Training Log Archive: iansmith

To the sheepfold. The temperature today hovered around 2 C, with clear skies and a 10 kph breeze. With the experience I gained from yesterday, I wore a tech undershirt, longsleeves, a windbreaker, clunker gloves, a balaclava, and tights under bike shorts. This was adequate, though glasses for my eyes would have helped. I was quite satisfied to go from my apartment to the sheepfold in 30 minutes, including stops at traffic lights.

I ran around a bit to transition from cycling to running. My legs felt heavy at first.

I rendezvoused with Alex and Giacomo to run an o-terval exercise that Boris designed (thanks, Boris!). Brendan stopped by to chat initially, then hung out in the parking lot for some indeterminate time.

The exercise consisted of a set of O-tervals, with three or four controls per O-terval. The first leg was a long-ish trail leg, and the objective was to run hard enough on the trail leg so we could practice making intelligent decisions while tired on the later controls. My map printout wasn't the best quality, and I struggled to read it while maintaining speed. My flow was pretty bad - I noticed that while I was good at making a plan from circle to circle, I didn't pay enough attention to what was inside the circle until I arrived - where I had to slow to read. In a place as complex and detailed as the Fells, that's untenable. I also didn't have control descriptions, which complicated matters.

We started at 10-15s intervals, and permuted the order. Running with other people was great fun, and much more enjoyable than o-ing solo in the Fells. We stopped after the eighth o-terval because it was too dark to see. Quickroute.

Biking home. I was much colder - probably due to perspiration from the orienteering. I was also tired, so my production of body heat was waning. I stopped at Subway to load up on calories, and forgot to stop the Garmin until I started eating.

I just discovered a treasure trove of O-training data: Boris's log. I started reading 2005, and he trained over 200 hours of O in 2005 and 2006. My interests are more varied than Boris' during that time (or than he logged), but it's a useful target for which to aim. I think my body would break if I tried to achieve that level of training immediately, but 400-500 hours isn't unrealistic for 2012.

C • Yep 6

I took Lens out and had more success both with adjusting the exposure parameters and with the weather compared to my last effort. Click on the picture for a full resolution crop. I took some videos of the moon gracefully arcing through the sky and more pictures, but they didn't change much. I also noted that my UV filter caused a green reflection, so I removed it. I think I can get still better shots with more reading about photography parameters; this was taken with a tripod. Unfortunately, I will did not have a view of the moon during its eclipse tonight last night.

C • very nice. 12

Unsure of time or distance; I ran some errands around Cambridge, including going to Target (bought a yoga mat for core exercises), pumping up my tires, picking up my jacket from Giovanni, and getting a burrito. It was cold, and I lacked gloves - I fought very hard to stay warm. I scrapped my plan to go swim at the War Memorial pool when Target didn't have goggles.

After some deliberation and a number of different plans during the day, I set out on an easy long run around the river. This was my first cold run of the year - the temperature was about 0 C, and I ran in shorts, tights, with short and long sleeves. As I have finished all my current Kindle reading, I switched to the audiobook The Pacific Crucible: The War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942. In light of The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, a look at some of the specifics of the Pacific War will be illuminating. Of all of history, I am most familiar with World War II, and the Pacific war during the early phases of the war is a particular area of expertise. I expect I will learn some new information and perspectives, but this is also a casual, fun read.

I will include more fiction in my future readings - to include Into the Silence - a mountaineering book about Mallory and Irvine, Catch-22, Catcher in the Rye, A Movable Feast, Ringworld, Anna Karenina, Brave New World, Godel, Escher, Bach, Alexander's Military Industrial Complex, and others. I have thirty audiobook credits I need to burn through, so hopefully this will plant the seeds for a good winter of training.

I suspect that I expended more energy biking today than I initially thought, because a glorious sensation of fatigue took me at the end of the run. I usually don't struggle to generate lots of body heat, but I was getting quite cold. The pace was easy - so staying warm was somewhat harder. I generally felt good, though my right knee and left shin don't feel fantastic.

Churchill apparently contended that the entry of the United States into World War II was sufficient to guarantee the Allies' victory, but there are a few other major turning points that I would add to that list, probably starting with the defeat of the Wehrmacht at Stalingrad and the annihilation of the 6th army. On the other hand, the armament and mobilization of the vast Red Army Juggernaut was inevitable, the Essex-class aircraft carriers had been under construction since 1940 (and would vastly overwhelm the Japanese navy whatever happened in 1942), and the might of the American army was inevitably going to fall on Germany's western conquests. The American entry into the war, the British victory at the Battle of Britain, and the defeat and reversals of the German army on the Eastern front were unquestionably the critical landmarks of Allied victory.

