Training Log Archive: iansmith

Morning run. I lengthened my typical 30 minute route slightly so I would surmount 20 miles for the week.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WgT9gy4zQA

One hour.

Evening run, river loop. My objective was a slow run - around 5:30/km pace. I held to 4/4 breathing through the run, except for an 8 minute 2/2 stretch near the end at about threshold pace that I threw in for fun.

Traveling from Boston to North Carolina to chauffeur Lori to Boston has made training today impractical. It's not clear that I will have much opportunity to train tomorrow, though I will go for at least a four mile run tomorrow night. That will leave Saturday and Sunday to run thirteen miles and go orienteering - I'll probably run Brendan's Tufts sprint from mid December.

C • Why are you chauffeuring Lo... 10

Evening run while doing laundry. The run felt sluggish at the time, but apparently it wasn't more so than usual.

2758

Ran around the parking lot before the O-course.

A Hammond Pond Night-O course set by Ross. The time is something of a guess, because I forgot my watch - I glanced at my cell phone before and after the event.

I ran pretty well on the course though I struggled pushing through the vegetation from 6-7. I started too fast and was as lost as I could be at 2, though I relocated without trouble (1-2 minute mistake). My execution was adequate - I caught myself making a parallel error at 10 - but I need to avoid hesitation and improve my flow. Avoiding catastrophic mistakes, while necessary, is not sufficient. En route to 13, I crossed a frozen marsh and put my foot through the ice. I had planned to skirt the northern edge, but it was too indistinct for me to discriminate. There were, for instance, bushes growing out of the ice in the middle of the marsh.

C • #2 2

After O-ing, I had a spectacular dinner at Ross's and Sam's apartment with Jeff, Brendan, and SGB (Stephen), whom I met for the first time. We had a random discussion about cooking, Skyline trails, gnutella, marzipan and ATP.

On the way home, I had a productive though inconclusive discussion. Persuasion can be difficult when both parties are convinced of the accuracy of their claims, especially when the vocabulary is so poorly defined. If only we could use math for all purposes, but even then, I suppose Godel's Incompleteness rears its ugly head...

Some Orienteering slogans that are better than the IOF's "Orienteering: at one with nature" -

1. "Orienteering - at one with AWESOME"
2. "US Orienteering: Destroy Canada"
3. "Orienteering: run fast, and for goodness sake, don't get lost"
4. "Orienteering: real world training for Catching Features competitions"
5. "Orienteering: Mens et pedem" (not sure about the Latin)
6. "Orienteering: Because road running is so boring, you'll want to gouge your femoral artery out with a 10 cm stick"
7. "Orienteering: not for pansies"
8. "Orienteering: we're not in Kansas anymore."