Race Evaluation
Boulder Dash: Red Day 2
Nadim
| 1. |
Bad route choice Bad map reading Bad compass work Could not relocate +19:00 | Start-1 - Had a bad start yesterday so today will be better; right? At least it's an earlier start and cooler. The fight green marsh is right in the way. I see other runners whom I think are running green courses avoid it by going across the bridge to the right. Aother blue or red course Army runner starts before me and goes right through the marsh as did some others. It's a whole minute before I'm across the first part, only 30 yards from the start--the whistle blows again. On the good terrain, I'm not sure I'm on the right reentrant so I cross marsh again, going left. I start down the wrong reentrant and correct it by cutting back and up the edge of the correct reentrant. I'm a little concerned about being too far west so I go right. Dropping into a basin area, I cross a dry pond but am not sure which one it is. I go on and soon see a control (#830?) ahead but it's not the right one. Coming back, I see a stone wall remnant. I can't locate it on the map so presume it's not mapped (I heard that Ken Walker, Sr. found some unmarked walls and other features yesterday so believe it's possible to have unmarked features like this small wall). Making presumptions about dry ponds and my tendancy to drift left, I theorize that I need to go east. After exploring the ridges, I go back to the first pond and end up exploring the area I went to originally. I see control #830 again and again come back to the stone wall remnant. This time I locate the wall on the map and head westward. I go a little slow but with the debris and stones, I drift left, passing the control. After a loop and checking behind some rocks, I head northeast and find it finally. | |||||
| 2. | 1-2 I set a good bearing, going slower and actually can read the hill, reentrant, and hill. A fast Asian runner whom I think I've seen before cruises through so I follow. After the next reentrant and up the next larger hill, he comes to his second control for blue which isn't on the red course. I stop to check things better and lose him. I'm on course still so I go ahead. A different blue course runner(?) with hair grayer than mine and blue clothes is in the area He gets there just ahead of me. | ||||||
| 3. |
Bad route choice Read map too late | 2-3 I don't see an apparent simple way to do this one so I set off on bearing, trailing the runner in blue (later Peggy tells me Ken Walker, Sr. went down the reentrant to the trail--in hind sight, this is better). The runner in blue can multi-task reading and running better than I but I'm since I'm not reading as much, I can keep up. His pace is challenging. At first I follow, up and down, up and down, fighting brush much of the way. We pass through the green land between Incredible Pond and the unnamed water to its left. Picking-up the fence at first to our left, we cross it. An Army runner in yellow appears and all three of us are on the same rough course. The Army runner is startled by us two older runners and picks-up the pace. I pass the runner in blue and start following the Army runner. A second shirtless Army runner appears to catch us from behind, going fast, I pass the first Army runner and follow him. He slows as we cross the trail. Three of us attack close together and I get there second. It's a much better feeling than the first leg but probably not an optimal route due to the up and down and rough terrain. | |||||
| 4. | 3-4 The shirtless Army runner soon disappears, probably running blue or just stopping too early. The other in yellow, and I go on bearing, but he drifts right and pulls-up short. I'm not sure of where I am, but when I get to the ridge that I think is correct, I search it by going left, then find it fairly quickly. | ||||||
| 5. | +01:00 | 4-5 I rough compass to the wall, cross and go right to the wall intersection. My glance of the map and control doesn't hold-up in memory correctly, so on the knoll, I search to the left and past the actual control location. Realizing the error, I 180 and find it. | |||||
| 6. | 5-6 The Army runner from controls 3 and 4(?) is ahead of me at this point. I rush down the first hill, in the reentrant, and get near the pond as I cross the stream. Passing the Army runner, I take a good bearing, hitting the control as someone else is punching. I don't see this Army runner again until after I finish. | ||||||
| 7. | +01:30 | 6-7 Following a fairly straight bearing toward the control, I head off and cross the stream. I mean to aim more to the right to avoid the marsh, part of which is uncrossable. Instead, my line is too straight and the marsh is in front of me. It looks to be a short distance, across it. I make a few wet steps on tufts of grass growing out of the water, but run out of steps. Backtracking a bit, I go more right and finally plunge-in. The first step is deep but feels refreshingly cool. The next are not as deep but I'm across. Another woman is making her way across or around also. I follow the knolls up the hill with my wet and now heavy feet. The first knoll comes-up before I expect it to. The second takes longer than I expect so I wonder if I'm on course. I keep going though and get to the top just fine. | |||||
| 8. | 7-8 Running across the slope, my wet shoes loosen so that my feet feel like they are rolling laterally as I run. The spikes keep me from falling however. I trail an older QOC runner as I'm headed down the reentrant and catch him going up the other side. Hitting the trail, I turn right as another blue course runner appears and does the same just ahead of me. We both turn left at the junction, then he breaks into the woods early. I break left later and am headed straight to the control. The blue course runner and I converge, with him just beating me to the bag. | ||||||
| 9. | 8-9 The blue course runner is to my right and gets hung-up in debris trying to get to the narrow marsh dyke I get ahead briefly, then get hung-up also. We both find our way across and he breaks left. I realize that he's on the other course and run across the clean woods. I hit a reentrant very near the large pond's point then take a bearing. I check off the first rock, since it's the only one around on the hillside, then set a new bearing toward the knoll. The first rock again came-up earlier than I thought but the knoll again takes longer. Others I catch stop at the knoll but I go-on, over the hill and see an Asian woman stopped where I guess the control is. As I get nearer, I find that it is the right control. | ||||||
| 10. |
Did not follow plan Bad compass work Lacked concentration +06:00 | 9-10 I think, I've done well to make-up the error at #1, and should break my time yesterday. This leg is long however, and I don't see a great route. I take a straight bearing and go. Hung-up in the fight-green, I turn left sharply to take the shortest distance through it. It doesn't take very long to cross, probably because it's drier than it usually is. I plan to stay on the edge of the green, and near the ridge until I hit the trail. As the ridge flattens and light green gets in-my way, I slow and start drifting too far right. I find another control, much too early to be mine. Seeing what looks to be an intermittant trail, I follow it to the right and downhill a short way. The trail is false and disappears. A series of left, right, left right zig-zags gets me going further down and I hit the road before I know it; having completely missed the trail. I'm fortunate in a way to be in sight of water across the road, and locate myself northwest of the control. The road and trail seem the best option now. I check-off the first trail on the right and then pass the trail on the left without seeing it. Seeing the field off the road just ahead, I realize the error, 180, and head up the trail. I want to find the bend in the trail to attack but mistake a smaller bend for it instead. Ducking south of the control, I see a picnic table from the campground and realize where I'm at. Another attack gets me there. | |||||
| 11. |
Did not read control code Disturbed by others +00:03 | 10-11 I run back to the trail fast. A woman also running well slows to pass some hikers. I eventually get around the hikers and her and dash across the road. Moving fast and trying to read on the run, I follow the trail, turning right and left at the intersections. Not wanting to make yesterday's error, I cut across the woods to the long pond, but am still very close to Pawtuckaway Beach. I pass some people but hear an Army runner behind me. At the control, an older couple is punching. I go around and look at the code. At first I think it's not mine but as I'm running away checking the codes, I see I was looking at the control code for number 10 instead. I turn around and punch but the Army runner is ahead of me now. | |||||
| F. | 11-Finish At first I catch-up to the Army runner and think I might be able to pass. The twisting turns at the bridge make it hard and the Army runner picks-up the pace. The older couple then gets in the way. Getting around them, I trail the Army runner into the Finish. |
Total Time Lost - 00:27:33