Training Log Archive: iansmith

Event: NEOC: Great Brook Farm State Park
 

Red course at Great Brook Farm. I arrived late through a combination of sleeping late and some very poor route choices on the drive to GBF. I expected to run a course unofficially before helping with control pickup, but Tim was nice enough to let me start; he set 60 minutes as a goal time (largely because of Magnus' goading).

I didn't have much warmup, but I felt ok physically from my "taper." I made a pretty horrendous mistake on the first control - I wasn't able to make sense of the trails near the control, though my attack was bad. My only other mistake of consequence was exiting 14 poorly and so slogging through a length of swamp unnecessarily for perhaps a two minute loss. Something in my left foot started hurting abruptly en route to 16; I slowed for a time, and the pain diminished shortly afterward. I didn't notice any problems a few hours later, so maybe I was just getting poked.

Gentle outing picking up controls. I felt good.

Red - Splits

Ethiopian food and dancing with Megan and Team HLS. This week was a shambles, but I experienced massive phase shifts that I wasn't able to correct.

The Burrito Bracket is over! We were introduced to the novel "VORB" metric - the Value Over Replacement Burrito. El Paso has a taqueria that finished in the final four, and I've never even been there! The other final four are from San Francisco, Los Angeles, and the Bronx. Surely I shall pilgrimage to the SF, El Paso, and NYC semifinalists in the next year or so.

Free soloist Alex Honnold is nuts, but in an incredible profound and zen-like way. He is the master of madness, right up there with Ueli Steck. There is something elemental about facing these mammoth rock slabs with nothing but climbing shoes and a chalk bag. Mind vs nature.

There are certain parallels between people like Honnold and other masters of their craft like Peyton Manning, Thierry Gueorgiou. They have a powerful combination of passion, incredible skill, and consummate preparation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phl82D57P58
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICBrXUuwvgg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SR1jwwagtaQ

Sunday Blue - Splits