Training Log Archive: peterk

Oceania Champs Day2
Much better technical map today. Took it carefully and slowly. Lost contact with the map on the long leg to 3. I had run far enough and nothing fitted ( I was too far to the right) so immediately headed west to the track. On the way so somebody dive into behind a mound 50m to the left. It looked a bit like a feature I was looking for and fortunately it was my control (loss of only 2m. It could have been a lot worse. Really complicated terrain covered by very branchy pine trees. Easy to go astray here so took it slowly. Very different terrain to what we are use dto in WA. Finish 14 in age group and40th on the course.
Could have done better.

Event 2 C 6 - Splits

Event: 2013 Oceania Carnival & WC Races
 

Day 1 of Oceania Challenge

Rounded sand dunes and pine forests. 2.5m contours. Some features difficult to read. Still no excuse for drifting left on the first control. As always some features did not fit. I lost 2m work out where I got it wrong. Next few controls were spot on using the straight line aproach confirmed by features near the straight line. The far western side of the map was technical with low visibility. I had 3 controls in this area. The first two I aproached slowly and was glad to hit them bang on the third control Idrifted too far right and missed it entirely. I found a control on someone elses course but could not work out which of the many knolls it was situated. Eventually I hit a moter bike track and knew instantly where I was. I lost 5-6m here. The rest was uneventful but slow. Overall not bad.

Breifly I though I was in Europe when a Finnish lady asked me where she was. Why was she doing orienteering when she was standing in the middle of a major track and adjacent fence with features either side of the track?

Event 1 C 6 - Splits

Loop walk to Dawson Falls in Taranaki National Park

Walk in Taranaki or Mt Egmont National Park. Set out with intensions of climbing well above the tree line over a 4hr circuit. However when we got higher the wind was strong and cold so we setled for the lesser Veronika Circuit which stays just below the tree line. We learned later that winds of 100km/h were forcast for the higher parts of the mountain

Borowed hotel bikes to ride along the New Plymouth foreshore Huge onshore wind made some legs harder. Fitted in 15 min up and down climb of the towns most prominent hill.

Had a really good run or so I thought. Everything seemed to fit without no significant difficulties finding controls. One warning should have been coming out of control 10 when the mapping seemed to be astray, but I corrected to a good line for control 11. Only when I got back did I found out I misspunched 10 on a similar feature close by. Bugger

Day 2 Course 3. More pine forested sand dunes. Reasonable run up to 3 then nothing seemed to fit on the map. I hit a road too early and at the wrong angle and I should have seen the control before that. I took a while (7m?) to work out I had done a 180, by turning the map upside down. Another mistake on the way to 7 sent me too far to the right. Worked out where I was by unexpectedly seeing the only water tank on the map. Boring finish on the last 3 controls. Finished way down the list with multiple elites doing the same course.