Training Log Archive: Sandy

Disappointed in this race. I didn't make any big mistakes, always knew where I was, but I guess I just didn't move purposefully enough or fast enough and perhaps took some poor routes.

Turned the map over and did a double take - this looks like 1:15. What's going on. But the run to the trail convinced me it really was 1:10 so the fact that I could barely read the map meant that it was my eyes. (And apparently the black is really too dark. We had the same issue with the NAOC maps so I sympathize.)

Okay to 1, just off the trail. 1-2 was sloppy. Came back out to the trail the way I came in instead of to the other side of the small hill - dumb. Then left the trail too early and fought my way through some junk and swamp. But then ran on a compass bearing and spiked the control. But lost time, maybe a minute.

I lost more time on this control. My plan was solid and I executed it reasonably well. Got out to the trail (the one we used to get to the start) by just going for it and i don't think I lost time there. Then ran down the trail - I suppose people were running the trail faster but I did run the whole time. Left the trail just before the turn and the water made sense but I didn't see the indistinct trails that were mapped so I hesitated a bit wondering if I really was where I thought I was. In retrospect, I'm just not really sure whether I left the trail early but I think I did. At least I have company if I did - PG did too. I hesitated a lot wondering where exactly I was but realized it didn't really matter - I needed to climb hill anyway and it wouldn't be that hard to relocate from the top. I ended up underneath the large cliff faces to the north of my control so it was easy to sort out where to go but I did end up climbing through more rocks than I probably needed to. So several minutes lost here. Perhaps wearing a Garmin would be useful after all.

3-4 was a short easy leg. 4-5 I decided to go straight and not out to the road. I lost another minute or so here according to AP but AP doesn't know that I don't run the roads much faster than I tramp through the terrain. There were lots of obvious features on my route so had no problems finding the control. But, it was slow going since there were a few sections of logging slash. Not sure if the road would have been faster or not. My route did tire me out though - both mentally and physically - and I had very little left for the last part of the course so that might have been the bigger consequence.

I went straight on 5-6, swinging to the right of the marsh. Checked out one set of rocks to the north first - they didn't seem to be in quite the right place but they were the biggest ones around. The circle was around 2 large and and 2 small boulder dots that blurred together and looked like one large black pointy thing to my eyes so I just went to the rocks that looked the biggest thinking I was hunting for some sort of monolith looking thing. Checking the control description told me I was looking for the control between two boulders and I corrected reasonably quickly.

The rest of the course was straightforward, but I was out of gas and couldn't push and it was an effort to read carefully and not do something stupid.

Still when I finished I felt pretty good about the run - no real mistakes. But several people did better. I guess I'm getting a bit complacent and if I care about how I place (I do) I need to step it up a notch.

And figure out a solution to the fact that I can't really read the map very well any more.

C • So how much of it was the m... 5

Long Brown Y - Splits

Huge error but had so much fun on the course and love this terrain so much that it's hard to get too down about it.

Long walk up to the start, in the rain and fog. But it actually felt shorter and less steep than I was expecting after Friday morning's escapade. Guess the bus drop off took care of a lot of contours. Totally misremembered where the Billygoat control was along here.

The plan was to always have a pace count going and go straight as much as possible and pace, but keep map contact as best I could. On the way to #1 I hit my pace count but knew that I hadn't yet hit the swamp just past the control so just kept going. There is a form line hill inside the circle just before the control that I can see now with reading glasses on, but I definitely didn't see it during the race. So was surprised that I needed to go over another hill but then saw a flag in a depression and knew it was mine. But I was rattled that my pace was so far off. In thinking about it, I'm guessing it's because of all the up and down but at the time it really made me second guess myself.

Don't remember much about the route to #2 - I got to the swamp and said this is my swamp and there was a control to the left a little on a cliff. But again, it was further than my pace count.

To #3 I wove between marshes and climbed the hill knowing I was left of the control. I thought I went far enough right (north) that I should be seeing the control but I wasn't seeing anything. I knew I didn't want to climb any more though so decided to go further north and saw the control.

