Training Log Archive: Nadim

Glen Echo, MD. From the Lock 7 parking lot, to the C&O Canal Towpath, then south to the pumping station below Lock 5, then back. I ran this route one month ago today, when there was a bit of slushy stuff on the towpath. Today it was pretty dry, despite the rains last night. There was a bit of wind; mostly behind me on the way out, so opposite on the return. Going out was slightly downhill too. My legs felt a little tired from the last 2 days, but not too much. After the first and second mile came in under 9 minutes, I did work to keep my pace up. However I was tiring. I wore my new Nike Zoom Structures again. I'd adjusted the laces since the last run on them. They felt okay however the ball of my right forefoot was feeling it by the end--that's probably just lack of training and my weight.

Event: QOC Wheaton
 

QOC: Wheaton Regional Park, MD. I didn't have a lot of time to run my course today since I needed to get back and get Max to his team's basketball game. After several back and forth's between the car, the registration areas (where one can't wear spikes inside), and the start, I finally got going. I'd kept forgetting things like my map case, registering my epunch and putting on my epunch.

Chris Gross' course was a bit different from approaches that many had taken when setting here. He told me just after finishing that made several long legs to emphasize route choice. It was nice.

S-1 - I moved okay going generally downhill toward the lake. Someone ahead had paused at some green woods. I cut right for a little bit longer way through, at a gap. I rounded the lake on the SE side, glad that much of the mud way still frozen. After the lake, I took a fork to the right to climb, rather than the longer downhill along Brookside Gardens. I left the trail at a big bend and kept fairly straight. Crossing 2 trails and the creek, I found myself right on target when I passed a cairn on my right, and attacked from it.

1-2 - I went straight, and used a ditch to my right, after crossing the creek, to spike it. I hesitated since I didn't see it on the approach. It was behind a tree.

2-3 - There was some deadfall and low vegetation early. It got me off line, so when I saw set of gullies ahead, they were the ones east of the one with the control. I corrected without getting to the wrong set of gullies so I didn't lose much time.

3-4 - I climbed higher to the right to get around deadfall. After crossing the creek I did get onto the trail and climbed; coming down from it at a bend to spike the control. I was happy that it was visible pretty far away and I got there ahead of someone coming from the east.

4-5 - I walked much of the way up the hill. weaving straightish through the deadfall. I had to correct a bit toward the end.

5-6 - Going straight over the bit of hill, I found the reentrant and stayed in it. Had I read the map better, I would have ran around the deadfall that was in the reentrant. I was concerned that I might miss the control if I left it but the map showed the deadfall stopping above the control and almost at the trail.

6-7 - I took the trail to a bend and crossed on what used to be a trail, near the mapped earth wall. I didn't see the earth wall so prominently as I remembered it but I was on the old path. After getting to the road, I climbed over the ridge and could see the control ahead.

7-8 - Initially, I thought I'd go left around the maintenance area. Along the way I saw the trail route to the right. Further along, I decided to cut distance by running on the NE side of the maintenance area. After getting through to trails and at a T-intersection east of the control I cut in. This was not the place to do it. I should have turned left and right, and then attacked. I don't remember crossing the smaller trail and I'm surprised I didn't make a bigger error. I kept to a bearing and even adjusted to the right a bit to hit the control okay. I must have lost some time.

8-9 - I ran angling toward the a trail intersection, but I hit the long NE/SW trail further north than I thought I would. At the paved trail, I cut right and then left the paved trail at a bend. I guess I did that a bit too soon. I corrected by seeing the parking lot on the other side of the green woods, and aiming toward it.

9-10 - I figured it'd be faster to stick to the open areas south of the ball fields. This worked pretty well, saving me some climb. There was a bit of unexpected green after the ball fields, but I hit the control okay.

10-11 - I took the paved trail until west of the soccer field house, then cut across to the field house. After rounding it and the dog park I entered the woods. To get around green, I went a bit north. Reaching just above the big reentrant, I couldn't see a rootstock or a control--the control was actually on a dot knoll that I'd mapped a while back as a dot knoll. I cut right up the reentrant, getting to almost the boulder groups, then ran back to the control. I lost 90 seconds.

11-12 - I aimed straight but actually went a little to the right. I hit the control well.

12-13 - Straight, but I hesitated short of the control.

13-14 - I had trouble keeping focused on the correct leg line since there were many crisscrossing. I should have ran right back to the trail, but went down the reentrant before cutting backward to it. Once on the trail, I moved well despite the mud. I came along the lake and past the stream east of the control, before climbing the spur. I saw Ted running, probably toward #11. After that I spiked it.

14-15 - This was one of the few green legs on the course. However it wasn't bad. I got to the train tracks and attacked, seeing it soon afterward.

15-16 - I started straight, and may have crossed a trail, unseen. Getting to the train tracks, I took the one on the left. In the open, I climb the ridge, and had to go further left to get around green forest and across the tracks again. Finishing, I ran up the hill and spiked the control, using the paved trails to point the way.

16-F - Straightish, using the paved trails to get across the rocky ditch.

After finishing I rushed to get my shoes changed, and download. I had just enough time to pickup Max and get him to his game 5 minutes before it started. He did well, scoring 6 points, and blocking several opposing team shots.

Red - Splits

Candy Cane Village in Rock Creek, Park, MD. The MCRRC Winter Trails group met at this park instead of at Muddy Branch, since it seemed the Muddy Branch Trail was going to be closed--we got word just before starting our run in Rock Creek, that the Muddy Branch Trail was now open. It was around 36 F when we started and we'd just gotten some nice vests, no doubt paid for by our program fee, to commemorate the efforts people made in the training program.

Peggy and I happened to be on the end of the waiting crowd that was in the direction we needed to go in. I nestled in behind a lead pack of about 5 runners. It was 1K before we hit the DC/MD border where the pavement ended. I didn't want them to pull me too fast so remained alone, just behind the main group. They started to pull away slightly when later I found I'd caught back up with them. As we set into the first climb on the Valley Trail, I fell back. The climb was made bigger by a turn off onto the Pine Bluff trail, that closely parallels 16th St. for a while. Once back to the Valley Trail, I moved okay. I did try to stop at the restroom prior to Military Rd., but found it was closed. On a switchback just before getting to Military Rd., I found a smaller but fast running group coming the other direction. Since time was running long, for what I'm physically ready for, I decided to cut up the dirt trail along Military Rd. It gets steep in one section so I walked it for probably the first time ever. Moving again, I descended almost to the bike trail at Oregon Ave., but there I could pickup the Western Ridge Trail. I had to stop again, for a nature break but this time it was just in the forest. Getting going again, I moved better. At a big bend in the trail I could look backward and I was surprised to seen Peggy. I decided to wait and run with her, which is what I did. We stayed together for about 3/4 mile and then I pulled ahead going up a hill after Wise Rd. I moved better than earlier and the hills didn't wear me down too much. Nearing the DC/MD border, I crossed the running group I'd seen earlier that was running about the same loop in the opposite direction. On the 1K back to Candy Cane Village, I felt slow but not excessively tired. The good thing about this run, besides it being a nice area that I hadn't run in a while, is that my left knee didn't ache.

From Northfield Rd., to the Bethesda Metro Station.

From the Bethesda Metro Station, to Northfield Rd.

From Northfield Rd., to the Bethesda Metro Station.

From the Bethesda Metro Station, to Northfield Rd.

From Northfield Rd., to the Bethesda Metro Station.

From the Bethesda Metro Station, to Northfield Rd.