. We retained a surplus to smooth out any cost increases to members. In the interests of full transparency the magazine had its own separate bank account and financial reports We managed to pull in some advertising. SILVA was always a supporter through Tom Andrews. Ansvar Insurance came in too as part of a sponsorship package. These underwrote the introduction of some colour pages. Later, Warren and Tash Key came in with the Melbourne Bicycle Centre.
Tom Andrews, the founding father of Orienteering in Australia and by now the Australian agent for SILVA compasses, and I used to lunch together. Over a steak and a few beers we came up with the idea to develop the Victorian newsletter into a national magazine, The Australian Orienteer.
The economics would only work if we could build circulation by convincing States to take part, giving us economies of scale. We prepared a business plan and took it to the Orienteering Federation of Australia, the assembly of all States and the ACT and NT.
In 1979 we launched the first issue of The Australian Orienteer. We had a more substantial printer by this time but it was still long before the age of the personal computer and associated publishing and design programs. I used to receive galleys (long strips) of type which I laid out on the dining room table to make a rough layout with photos and other illustrations. The printer
In 1997 I returned as Editor with an honorarium paid, though nowhere near commercial rates. The policy was “Be a good read/be on time/be financial.” The magazine was to be a ‘cost centre’, a ‘business’ owned by the Members with its own accounts, budgets etc. subject to overall OA review by the OA VP, mostly Bob Mouatt. The annual budget was approved by OA and administered by the Editor with essential accounting support by Kathy Liley (VIC) who managed the magazine finances for many years.
The first issue of Ian’s second term as Editor, Winter 1997, with Rob Walter on the cover.
MARCH 2021 THE AUSTRALIAN ORIENTEER 7
