Training Log Archive: bl

AM DP, warm, was an hour later. Another Memorial Day weekend - can recall two years ago at Lehigh for orienteering. Maybe this log will refresh me re last year. Oh, my, Sunday, May 31, '09 Pack Monadnock, oh sigh, had wanted to try to improve upon last year's time. An interesting race, climb, lots of it and nice country roads.


At play in the Lord's sandbox



Yesterday's red fox in grim, gritty reality...John Donne's 17th-century religious poem (in which the first line is: "Death be not proud, though some have called thee") comes to mind:

PM DP, Beth & Bob Gillmore came along. Several very nice sets of snapper tracks on the sand, one went right over a 6' dune instead of going a short way around.

And, to think, last Saturday night in Northampton, pre-BG and all.

AM DP, dewey morning, fragrance of lilacs. Found a dead red fox, quite a while dead, its teeth in a startling white grimace. Beetle slept in.

PM 3D DP - no rest for the weary, 3 determined dogs in need of pacification. No suitable car so we went out back, buggy, some muck, lots to step over but then the relative pleasantness of the contours and diagonally up to the power line's openness. At that time, Beetle was unaccounted for (& literally over his head a considerable amount of time) so backtracked 200m & he appeared. Good thing - I have no idea of any savvy he does or doesn't have - know I can't escape from the noses of Z&M. Back on the road with 3 dogs on one double-ended piece of wire. Nice route.

C • Route 2

AM 3D DP, cool, overcast, rain and thunder last night. Sandscript washed away.

PM 3D DP, evolved into a gem of a day, all blue, brown, white & green. Took a gander thru section of map ("Green Mansions") I like and is convenient but rather green & not many easy features. Fun to note change (yellow quickly disappearing), occasionally be uncertain where I was & then know again, all surrounded by well-known road. Bettle thought it was neat: "You do this all the time?". Little dog, least tired/panting, best hop into back of car. Dogs drummed up some kind of bird, probably a turkey. Saw no feathers or chop-licking.

Heard voices (unusual) - was the Saltmarshes, owners of woods behind our house, site of first 3 '09 BG controls. We often bring up Steve Tarry. Told them how he got his 30 year BG cap a year late just this past Sunday (tried last September but car was acting up in returning from Portsmouth & was afraid to take foot off accelerator). SC was also a year late, can't recall why.

Heading out



A walkabout thru green mansions, orange line

AM DP all the way to beaver slough, 66F, a bit of a NW breeze at times. Saw two snappers! one about 8" shell, the other 10" on sandy cart track about 100m apart, evidentally laying eggs - one of the less endearing faces in the animal kingdom. Topped off with dewey grass and crickets and the usual # of looking-for-a-meal ticks.

PM DP (&BP), repeat of the morning, 92F however. Went looking for turtles who were, of course, long gone. There was some recognizable tail trail 'sandscript'.

Went home at noon, saw both Dave on Logging Hill & Diane just across fm NHH running (around 1pm) in the heat!


Beaver slough


Sandscript: tail trail

AM DP, Beetle the invited guest. Cool, sweet-scented air, hot day coming.
Ticks on Zoe, easily seen.

PM DP, 91F. Some stretching, stayed in shade. Mocha found some shit to roll in, feces and putridity are her specialty. This was the worst - near a building, it appeared to be human, underside of neck, a lot. Thought I had a dead creature in the car fan system but could see unmatching brown on her coat. Even if I had years of diaper changing experience, doubt my reaction would be any different.

Mocha is on my "shit list" for the remainder of the evening: just barely allowed inside (even post washing) and only on her bed:-). Poor Mocha, only vaguely aware she did something 'wrong' but not sure what.

The AM DP, Beetle as well, a basic route

AM DP, not a lot worse, just some which is surprising considering all the climb etc. Warm day in the making.

C • Sounds like 4

Faraway series, photos from elsewhere, #17
Cliffs at Etretat, 1978*


a second photo from the summer of '78: one during which I sailed across the Atlantic to Falmouth, met old GF/orienteer Colleen Harrington in London, took a ferry across the Channel (including a spontaneous night on the LeHavre pier in a small 'cargo container'), then, by car, from Normandy to Switzerland for the Swiss '78 5 days; entered Colleen in F21A (or was it D21E?), not sure I was ever forgiven...however, she finished every day...as the shadows lengthened.

*Inspired by Monet's "Cliffs at Etretat", 1885

Sedimentary rock deposited, compacted and likely shifted again and again (though it does not appear to be such) over the eons.

As I took a second look at Wikipedia, I noted the painting is owned by the Clark Institute in Williamstown. Didn't recall that. I was a Janson Art History 101-2 student at Williams '64-5. I do recall that Beth & I elected to sleep behind the Clark at my 25th graduation. It was an enticing June night...warm/dry, windy and spooky-to-be: some townies appeared, not 75 yards away, making a bonfire. They didn't see us hunkered in the grass. With the wind and the fire, it was a touch surreal. And surprising, perhaps, that the fire didn't get out of control.

PM DP, make these creatures happy.

Event: Billygoat Run at Mt. Tom
 

BG at Mt. Tom, my worst but when one can't run that is to be expected. Came hoping I might be able to get by but it was apparent on the way to #1, after a few slips, that this hamstring was about strung*. I'd wanted to leap over tall buildings or at least make PG wear those ear plugs he showed me at the start or perhaps just jog along for most of the way but instead was reduced to largely a walkabout.

JJ lead a lot of us lemmings off in the wrong direction from the field. I ran some 200m before I decided to run back, find the path, taking the right hand route. Really blew #2 as did the Walkers (Ken more so, I think) - crossed a lot of terrain w/o positive ID; was so fed up with that corner & with time lost that I just skipped #3, smart or not. Quite a group appeared by #8, we were looking for it just a few meters away - well-placed or well-hidden. Saw a lot of Charlie on the 10-12 stretch then he got ahead. #13-15 were torture for me, even walking I managed some mistakes. #19 to 20 could have been fun under full power/effort - in places the hillside was very nice but one had to be careful with compass & what little feedback there was. It was absolutely gorgeous on the way to 21 & in departing it as well. Opted for the flat route in, just a bit faster than a walk (now I sound like PG:)). Many had been in for an hour - but there still was pizza!

Phil really did a remarkable job/amount of work. We were chatting for nearly an hour in his kitchen Saturday night, he was very much together! It was a quite the tour of the area, from the high & rocky to the low & marshy.

*did not wish to put an injury flag up for this but it's due

C • Sorry about the hamstring. ... 8

To start, loosening up, wondering what was in store for a not-up-to-par left leg.

Jog to start, time/climb a guess.

Billygoat - Splits