Training Log Archive: Nadim

Event: QOC Gunston Hall
 

QOC: Gunston Hall. It was a nice sunny spring-like day with the temperature near 60 starting out. I ran Blue. Unlike last weekend, I wasn't very energetic. I was probably tired from stepping up my workouts last week, and a good day of field checking yesterday. I hadn't run here before. Starting out the course was easy with runs through, then quick attacks off of the fields. It seemed like control #3 (near the walled-in George Mason family burial plots) was closer to the fields than expected. I thought to go around on trails to #4 but plunged-in straight. I read my way across okay but wasn't always entirely sure where I was with accuracy. Once again, I hadn't read the course notes so I didn't know the contours were only 2.5m. I hit #4 pretty well.

For #5, I went around the left side of the hill--it looked too steep and green. It probably cost me some time. I attacked off the spur of the second hill. At the first view of the water, I cut right but then a look as the shore told me I was in between the man made object (SW of the control) and the control. I corrected and sucked-up having to walk through the water where the tide had risen unexpectedly. Gary Smith told me and showed me a picture after the meet that the area was land again during control pickup. He hadn't known there would be a tide problem.

For #6, I started out up the trail but cut into the reentrant shortly after the trail climbed. I ran the left side of the reentrant until it seemed to be ending and went in.

For #7, I went straight. I stared closing in on Charles Carrick (I think). Every time I thought I'd catch him I realized the terrain was making us weave.

For #8, I found myself still chasing Charles. We weaved a lot. Eventually Charles started getting more to my left. I could see the knoll on my left coming up so I kept my bearing. When we popped out of the green, I looked left and saw a control or color. It looked too close to the knoll so I didn't turn immediately. Charles kept going. As I read more carefully I realized it was a ditch, and that the knoll was further past it. I ran to it as Alexis Merka was punching.

For #9, I paused right before the knoll. I was brain dead and wasn't sure why I was seeing it. After catching my breath, I ran over it to the control.

For #10, I started okay, but was just off bearing enough to come across the wrong reentrant. I guess I was still tired and didn't check my compass. I mistook it for the one leading to the control, and mistakenly turned south. Approaching the road I couldn't see the intersection so I knew I messed-up. As I corrected, I saw Carrick coming-in just behind me.

For #11. I ran straight and spiked it.

For #12. I ran straight and spiked it, with a slight correction to the right.

For #13, I started to climb and use trails, but I changed my mind, then went straight. I kept on my bearing looking for the second reentrant past the trail. I didn't realize that I'd hit it right at the bridge! I thought I was a little further north. I took the trail from there.

For #14 I went on trails/fields between the out of bounds areas and to the road. I gave thought to going around but didn't want to risk the dark green from that approach. Going further around seemed even more out of the way. As I dropped down into the big reentrant, I was feeling like I might have made the wrong choice. The actual dot knoll seemed closer to the edge of the hill than I'd expected it would.

Going to #15 on trails, I knew I'd made the wrong choice going to #14, and I told Carrick that as I passed him going the opposite direction. I took trails and the field to the end of the trail SW of #13. I read the reetnrants but wasn't sure what I was dropping down into until I hit the dot knoll. I also saw someone crossing my path ahead. As I got nearer, I saw that he was headed to the same control, and I spiked it.

I was glad that there wasn't a lot of up and down on this. I ran the hillside to the large reentrant, crossed the marsh and ran up it. As I got nearer to the guy I'd seen near #15, I realized it was Victor Lin. I slowly closed in. He (and I) knew where to go, but Victor stayed just ahead coming up the spur to control #16.

For #17, I got past Victor and worked my way around the large reentrant. I never got to the field and even ran parallel to it briefly. It was open and I could see the large reentrants better that way. I spiked it.

For #18, I got to the trail I'd taken going to #15. I went into the field and right past #19. Crossing the reentrant, I came in to #18 from above--It was only when I'd gotten past the last reentrant that I realized the control would be as low as it was.

For #19, I tried to reverse my route, only I lost the intermittent trail near the trail junction.

I tried to move my legs a bit more on the run in. The depressions made it awkward and I haven't been running much for a hard sprint.

I had fun today. I'd heard the terrain was worse than it turned out to be. The course was fine and it's not an easy place to set a course.

QOC: Gunston Hall. It was past the starting time but Peggy had gotten a map for Samantha to go out. Samantha had requested it, and had had fun going out with Heidi Onkst last weekend. Heidi is much more fun than I. I fumbled at the start since we hadn't really started from the start control that had been taken up. Samantha had trouble matching up symbols on the map, with what she was seeing. I had to help her orient the map and eventually just did it for her. In the big field going toward #7 (a lonely tree in the field), she hugged the forest edge. The terrain dipped just enough so that at her height, she couldn't see the tree when she got near it. It was late so she pretty much gave up after we corrected. I think she was still happy to have gone out.

Blue - Splits

From Colonel Zadok Magruder HS, I started heading out to field-check North Branch Park. I was running to get to an area that I'd went through before, but needed a second look, I detoured to a copse I hadn't seen before, and then realized I'd left my glasses in the car. I decided that even though it was late in the day, that I'd better get them. I ended up grabbing a spare pair or regular reading glasses instead of my o-glasses which turned out to be at home. After that I ran back to the copse where I'd left my notes. It was pretty windy out, but in the 50s F.

