Training Log Archive: BigWillyStyle

Sprint Camp 2014 highlights:
--Fourth place overall, after finishing 11th or 12th last year.
--First American overall.
--Two second-place finishes.
--Best individual non-Critchley score (983.81).
--Second overall after three of five SI races.

Honestly, if you had asked me at Sprint Camp a year ago if I would ever reach this level, I'd have said no way. It really is crazy what a little training and hard work will do. I'm so thankful and blessed. On to the next one!

Byrne Creek (SI #4)

Easily the most frustrating race of the weekend. I was quite clean all the way through...until the very last control, 20, where I blew over a minute and a half. Looking at the splits, at 19 I was in fifth place, 14 seconds behind Eric and Adam Woods and 6 seconds behind Graeme Rennie.

If I had not made that one dumb mistake, I would've taken third overall. And what's also disappointing is that I would have finished the Setup ~15 seconds back of second place, meaning that I robbed myself of the challenge/opportunity to run with Adam, Eric and Graeme in the Chase, and hopefully try for second in the combined Setup/Chase. Oh well.

Deer Lake (SI #5 - Chase)

Solid race, nothing really noteworthy. I was running with Ian Saari, Will Hubsch, and Patrick Saile for most of the race, and just didn't have the legs left in me to get away from them. I ended up in sixth, 0:28 behind the non-Critchley lead.

Mundy Park (SI #2)

Second, AGAIN! And just one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen seconds behind Will Critchley. Wow, unreal. My thought process upon seeing the results: "Duuhhhh...Can't be right...How many did I skip...???"

I maybe could've found another 10-15 seconds in twos and threes here or there, but that's extreme nitpicking. I started about a minute behind Eric, and caught up to him around 9. He was still recovering from sickness, so I was moving a bit faster and eventually got away on the way to 18. No navigational issues to speak of.

This race was almost certainly my best sprint race ever, and you could even argue that it's the best orienteering race I've run in my entire life. Would that I could get rankings points for this, or that I can repeat it ever again. And by ever again I mean at the Team Trials.

Dogbones

Blue Mountain Park (Two-person relay)

I thought I was going to be partnered with Nikolay, but they had him with Rex, so I ended up running with Sergio Fernandez, a Mexican guy who lives in Vancouver.

We finished second. My times seem slower than they should be - maybe I had the longer relay legs? I felt like I was moving pretty well out there.

O-tervals

Hume Park (SI #3 - Farsta)

Not a good race for me. I happened to start out on the wrong end of the mass of people and got caught in the crowds, then immediately made a wrong turn and lost ~30 seconds. The rest was okay, I just never got all the way into it. There was also a misplaced control that cost me ~20 seconds. This was probably my worst Sprint Camp race overall, but it was lots of fun!

Event: GVOC Sprint Camp 2014
 

Coal Harbour (SI #1)

Second! Fantastic start to Sprint Camp. I felt strong and fresh after four days off, and wasn't bothered by the cold - it seems like a lot of other people are in various stages of sickness and are thus worse affected.

C • fresh 1

Feeling antsy. Want to run. Want to train. GOT TO FLY. GOT TO CROW.

C • Play Catching Features? 1