Orienteering race 1:50:29 [5] *** 3.9 km (28:20 / km) +240m 21:40 / km
spiked:11/11c shoes: Mammut Borah DLX
My first mass start event and I witnessed it from my car, as I pulled in just past noon. Classic case of getting lost on the way to an O event? I thought I had driven too far south on 5, turned around and went to the other side of the mountain. Didn't see any O-signs and decided to go further down route 5. Of course, it was just a little farther down from where I had turned back the first time.
In any case, it didn't do me any harm. In fact, I suppose it gave me some room for the first couple of controls. Eager to get started, I failed to change shoes, which was a bad idea because the shoes I had on were too loose and I ended up with blisters (minor but annoying, especially the foot with the blister on top of the blister).
1 - I noted that this was in a saddle but I failed to note count contour lines and thought that the saddle was located above me when in fact it was at the level I was already at. So I climbed an extremely steep "hill" only to slide down it minutes later. A good work out in any case.
2 - Too quickly, I ran down the first trail I saw, and assumed I was on the a trail that I was not on and ended up at the road. Decided to stay on the road and climb back up later to the control. In hindsight, I should have backtracked.
3,4 - Fine
5 - Back to 2...this climb was SO tiring
6 - Followed the contour lines, then the voices :-)
7 - Could have been quicker, but at least I found it before the voices arrived.
8 - Back to 2...this climb was SO tiring
9 - Here's where things fell apart. And if I hadn't missed my Garmin all weekend, I sure did now. I still don't know where I ended up going. Somehow though, I managed to hit a trail and figure out which trail it was, though I have no idea how I got there. From the trail, it should ha ve been straight forrward to the control, but it wasn't. I think 90% of the mosquito bites on my body were earned on the way to this control. Walked the rest of the way.
10 - Couldn't bring myself to take the trails, but of course, I should have. I ended up doing the other two edges of the rectangle through the woods on a steep incline instead of along the trails. I think I would have missed the control if not for someone else leaving the control. I should have inferred which side of the ridge the cliffs would be facing.
11 - A relief! Feet tired and hurting. But did manage to bring myself to jog to the finish :-)