Field Checking in North Branch Park. It had been raining all Friday so it was damp when I started. The strong wind was quickly drying things up. Initially I went over some places that I'd covered last weekend. I had printer problems at home so I still only had my errant hand drawn notes that I was carrying with me. I knew where I'd drawn things wrong before (not knowing exactly where I'd started out from last weekend) so I took my time, erased what I had and got going again. It was easier to do, knowing what was already in the terrain.

Later I got into the succession forest blocks. These terrain blocks surrounded by grassy trails were no doubt old farm fields where the trees had partly grown back. The blocks had broad gentle slopes, and even one with a subtle saddle. They had very few features since the farmers had cleared, smoothed, and pushed the rocks to the sides along the trails. I felt like it wasn't worth spending a lot of time in them but tried to capture the feel of the vegetation. Capturing that feel was very hard. I had to make judgements about what was rough open, semi-rough-open, white or light green. Usually there was no hard line for the boundaries. Though I could move through most of it without having to do too much weaving, I still couldn't see far. The trees were small, just smaller than an apple orchard in height. There were many saplings and small clearings. The vegetation will change rapidly but the mapping will make a difference in route choices.

I finally covered the terrain blocks with older forest which were between the Inter-County Connector Hwy. (ICC), and the planned route of a paved hiking/cycling trail. This was much more interesting. There was more changing contour to it. It mostly ranged from fight to white, but most of it was a middle or light shade of green. There were some rock features and old ruins. As it was starting to get dark, I ended up at the bottom where the North Branch Creek crosses under the ICC.

From North Branch Creek, at the ICC bridge, to Colonel Zadok Magruder HS, via trails. Most of this was on a new paved trail which one day will connect with the Rock Creek Trail system south of Lake Frank. I was happy to figure out where the pavement can be expected to go. Some of the dirt trail was intermittent and most of the run was uphill into the wind. I was tired.

From Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD, to 13th & C St. SW, Washington, D.C. It was in the low to mid 40s F. There was a headwind just about everywhere else but near the Kennedy Center. Like Monday, I just cruised trying to keep it easy.

From 13th & C St. SW, Washington, D.C., to the Bethesda Metro Station, then to Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD. I worked my way through the traffic which is probably still higher due to tourist trying to see the cherry tree blossoms. There was a pretty good tailwind or the winds were neutral until I got to MacArthur Blvd. For a while there was a headwind but that abated. In a departure from my usual route, I stopped in downtown Bethesda to pickup dinner on the way home. Carrying it back was a little slow since my backpack was already full.

From Northfield Rd. to the Bethesda Metro Station.

From the Bethesda Metro Station, Wisconsin Ave. to Battery Ln. where I paused for an appointment, then to Cedar Ln., to the Elmhirst Trail., to the Rock Creek Trail, to Kensington Pkwy. to Connecticut Ave., to the Georgetown Branch Trail, to Woodmont Ave., to the Bethesda Metro Station. It was in the upper 50s F. and a pretty nice night for running. I didn't feel that good starting out, but after pausing and getting going again I was fine. I think not being concerned about how fast I was running had much to do with that. I'm not used to this distance yet and still tired from bicycling on Monday, which I'm also not used to doing. The distance was a little bit longer than I was thinking it would be but that was okay. I was tired enough where running on flat ground didn't feel that much easier than going up a hill.

From the Bethesda Metro Station to Northfield Rd. I took it easy as a warm down from running.

Working late and evening plans spelled doom for working out today.

From Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD, to 13th & C St. SW, Washington, D.C. This was my first ride all of the way into work this year. I think I last rode in on 12/2.2016. I was a little tired from the weekend workouts and my right hip area was a little sore. Today it was damp and the closer I got to DC, the thicker the fog was. It started out at 45 F. I kept a steady pace, not pushing. I did get passed by a woman after I hit the flats, but I passed her back without any more effort. I just upped my cadence. The Cherry Blossom Trees along West Potomac Park were blooming well, despite the recent freezing temperatures. Ohio Dr. had been shifted to one-way traffic and I was riding against it--there were few cars and all of them stayed to the right anyway.

From 13th & C St. SW, Washington, D.C., to Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD. As usual, I was very close to getting locked-in the courtyard where I lock-up. I got out into a good deal of traffic. Rush hour traffic was amplified by tourists there to see the Cherry Blossoms. I saw them at lunch time and it seemed that there was hardly any frost damage. I was rather glad that I sucked it up and rode all the way to work today. I did have to weave my way around both auto and pedestrian traffic at the Jefferson Memorial. I did pretty well getting through it. I hit more traffic along the river at the Kennedy Center where there are no cherry trees, and again in Georgetown. Crew rowers were hauling shells back onto trucks and blocking a bridge to the the waterfront. Once through Georgetown, it was a complete reversal. There were relatively few cyclists or runners. It seemed strange since there were so many riders joining the trail in the morning. I cruised alone focusing on keeping my pace manageable, and no one passed me.