Race Evaluation
Blue Hills: Traverse
o-maps
| 1. | Last part on aqueduct trail (construction). Picked up on people in the woods, should have gotten on it even sooner. | ||||||
| 2. | +00:15 | Immediately dropped back to aqueduct trail, again a little faster than those who went through woods to road. Hooked the final attack a bit low and left. | |||||
| 3. | S of swamp, like most. PG groaning about his leg. | ||||||
| 4. | |||||||
| 5. | Trail. A wash compared to PG in woods. | ||||||
| 6. | S to 2nd trail, followed it all the way to road. Along E edge of clearing, fence gone there so straight through woods to trail where it leaves fenced area. Dropped down slightly then contoured, sort of, to reentrant and climbled spur to control. Alar came in from the NW just before me. | ||||||
| 7. | Just behind Alar until he veered left at the end (going to wrong cliff?) so I got clear. | ||||||
| 8. | +00:45 | Should have just dropped to trail below, but made the old mistake of letting my route choice be influenced by trying to stay out of sight of pursuers. Stayed close to the purple line, not horrible but a bit rough with rocks and vegetation. Hit 2nd trail at the broad bend, took it briefly to sharper bend, then straight across small trail, marsh, low ridge, rocky reentrant, and uphill to the index-contour knoll which I briefly mistook for the spur where the control is. | |||||
| 9. | +01:30 | Left route. I made the same mistake at a past Traverse, I should know better. | |||||
| 10. | Back in more of a pack due to lost time on route to 9. Spent a brief time re-hanging control 10 when the guy ahead of me knocked it down (Jeff/Michael, don't hang them on small dead branches). | ||||||
| 11. | Slightly trailing the pack (PG, JJ, Alar, several others)... | ||||||
| 12. | ...ditto... | ||||||
| 13. | ...ditto... | ||||||
| 14. | +00:30 | Immediately NW to road, 50 m. behind PG going up the road. He left the road at the right spot (just before guard rail) and nailed the control and got out of sight, I left road after guard rail and had to attack through some slowish steep rocky footing. | |||||
| 15. | Alar passed me in the marsh. The pack is becoming a little more strung out and I am beginning to drop back again. | ||||||
| 16. | Regained some ground by going around the right side of the pond while most went left. | ||||||
| 17. | Alar just ahead, PG pulling out of sight. | ||||||
| 18. | See several folks leaving 18 but they're gone by the time I get to it. My legs beginning to fail me. | ||||||
| 19. | SW across road and up the hill to the more southern of the two trails. Stayed on trail all the way past the marsh, then attack N to spur. Really bonking now, see PG leaving 19 and that was to be the last I saw of anyone until the following pack caught me after 24. | ||||||
| 20. | |||||||
| 21. | +00:45 | WSW from 20 to hiking trail which was twisty and rocky. Barely jogging on the flats and downhills of the major trail. Leaving it at jct SW of NEOC Troll logo, angled W to water tank, contoured to ski trail, dropped slightly to hiking trail which leads to control. | |||||
| 22. | Briefly broke into a jog leaving the ski trail for the hiking trail but otherwise just walking. Several rest stops just climbing from trail to control, it's obvious that the over route to 23 is out of the question. | ||||||
| 23. | Trail all the way around, stumbling due to deep leaves over rocky footing (and due to my physical condition). Intended to take it all the way to the long ditch, then realized that the bend 150 m. before is 3 contours higher so I left the trail there and angled up. Crossed the long ditch high enough to see the rocks above, so knew I was at the right height and contoured to the spur. | ||||||
| 24. | Slightly left of straight. Got nervous at the end when pines shut down the visibility but found it OK. | ||||||
| 25. | George W. passes me, shortly followed by many others (Ken W., Deb H., Phil B., et. al.) | ||||||
| 26. | The whole pack is out of sight by the time I get to the road. | ||||||
| F. | "Time lost" I've entered is only navigational, didn't try to guess how much I lost to bonking physically. |
Total Time Lost - 00:03:45