Training Log Archive: bishop22

US Champs Day 1 Red at Diamond Bay.

I thought I was ready to put up a decent performance - I was getting used to reading the quality maps out here. Unfortunately, I made an enormous early blunder. On the way to C3, because of the way I folded the map, I started running towards C6, thinking it was C3. I guess the good news is that I spiked it, but when the code was wrong, I became thoroughly confused. I tried to relocate and headed back towards it, as Sandra came thru and punched - but when I got there, the code was still wrong. I looked down the clue sheet and saw the code and realized what I had done wrong. Very depressing, and then I had to run uphill to C3 to boot.

It was tough to stay motivated after a 10+ minute error, so I wasn't quite as quick as I should have been after that - too much walking up hills and even in sage.

Perhaps more comments when I have my map.

Splits:
29, 450, 2240, 2723, 3030, 3812, 4453, (miss?), 5031,
5754, 10629, 11305, 11606, 11819, 11907

Red Day 1 - Splits

Laramie Daze Green Course at East Pelican Bay.

Ran nice and easy, walking when feeling like it on the uphills. This meant my navigation was quite clean, which gives me hope that I can read these maps on the weekend, at race speed.

There were a lot of people out in the terrain, but I did a very nice job of ignoring them and staying focused on the map. This came in particularly useful when I intentionally went the long way around on C6 (I think) and had to relocate as I closed in on the control - I didn't let other searchers affect my approach.

Splits:
44, 330, 529, 906, 1210,
1847, 2314, 2705, 3119, 3624,
3938, 4128, 4411, 4530, 4557

Laramie Daze Sprint Course at East Pelican Bay.

Just jogged thru this. Zach started 2 minutes before me and I caught him as we located C2. He stayed fairly close the rest of the way. Even though the map was 1:10, not 1:5, I focused on reading the "right" amount of intermediate features to keep straight lines between [most] controls.

Laramie Daze Red Course at Happy Jack.

Not a good performance - I blew the 3rd control badly and Nate got ahead of me - he started towards C5, so I beat him to C4, then he passed me on the way to C5, where we both MSPd, punching at Zach's control instead. We couldn't figure out how it was so far from the control to the corner of the fence - now we know. We went our separate ways from there. I caught a couple of glimpses of Nate on the next 3 controls, but then took a sharp stick in the eye and that slowed me down as I tried to recover. Cristoff went zipping by while I was still stunned.

I also had trouble running the uphills, still. I hope that feeling is reduced (probably can't be gone) by Saturday.

Laramie Daze training course on the First With The Most map.

Took it easy, jogging most of it, but walking when I felt like it (guilt-free, since I should be tapering). Blew an early control pretty badly - the open areas look the same to me, so I went down the wrong field (which was even pointing the wrong way, so it wasn't technically a parallel error). Some father was teaching his son that he shouldn't be "dicking around" at the controls. I got distracted, and although I knew I just had to leave the control due north, after I had gone about 30m, I could not make sense of why I thought that - I kept looking at the wrong control and thinking that I had to head west, which made no sense, since I had just come from that direction. So, I "dicked around" for the better part of a minute, while they went on towards the next control.10

6 minutes with Nate before the race. 2 minutes afterwards.

We didn't leave Omaha until 6:45am (CDT), so we arrived at the Happy Jack rest area just before 1pm (MDT). So, when we got up to the parking area, there was no sign of the junior training group. And no registration packets with our training maps. There was, however, a Swampfox that had an abundance of maps leftover from the One Man Relay this AM, so we were able to use those for a training session.

Nate and I started at the same time. His maps were 1-2-3 and mine were 3-2-1, so we ended up close together on the second loop, but he opened up a gap doing 3 while I was on 1 and finished a couple minutes ahead of me.

I had a fair amount of trouble running uphill. Not sure how much was leftover fatigue from the Mud Run versus altitude issues. In any case, I hope either issue is resolved by the weekend.

It was a good chance to reacquaint myself with the maps here. I used the thumb compass, which will not get it done for me in a real race out here right now.

Easy run in Omaha, where we stopped to spend the night. Here is the route. There was an incredibly annoying electronic noise coming from many of the trees in the area, presumably to ward off some sort of parasites.

It was tough getting out after about 15 hours in the car, and coming off last night's race. But I think it would be tougher tomorrow without a jog today.

C • Tree? 2

Event: 2008 Laramie Daze & US Champs
 

29th Annual Mud Run in Boston, NY. I put forth the best effort I could after the two O races on Saturday. I was somewhat pathetic on the uphills. Fetch pulled ahead of me on the early hill and I gradually caught back up. I lost ground on the first two hills on the return trip, but made it back up on the downhills. Fetch didn't catch back up on the third hill and I saw Liquid Plumber up ahead, so I tried to close the gap on him, but wasn't able to quite catch him, although I did pass about 4 or 5 others on the last set of rolling hills.

I placed about 47th, which was good enough for 3rd in my [strange] 44-50 age group. One of the last people I passed was 2nd in the 36-43 group (PJ was 3rd), so chalk up another one for the old guys.

Nate won the 16-17 age group, finishing a bit behind Dan.

Chelsea struggled a bit in the women's race, and finished behind Patty, who won the 50-59 age group. Brenna ran pretty well, finishing a bit ahead of Morgan.

A bunch of people were on the DL: Walt, Huntz, Mick. Kevin O'Connor was there, but no sign of his old man. Coop and Sarah bailed out of town early.

After the girls started, I ran back into the woods and up the first trail, then along or parallel to the course until after the first field. I thought there used to be trail downhill in the next patch of woods, but I didn't see one, so I did some O training with no map and no compass, running thru the terrain, downhill parallel to a big reentrant. When I hit the course, I ran farther in and caught Chelsea, then ran back out. Did a bit more jogging before the start.

Afterwards, I did about 13 minutes easy with Chelsea, figuring it was important to get some crud out of my legs before sitting in the car all day tomorrow.

Very easy run in the local neighborhoods (Creek-Plank-Mt View-?-Woodfield and back home via Hitchcock and Witherspoon). My legs are quite beat up from yesterday, so it was a struggle just to get out, but I think I'll be better off tomorrow for doing it.

Weight was after running and eating a late lunch.

C • jealous 5

Played in the parent/child tourney with Zach. One 11-12 year old team shot a 40 (for a net 33), so we didn't stand a chance. I rarely shoot 40 or better using my own shots, and Zach gives up a few yards to me (but certainly not accuracy). We shot 57, with a lot of putts that should have been closer, but turned into 3-4 footers which were missed.