Training Log Archive: Nadim

From Northfield Rd., Greenwich Park, to Old Georgetown Rd. to Beech Dr. to Singleton Dr. to Startmont Rd., to Friars Rd., to Fernwood Pl. to Fernwood Rd., to Bradley Blvd., to Huntington Pkwy., to Moorland Ln., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. It was 63 F with a lot of light still in the sky. I started out figuring I'd finish-up a different way to get 5 miles, but with the extra light, I thought it'd be good to get to areas that I've rarely been in. I felt okay starting out, but slow on hills. After the climb on Singleton Dr., I slowed, even while going downhill. There was a long climb on Bradley Blvd., and Huntington Pkwy. for the last mile and I slowed the most on it. My left knee continues to bother me. I may need to back off the training a little to get it stronger again. It definitely slowed me.

30 sit-ups.

Event: QOC Mason Neck
 

QOC: Mason Neck State Park, VA. I ran the Blue course. I warmed-up just a tiny bit since I was feeling tired and stiff from my run and long field checking outings yesterday. The courses were a bit shorter and easier than normal today since the park authority restricted some areas that the event could pass through. Some legs could have been made harder by eliminating some closely that were spaced close together. Except for the first control, I was on target.

S-1 - I started shortly after Ken Walker but didn't know what course he was running. I ended up going to the paved trail head as he had. I was having a hard time getting into reading the map. This was partly from ducking branches and, partly getting confused by the finish leg going to control #17. Additionally, the number for #1 was printed amongst a blue marsh and green background. Partway there I read the leg such that I had to cross 2 reentrants to get to a 3rd. Really I only had to cross one. I also confused the dashed intermittent stream in reentrant before the one with the control, as a trail that I was seeing in a reentrant. I got all the way to 3rd reentrant before stopping and figuring out that I needed to make a correction. When I came back, I saw the control on the bridge and was lamenting not having read the control description. I probably lost 1:15 minutes.

1-2 - Out to the road, and around the corner. After 2 white course controls, I was starting to think this way too easy.

2-3 - I got onto the paved trail and turned left to get a closer attack point. Like is some earlier years, I drifted left and hit the little trail. I was only on it a very short way before finding the bend and seeing the control from it.

3-4 - Straight, ignoring the trail. I did drift right but with the leg being short, I was able to see the control and adjust.

4-5 - Straight.

5-6 - Straight but I paused partway there. I was thinking to aim off a bit but I didn't need to.

6-7 - I went straight, reading the reentrants as I did.

7-8 - Straight but I drifted right a little before seeing it.

8-9 - Straight again to spike it.

9-10 - Straight, reading the reentrants as I went. I got a little concerned as I closed-in. That's when I came across Max who was walking. He was really tired from his workouts the day before. I paused to let him tell me that he was just going to focus on his navigation this day. I hit it afterward.

10-11 - It took me a while to find #11. Afterward, I ran straight and used the reentrant as a handrail. I was able to see the control about 70m away.

11-12 - I angled out to the road. I read the curves and could see the reentrant coming-up. It surprised me to be able to see the control from the road.

12-13 - I stayed in the forest, but did angle left to avoid having to cross the big reentrant. I crossed the marsh at a relatively dry spot and entered the mapped holly trees I attacked at the edge of the holly trees and then upon nearing #14, I realized that I had to go on. A young guy was coming into #14 from my left and I ran right past it after he left. #13 was visible a few steps further.

13-14 - I doubled back to #14 going on bearing.

14-15 - Leaving #14, I went south, rather than straight. After crossing the reentrant, I paralleled it and read the larger contours. As the forest got thicker, I used the trail twice, leaving it when it dropped. I attacked the control from the trail bend and came in close behind the guy whom I'd seen at #14 when I was going to #13..

15-16 - After crossing the road, I cut left a little since the forest was more open there. I hit some marsh and realized it was mapped. Going further, I ran into the open area--the area mapped as open was more rough open than open. I saw #4 and actually punched it before realizing that I needed to get to #16. After a few steps away from #4 on bearing, I could seen #16.

16-17 - I went straight until I hit the trail. Taking that through the green, eventually left it to continue straight. I emerged right at the trail bend that I'd used to get to #3. Like before, I went to the next bend closer to the road before going straight again. The mapped green extended further east than mapped, so I went around it. I was looking for the general bend of the large reentrant but hit it at the trail which I should have been looking for. I knew where the trail was crossing the big reentrant, so I attacked successfully from there.

17-F - I walked up the hill a little before going on bearing. I thought I might use the trails some but ended up just going straight. The woods were pretty open. Once to the road, I didn't have a lot of energy to run hard on the run in.

It was unfortunate that I lost time on the first control but just about everything else was close enough to consider it to have been a spike. I thought I might finish in under an hour and I could have. The course measured to 7.4K and my route only 7.789K. I think the listed course climb of 115m was incorrect. My watch recorded only 35m on my route.

