Orienteering 2:04:00 [3]
Out on the Green course today. It feels like it's been a while since I've had a nice long run... I think the EMPO A-meet was the last time.... feels like ages ago.
I came in a far second, with the fastest time around 85 minutes. Well, I would have, if I hadn't blown past the 1st control without punching. My mind was so focused on the long leg from 1-2 that I was already thinking about 2.
1: forgot to punch
2: followed compass due south till I reached the broad re-entrant.
3: two long legs in a row! Took me quite a while to plan, then I set off and realized I couldn't see any of the trails, so started to follow compass again. wasn't quite sure where I was but figured I would run into (or off) the massive cliffs at some point.... except I made a parallel error and mistook smaller cliffs for the massive cliffs... ran into a feature that made me suspect the error and so then I hopped over and saw the unmistakable cliff. Then everything made sense.
4: just kept heading south and nothing made sense and then I saw the control.
5: flowed down the widening re-entrant
6: followed compass east till I hit the cliffs on the slope.
7: Feel like the boulder where the control was way too far west. In fact, I'm quite sure the control was in the wrong place now that I look at the map again.
8: I suppose I took the wrong route because Halimah left 7 with me and she got here first. I chose to take the trail and then climb up the slope... I got there just a few seconds after her and I was a lot more tired. Sure wished there was water there...
9: Stayed on top of the ridge, used houses to the south as landmarks... wasn't quite sure which cliff but a quick scan revealed the control so I stopped thinking.
10: Greg already gave me some advice about this long leg... I took his advice and found good flow to the circle. But within the circle got completely turned around and couldn't help thinking about how my short game in golf sucks too. I think today's experience will encourage me to be a more conscientious about picking the direction from which I want to approach the control.
11: Pretty much went straight
12: Followed the re-entrant
13: took a lot of time trying to decide which of the parallel re-entrants I was in. I was also a lot further north than I thought.
14: along the trail back.
I see Greg at the finish and tell him I took 2 hours. He says "then you didn't do what I told you to do."