Running (Warm-up) 9:00 [2] 0.85 km (10:35 / km)
Warm-up at West Bend Park, MO for the Possum Trot.
Orienteering (Competition) 2:03:24 [4] 13.71 km (9:00 / km)
Possum Trot VII, at West Bend, MO. I took a while to get into the map and thus orienteered badly. Probably it was being distracted by the other runners or just running faster than I can navigate alone. The hills were steep and often thorny too. Mikell Platt took a bold move skipping #3 & 4 with 23 more to go (He went on to win). Spike dumped the cluster of us orbiting around him by skipping #9 just before the first water control. It saved distance but he missed the good trail running. Dave Frei (eventually 2nd) pulled ahead of me taking a better route choice to #11. I last got ahead of Eric Buckley who was nursing a leg injury at #15. Mike valiantly almost caught me at #21 but I skipped #22 (Mike had skipped 2 at this point and couldn't skip again). I dragged myself in the last few controls which were a bit easier. I felt better than yesterday and navigated okay the last half probably because I was going slower. I came close to cramping when stuck in thorns on the way to the now infamous #24, and again on the last slog up the hill to the GO control. I didn't expect to finish 3rd. I am fairly happy as well as lucky. Now I can continue to work more on training for the half-marathon in February. See the Split List.