Discussion: paying attention

This is one of the things that I really like about orienteering. Make a little mistake, or even a really big mistake, and you get lost. Since I'm completely capable of getting myself un-lost, it's no big deal, I just lose some time. As opposed to other things that I do for entertainment, where a mistake can definitely result in crunchitude. Orienteering is so relaxing.

I remember O' in SLOC-land. The topography was very straightforward, and it wouldn't have been too difficult to plan all your routes before you reached the first control. But that would have been pretty stupid, would have left you with nothing to look forward to for the rest of the course. So I'd parcel them out, just plan one leg ahead, so every leg had a little something to distract me.

Best was a course once that crossed back on itself. Saw Linthicum there, I'd done maybe 2/3 of the course, he 1/3. And as subsequent discussion made clear, we were both using the opportunity to distract ourselves. Namely, since we knew each other's start times, the task was to figure how the other was doing and, because it was a long course and there was the need for a lot of distraction, what the impact was going to be on the national rankings if each finished at the pace they were doing when we crossed.

That was wonderful, really helped get up the hills when your mind is elsewhere.

But not on a bike.