Counted hills and swamps to #4 and arrived what had to be my spur but couldn't read the detail in the circle to know where to go look for the control. Searched a few rocks and cliffs, double checked that everything was lining up correctly, knew that I had to be in the right place but wondered where the flag was and what had I done. Just as I figured out (with the aid of the magnifier) that there was one more feature in the circle than I was originally seeing and I needed to go down and check out the bottom of what seemed like a cliff (control description was knoll), someone else came through down below and looked like they were punching. Not a lot of time lost but some. But my confidence was now really low.

Tried to be careful going to #5 and I'm sure I was really close on the first attempt, but I either didn't see the flag or wasn't looking soon enough or maybe I didn't go far enough or something. Without a GPS track I can't be totally sure of what I did. I was in the general area for a long time trying to figure out where I was. I'm not sure what I saw that finally made me sure of where I was but eventually something clicked and I ran right to the control. But not until being stupid for 10 minutes.

#6 was straightforward. Took the trail towards 7, then hugged the edge of the swamp for a while, then paced and counted more swamps and knew where the control would be. Looking at the map now, this looks a lot harder than #5 but I nailed this one. Perhaps I was finally getting into the map.

AP shows time lost to #8. I was quite a bit south but that was just because I saw a good way down the hill so took it. Recognized some rock features and knew where to go to get 8. So probably lost time to people who went straighter and ran harder but don't really count it as an error.

9 felt easy, the big reentrant halfway to the control was obvious. The circle obscures a lot of the contour detail right around the control but there really wasn't a lot going on so not too bad. And then there were streamers for the white course all the way to 10 and the finish.

A GPS would be nice to see what I actually did around #5 but my Garmin is too big and clunky to wear orienteering. Or maybe I just need to get more used to wearing it. This is the first time I can't really reconstruct what I did. But part of that is the inability to remember as much.

Anyway, thought this was an absolutely fantastic Brown middle distance course. I think I could have done 45 minutes with a cleaner race but not Natalia's 37. She is impressive. Shocked that I was the second woman on the course and as high up in the placings as I was. I guess a lot of people had more trouble than I did.

Middle Brown Y - Splits

Event: 2013 U.S. Individual Championships/Team Trials
 

Hike up to the start/finish area of Moreau early in the morning to test out whether we could relay a radio signal down to the results area. We couldn't. The climb from the parking lot is steep and there was a bit of being on all fours in a few places trying to get to the high point to test the radios. The climb down was worse.

A reasonable sprint outing. I always think I'm no good at these but I'm not all that bad. I made two errors. Out of 3 I didn't have a good plan and waltzed around in some rocks before yelling at myself to just climb the (tiny) hill and run. Towards the end started getting tired. First got all confused because the map printing at #9 made it look like 3 large rectangular buildings not 3 clusters of 2 small square ones and so I was momentarily perplexed at why I wasn't seeing what I expected to see. But I knew I had to be in the right spot and eventually went to where the circle was and found a flag. But that interrupted my concentration enough that on the way to #10 I jumped ahead a trail junction and then made the best of it by cutting across the woods whihc turned out to be pretty bad footing and then didn't read ahead to realize I wanted the earlier, smaller of two buildings (good thing I checked my code - saw a flag and just ran for it). So definitely could have been better, but still a lot of fun. And while I wasn't fast, I wasn't too pathetically slow so I'll take it.

Sprint Brown - Splits

I have had a ache in my lower back since Sunday. I just thought it was a muscle strain or something but it's not getting better, in fact it's a bit worse this morning and more like a sharp pain. It doesn't hurt when I'm doing anything, only when I'm sitting. I'm guessing some nerve somewhere is getting pinched or something like that. The car ride to EMPO land is not going to be fun.

I need to start doing yoga again. I don't know why I got out of the routine, but I did, and I'm paying for it. I am determined to some tonight but need to be careful not to overdo it.

C • Aching back 4

TNT - Did 3 x (5 min hard, 3 min easy) plus a short warm up and the hike down to the drive and back up again. Felt good - had to work but it felt smooth.