Training Log Archive: P.Stromme

Walking to the arena, to the start, cool down after, and back to catch the bus.

Day 2, Glen Strathfarrar. The terrain was very physically challenging. Today went much better than yesterday. I definitely didn't navigate cleanly, but I didn't get completely lost like I did at the start yesterday. At one point i was struck by the sight of an open moor below me with at least 4 dozen orienteers criscrossing in all directions. Something we don't see back home...

First control. I was much more careful (didn't want a repeat of yesterday). But the navigation and terrain were also more difficult. None of the powerlines were on the map; they would have helped a ton. Several of the other runners in the area were complaining loudly that they should have been on the map, but I did see that they announced it in the daily bulletin.

Long leg to 4. I started out OK, but lost track of where I was. This was a leg through a moor along a step hillside (mountainside?) with a lot of marshes and thick bracken along the way. I ended up too far downhill. Fortunately, at the point when I was sure I was too low, it was easy to navigate the climb back up to the control.

Short leg to 16 in a thick pine forest. I went over a spur, and missed the small reentrant on the map. I followed it, thinking it was the bigger one I was looking for. My first relocation was using an uncertain feature. If I was correct, it would have paid off; but I wasn't. Second relocation was better.

C • much better looking track 2

Walk to the event center and back, in search of an electric outlet. Caught the medal ceremony for the WOC sprints and Sprint relay while I was there.

S6D - Day 2 Strathfarrar - C38 - Splits

Event: MNOC River Bend Nature Center MTBO
 

Walking around the campsite, arena, and spectating the Sprint final at WOC. Ali Crocker finished 15th, which I think is the best finish ever by an American.

Run/walk to the start, including a trip back to the arena from about the halfway point to pick up my forgotten compass, dibber, and description holder.

First race of the Scottish 6 Days, in Achagour. I had a major mistake on the first control. I felt confident, but I confused the real trails and the elephant tracks (from probably about 4000 competitors by the time I started). I eventually relocated by finding my control #7.

Other significant mistakes:
14 - had to navigate through some complex archery range trails. I was doing awesome, running past many others who were looking very confused. But I made a mistake right before getting to my control, and had a hard time relocating because of the trail complexity.
15 - just a bad leg in general. I'm going to blame it on losing focus when I broke through a bog and sunk in thigh-deep.
21 - running along a ride, looking for an intersecting ride to attack from. I completely missed that there were a series of straight, parallel trails through the area. I attacked from one of those trails, and when it was clear that it wasn't right, I just ran parallel to the does ride to my control. The problem was that the whole area was a series of furrows and ditches, about 1 1/2 to 2 feet high, and I was going perpendicular to them. Up and down... up and down... up and down...

S6D - Day 1 Achagour - C38 - Splits

Loch Ness, Urquhart castle, packet pick-up

Event: WOC 2015 & Scottish 6 days
 

Inverness

Wandering Heathrow

Wandering Edinburgh airport

Inverness bus station to guest house, then to dinner and back.

Wandering O'Hare

Wandering JFK