Finished with a single set of 40 pushups. It's barely worth logging, but I was glad to accomplish even a token strength effort given my exhaustion.

In a break with my pattern, I did six minutes of core before going on my run. 2x (1 min tuckups, 1 min supermans, 1 min oblique crunches).

C • Always nice 2

I went out on an easy run before catching dinner with Keith at Texas Roadhouse. It's a poor substitute for actual Texas, but it's in the conveniently accessible space of options.

In a page-turning marathon, I finished Tom Hornbein's The West Ridge last night. That's not strictly true, since I was reading on a Kindle, but I suppose "page-turning" can be extrapolated to e-readers. The book narrates the 1963 American expedition to Everest - the first successful American ascent, ten years after the British succeeded. The South Col route was the first route and is generally considered the easiest; the Northeast ridge, which was attempted by Mallory and Irvine in 1924, is the other frequented route. The Americans, with 19 western climbers, put four climbers on the summit via the South Col route; it was important that the expedition actually make the summit, but repeating an old route was not a very interesting achievement.

More or less simultaneously, driven by Hornbein and Willi Unsoeld, a small, less supported group established a new, much harder route up the West Ridge. In a Herculean effort, constrained by the expedition's timeline, Hornbein and Unsoeld ascended the West Ridge on summit day and descended via the South Col, where they rendezvoused with their teammates. As they climbed the last two thousand feet of the West Ridge, they realized that they would be unable to descend via the same route due to miserable rock conditions and insufficient supplies; well before they reached the summit as they climbed wholly unexplored terrain, they had committed to going up and over. My mind is boggled at the magnitude of their effort and achievement; Jon Krakauer wrote in Into Thin Air that "Hornbein's and Unsoeld's ascent was--and continues to be--deservedly hailed as one of the great feats in the annals of mountaineering." In terms of raw insanity, few Himalayan ascents can parallel - Herman Buhl's solo ascent of Nanga Parbat, the Polish line on K2, Mallory's tragic Everest saga, Fritz Viessner's efforts on the rock bands at K2, and Pete Schoening's belay on K2.

Anyway, I went on an easy run, and my left shin was somewhat uncomfortable. I have therefore decided to scrap my plans to run the Traverse tomorrow in favor of an easy run.

I scampered over to the BUAEC for the CSU indoor track workout. It took me longer than I planned to run there, and I arrived as people were doing warmup drills. I ran with my backpack, short sleeves, and tights over shorts; the temperature was about 4 C and clear.

CSU Track workout. Many people were missing today from the previous session, including Brendan, Stephen, Tom D. and Terry. I introduced myself to new Tom - who has taken a hiatus from running and is getting back into it, Stephen - an ultramarathoner who ran Mt. Washington, Catherine Cagle, Julia, and Kathy. I already met Patrick, Jonathan, John, and of course Magnus.

The workout was 5x (200 rep, 200 aerobic, 200 rep), with 200m rest between sets. The target pace was mile pace for the reps, and easy run for aerobic - about 39-40s for reps for me, and 55-60s for aerobic. Apart from my commute, I warmed up with 800m strides, and finished up with 1 km of easy laps. For group stretching, we played with foam rollers.

Cycle: 200 rep, 200 easy, 200 rep
Cycle 1: 37.5, 52.4, 39.1
Cycle 2: 37.7, 58.5, 38.4
Cycle 3: 40.1, 53.9, 38.4
Cycle 4: 39.1, 61.1, 36.7
Cycle 5: 37.8, 56.9, 37.0

Ran home after chatting a bit with Tom the elder (Tom the less jacked?) and Patrick after I couldn't find Magnus. I had planned on running home to get a little more easy distance; I stopped for a burrito. The total time I spent on this expedition, including dinner, shower, logging, commute, and workout was about 3 hours.

C • Where did you go 2

What the deuce? The US Senate passed S.1867, the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012, which apparently includes a provision that would allow the military detention of anyone, including US citizens and resident aliens, without charge, under the "law of war" without trial. I haven't read the bill in sufficient detail to analyze these claims. Maybe I'm a little paranoid, since I just read 1984, but what the hell?

Text of the bill, which passed the Senate 93-7. The pertinent sections are 1031-1035, starting on page 426 of the pdf. Referenced from Library of Congress

Section 1031(a):
Congress affirms that the authority of the President to use all necessary and appropriate force pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107–40) includes the authority for the Armed Forces of the United States to detain covered persons (as defined in subsection (b)) pending disposition under the law of war.

