Training Log Archive: Craig

Aus Sprint Champs, Curtin Uni.

A couple of laps of the oval with Tomas to warm up plus a jog to the start and I was wondering why I entered this. I really wasn't looking forward to it at all.
Once I got out there it actually wasn't so bad, almost enjoyable even. Not too difficult to find a reasonable route on every leg and always busy enough to not have time to think about how slowly I was running or how much better some other route might have been. No really significant problems, just a small unnecessary double back after 12 to make sure I avoided some out of bounds (5s) and a dud route from 15-16 where I had to double back a bit to get onto the right level (15s).

Feeling a lot happier at the finish than I was at the start but still glad that I decided to switch to M40 for the sprint in Tasmania.

C • 15-16 6

M21E - Splits

Aus middle champs, Lover's Ridge.

Didn't do much of a warm up but felt much better than I expected to running up and down the gentle slope on the track near the start a few times. Continued to feel pretty good through the first half of the course which was mostly downhill and pretty open. First 8 controls of very fast simple spur gully was easy but good fun. Saw NSW guy who started 2 min in front on the way to 3 but didn't catch him until 8. Saw Joanna Maynard sitting down crying just above 7 so I asked if she was ok but didn't really believe her when she said yes so checked again that she could get herself back. I was thinking more about her than where I was going leaving 7 and lost contact with the map for a while but ended up going pretty much where I intended to I think.

Next section from 9-15 was completely different with a bunch of short legs in small rock on a gentle slope. I was really enjoying this bit. I got past NSW guy when he went in too high and hit 10 before 9 and was feeling good about my execution up to 12 but started to lose it a bit at 13. Hit the boulder on the S edge of the circle as most did I think. I recovered reasonably quickly but started to struggle physically from there and never really got the concentration back.

Across to 16 I thought the best approach would be to climb early and come in left of 20 above the steep rocky slope but I couldn't convince my legs and I left 15 well right of the straight line. I found a reasonably route up through the rocks but I was struggling to maintain concentration. I kept thinking 16 was on the boulder cluster and kept looking at 17 on the map instead of 16. I got to the circle ok and ran around the boulder cluster before stopping to read the map and description carefully enough to see the boulder. 17 and 18 were ok but I was losing efficiency. Had to jump down the cliff at 18 instead of running left of it. Hesitated at the boulder field on the edge of the circle at 19 then made my biggest mistake of the day on 20. Looked easy to run below all the rock until out in the clear but I climbed a bit early to avoid a tree with low branches and then wasted time looking on the boulder cluster just W of the control as the right boulders were just out of sight around a little spur. A result of a general fatigue induced loss of concentration I think.

Spent the long grind up to the spectator control trying to regathering the concentration for the final loop making sure I had a clear plan for every control. Happy with 24 and 25 but got a bit distracted heading to 26 with a lot of other people around and lower visibility. Didn't really execute my plan but found it ok and then it was just the trudge up to the finish. I thought I did a reasonable job of pushing myself on the final sprint to the finish but I still took almost double the fastest time (42 vs 23). Nothing left in the tank.

Really enjoyable course. Not super technical but each group of controls tested you in a different way which kept things interesting. Pretty happy to get another M40 win beating Bruce by a minute. Tomas got me by a minute despite losing a couple on 26 and fletch might have got me if he hadn't lost 5 minutes on the same control.

Aust MDC, Course M21E - Splits

Event: Karrak Karnival
 

Warm up jog to the start, back up the hill and back to the start again. Feeling quite good.

WA Long Champs at Spice Brook.
Felt pretty good from the start, definitely better than I have felt at any recent events. Had a pretty clean run, just drifted off my intended route a bit a couple of times, particularly 8-9-10. Planned to go out to the track on 15 but made a last second decision to straight line it, not sure if it was a good one, felt fresher at the start of the leg than I did at the end. Took a few seconds to spot the boulder at the end and was also a little shaky coming into 16 but didn't lose much. Lost a few more seconds on 18 running to the higher boulder field which I hadn't really seen on the contour on the edge of the circle.
Overall pretty happy with the run and my position relative to others.

WA Long Champs, Course M21A - Splits

Bumped into Ian Finnie on the street at lunchtime. Turns out he works at the other end of the same block as me. Had a good chat and offered to lead him around a course some time. I suggested he should talk to people in advance before deciding to follow them around as a learning exercise as it seems to bother some people.

Easy run in KP. Felt reasonably good striding out a bit a couple of times on some gentle downhills on the way back. Anterior tibs still not feeling the best, expecting them to cause me some problems at Spice Brook.

Small group today. I took it pretty easy running with Mirella most of the way. A little bit faster for a while running with Simon at the end. I had been alone in front when he ran up next to me and asked me if I was running with a map because I seemed to be running with my right hand held steady in front of me.