After the event, we had lunch with my sister.

Blue - Splits

Lake Needwood Regional Park, MD. Starting at Needwood Rd., up Upper Rock Creek Trail (a dirt trail going up towards the Agricultural History Farm Park) to Muncaster Rd. (not Muncaster Mill Rd., which I crossed), and back. I didn't feel that strong but not too bad either. I did this after dropping Max of at a gym to workout with a friend and after getting my auto emissions test. The trail doesn't climb a lot overall but it does undulate many short ups and downs over the more gradual grades. I felt most of them. Though I'd gotten more sleep, my sleep was interrupted in the middle. Though it wasn't what awoke me, my knee hurt more in bed than it did on this run (which was none). It was sunny and in the upper 40s or lower 50s F. I ran in shorts and a t-shirt. I think I only saw about 4 of 5 people over the route. 3 were runner going down when I was going up. In contrast, as I stretched after finishing, I saw a steady stream of people taking the route around the lake and enjoying the good day.

Hoyles Mill Conservation Park. I started from the Hoyles Mill Trailhead parking lot on White Ground Rd. Today was better than last time in that I was able to make better sense of the vegetation and match-up point features on the base map. Building on, and updating the vegetation mapping from my last outing, I found ways through the green areas of the north, to nicer stuff more typical of what I'd seen further south. Unfortunately somehow my GPS setup had gotten reset, perhaps due to an update. It changed track recording to Auto mode--That's much less detail than recording every second of a track. It gives results with less detail than my watch GPS shows. There were nice scattered and prominent rocky features in corridors of open forest. Where there was medium green vegetation, I found places that poked holes through it and which could be mapped as light green. I spent a little while in a big high field where it looks like natural hay grows. I got a bit of an viewpoint across the forest and to the suburbs.

Arlington, VA. Starting at Bluemont Junction Park at Wilson Blvd., north on the W&OD Trail to the Custis Trail (on the north side of I-66), to N. Glebe Rd., to Fairfax Dr., to the Bluemont Junction Trail, to George Mason Dr., to the Lubber Run Trail, to Arlington Blvd., to N. Granada St. to N., Greenbriar St., to the W&OD Trail to Bluemont Junction Park. Though today is Friday, I ran the same run that I had done on Monday. It was in the low 40s F and I felt significantly better. Fluidity improved at about 2 miles out as I started doing more downhill running than uphill running. I felt I was moving better throughout, except maybe for the last mile when I was more tired from running harder earlier. I'd had to stop at a traffic light in Ballston and apparently I hit the Start/Stop button twice when restarting it. Noticing just before I entered Lubber Run, I was able to restart it but my overall time is estimated. I was glad to find an open and clean restroom in Lubber Run too.

From the intersection of Elmhirst Ln. and Elmhirst Dr., to Elmhirst Pkwy. to the Elmhirst Trail, to Cedar Ln., to Rock Creek Trail, to the bridge over Rock Creek. that's just past the beltway (I-495) underpass, and back. It had been raining all day so it was wet and about 50 F when I started. I felt bloated and not so smooth for the first +1 mile (unsettled stomach). When doing a variation of this route my 2nd mile always seems to inexplicably be slower; there are minor hills but it still ends up further downward. I wore shorts and a sweat top but even that much started feeling warm. I took it off on the way back after the rain had started again. That seemed to energize me with my 3rd mile being faster than the second, even though it has a net climb. Still feeling a little better, I pushed more on the way back. I felt my left knee but not a lot.

Cabin John Regional Park, MD. From the Tennis Center parking lot, I took mostly the Cabin John Trail northward to the campground loop north of Tuckerman Rd.; then after the loop I returned on similar trails. Having run a similar loop 10 days back. I felt slower and heavier today. By avoiding some wet spots last time, the distance should have close to 1/10th of a mile shorter this time. However my time today was slower and my watch measured the distance to be 1/20th longer. I didn't have to work as hard on the way back. Trail conditions were nice and dry overall. I ran here to give my left knee some softer ground and it did feel better during and afterward.

From Northfield Rd., Custer Rd. to Wilson Ln. to Glenbrook Rd., to Bradley Blvd., to Kennedy Dr., to Dorset Ave., to the Little Falls Trail, to Hillandale Rd., to Bradley Blvd., to Arlington Rd., to Wilson Ln., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. It was in the mid 40s F with a cool breeze. I pretty much knew starting out that I'd be slow on this run. A late dinner and apparent water retention have my weight up a little but it was also cumulative training catching up with me and and a need for more sleep and rest. My left knee was also not feeling so good. In the first mile, I pushed much too hard for the speed I was going. I put less effort into it afterward and felt better except in the last 3/4 of a mile.

30 sit-ups.