Section 1031(c): DISPOSITION UNDER LAW OF WAR.—The disposition of a person under the law of war as described in subsection (a) may include the following:
(1) Detention under the law of war without trial until the end of the hostilities authorized by the Authorization for Use of Military Force.

Articles from the media:
US Senate authorizes military to detain US citizens
UK Progressive Op-Ed

C • paranoia 10

I took an unintended rest day due to sleep irregularities and cold, rainy outdoor conditions. It's probably for the best, since my right calf feels a little weird. I'm currently working on importing all my NEOC events data into PostGreSQL so I can manipulate it more readily than in its current spreadsheet incarnation. I'm having more fun than I should with this, though unfortunately, I'm more familiar with tSQL than pure SQL.

Taking two rest days in three days is disappointing, but I have a big weekend planned, and it is wiser to err on the side of discretion.

Despite (indeed, because of) lethargy, I elected to go on my run as planned. I am only doing two quality workouts per week, but Tuesdays will likely become the threshold/hills day. I was feeling frustrated that my body seems inexplicably exhausted, even though I have been eating lots of food and resting. I was also still slightly bummed about my WCOC race, and that frustration apparently translated into a harder effort than planned. I could not have completed this run three months ago.

I felt a bit stiff and groggy at first, but my legs loosened up and I felt good for most of the run. I ran without an audiobook; since I have finished 1984, I am only reading a technical book on Fourier analysis. I'll probably start The West Ridge soon, and maybe focus on German for running accompaniment.

Running in silence is cathartic, and allows me to clear my head and reflect. I pondered what I'm going to do in NEOC over the next few months and how best to optimize my time. I thought about work and some research questions, and I sought perspective on my life. I need more regularity and consistency, and I must reduce inefficiencies. There are many challenges ahead; let them come, for I am ready. I finished with a burrito, in the hopes that it would rejuvenate me.

C • WCOC race 4

C • Tired from weekend 1

To CVS to procure refreshing beverage.

Life is the set of events that occur between trainings.

I donated platelets today, and spent the two hours between reading 1984 and resisting sleepiness and discomfort. I have reached the climax of the novel, and Orwell's work is masterful. The section of Goldstein's book was fascinating. I empathize with Smith's efforts to cling to reality, in particular the foundation of his resistance. The scene with O'Brien was undoubtedly the inspiration for Picard's torture in the TNG episode Chain of Command, Part II - an excellent episode. I wonder how long I could resist under torture, how long I could retain my sense of self.

I spent some time contemplating blood donation in the context of social contracts. I do not think there exists a specific obligation from our culture's social contract to donate blood. General concern for the well-being of others (as a need for blood is obvious) results in some cost-benefit analysis comparing the potential aid to others to the cost of giving blood (and the risks associated). While most of social behavior can be analyzed with cost-benefit analyses, the social contract encapsulates that analysis with the added context of positive and negative social stigma - the manifestation of the collective will. Blood donation is interesting because it has positive association, but no negative stigma for failing to discharge it (i.e. a responsibility).

Anyway, blood donation has net positive utility for me, though I more jealously horde my red blood cells than I used to. Platelets take an inconvenient amount of time to give, but there are ways I can integrate that period into my schedule.

Over the past few weeks, I have misplaced more items than is typical - I mislaid my heart rate monitor among my laundry (since discovered), I forgot my O-pants before the Pawtuckaway day on 5 November, and now I seem to have misplaced my black jacket. The likeliest place I left it is in the Italymobile, but I thought I had it when I entered my apartment. My somewhat compulsive organization usually isn't this prone to failure; I will be more deliberate about accounting for my items in the future.

C • Blood donation is also inte... 4

I didn't wear my Garmin, but I traveled sufficiently far getting to the donation center to warrant logging.

My bicycle seat has developed the property that it sequesters water with a bond so strong that the only action that can liberate the water is me sitting on the seat with absorbent pants. I brought the seat into my apartment and set it near a radiator for 24 hours without managing to remove all the moisture.

C • no stigma \ne no responsibility 4

C • Jacket 2

While I'm trying to cut back how much I write on attackpoint, I have lately been thinking about how to allocate my workouts over the next four months. The CSU indoor track workout - probably a mix of reps and VO2 max intervals - will last 13 weeks. Long runs are critical for my long course goals - probably starting at around 60-70 minutes, alternating short/long every two weeks, and lengthening gradually. More than three quality workouts each week seems unwise, so the third would alternate among hills, threshold runs, and maybe terrain intervals.