Training Log Archive: furlong47

Event: Canadian Championships Long
 

COC 2017 Long - Foley Mountain Conservation Area - Course 8 (F35+)

This was pretty much a calamity from the beginning to the end. The map at 1:15000 didn't do me any favors either.

Attacked 1 stupidly from the trail junction, wandered around in what seemed like way more open areas than mapped, found several other knolls, finally bailed to the trail and found myself right by the water pit. (Which probably should have been my attackpoint to begin with.) So I couldn't have been too far off. Succeeded in attacking from there.

2 was probably one of the best legs all day because it was mostly on the road and trail.

Got to 3 mostly ok, although reading the cairns and rock piles was another exercise in everything looking the same. Short legs to 4 and 5 weren't bad either, just started looking a bit early on both of them.

5 to 6, the long leg, was the one I had worried about but this actually went pretty decently. I was able to string together the trail/field/pond/marsh/stream/open in order to have handrails most of the way there. At one point I did get my feet tangled in some crap and took a pretty nasty fall off of a rock onto some other rocks. Thankfully nobody saw this happen. But my legs have some pretty nasty bruising.

After this the wheels really fell off. Got down toward 7 and couldn't make sense of the terrain with the map. I bumped into pretty much the only boulder in that area and used that to get back to 7. Did okay on 8 and 9 but that was mostly bearings and luck, certainly not map reading skill.

10 and 11. I must have checked out every rocky hilltop in the area. Finally relocated at the stream for 10, although that took a bit of standing still and figuring out what was what. Then messed up on 11 again, bailed to the trail, went down to what I thought was the rough open and ended up milling around again. Finally in a stroke of luck I saw the water pit while bailing to the trail again, and found the control from there. I had been in what's mapped as white for pretty much the entire time I thought I was in rough open.

I almost gave up but why when so close to the end? Missed 12 and ended up back at the same knoll that saved me the prior day on 1. Bounced back and got it. On the way to 13 in started to rain, adding insult to injury, but I luckily found this one easily.

The rest of the controls were not hard, although my brain and body both were pretty shot and I kept not seeing them until I was right on top of the bag. The rain was a total deluge at this point too. Glad I had covered up my bag back at the arena, which contained my camera and phone. I finished so late that awards were pretty much done and food was no longer for sale. And to top it all off, I was very last person in my class AND on the entire course... by ONE second.

Course 8 - Splits

Event: Canadian Championships Middle
 

COC Middle - Foley Mountain Conservation Area - Course 8 (F35+)

I've been to Foley Mountain a couple of times, but never went much beyond Spy Rock/the beaver pond/the nature center area and beach. So it was interesting to see the rest of the terrain.

I had a lot of trouble moving out here - too much rock and other junk underfoot, although the visibility was almost always very nice for this time of year.

Started off immediately on the wrong foot, getting drawn off to another control on the way to 1 and then following the stream too far. Saw another control and realized I was on top of the little knoll SE of the marsh, reattacking from there to finally get to 1.

The rest of the day mostly went like this - get into the circle, wander around a bit, often with a few others, stumble onto the control. I was often not super confident in my location. So, a meh day with meh results.

8 - Splits

Walking around Perth working on the trivia challenge. Then we did the rest by car as I drove and Kathy wrote down the answers. Felt like cheating but it never said how we had to do them, and we were done just in time for the silent auction and banquet. Fun learning all the history and other information.

Event: Canadian Championships Sprint
 

COC Sprint - Perth - Course 4 (F 21-34E)

Not sure why I entered elite since it was the same course. (I usually do this to get a longer sprint.) I would have been 6/12 in F35+.

No major problems here, aside from not noticing a few shortcuts, but so far everyone on Routegadget appears to have mostly made the same choices as I did.

Highlights - wooden car bridge, running down the sidewalk of the hotel, splashing through the stream and of course finishing inside the Crystal Palace. And tacos and beer afterward.

As much time as I've spent in this local area (Westport) I've never really been to Perth, so it was nice to explore the city with this and the trivia challenge. Will be dragging the family over next time we're in Canada.

C • Carleton Place 2

4 - Splits

It's something. Hope to get some motivation back after this trip.