Training Log Archive: Nadim

Blockhouse Conservation Park, Potomac, MD. Peggy whipped together 4 training courses on the old Blockhouse map that I first started field checking in 2006. I'd made some updates to the map over the years, but none of it was a comprehensive update. Much of the map held up okay, and the woods are generally nice for meteorological summer in this area. The old root stocks didn't hold up of course, and since this map was my first, there were many smaller things not quite right. There were too many dot knolls and some point features were not placed well, including some ditches and gullies. The GPS I use today is better than my watch, that I used to use for field checking; so some trails were not good. Though the base map was made with 5m contours, I never had finer detail so even some smaller reentrants and reentrant tops had an uncertain feel.

Though my right knee was feeling better today, I didn't run the training. I could still feel it enough to know better than to try. About 8 others came and ran. We went out to dinner in Potomac Village later. That was the first time eating out in a mixed group in a restaurant since March 2020. While people ran, I used the time to update the map. Peggy had told me of finding some new trails and it took almost all of this time to get GPS tracks on them. I did update a few point features, etc... I may come back some more over the summer since the woods are pretty open.

From Northfield Rd., Custer Rd., to Wilson Blvd., to Maiden Ln. to Whittier Blvd., to Wynkoop Blvd., Winston Dr., and Tone Dr., to River Rd., to Stardust Ln., to Redwing Rd., to Goldsboro Rd., to Massachusetts Ave., to the Capital Crescent Trail to Falls Rd., to Glenbrook Rd., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd., I went out for a short ride, trying to get it in before dinner and potential rain. There were a few sprinkles as I started but nothing after that. I was a little sore from riding the day before but that went away as I warmed-up. I tried to find a way down to MacArthur Blvd., but on Goldsboro Rd., the way was blocked by a rescue crew responding to an accident. I got in steep hills getting that far, then had another big hill climbing Massachusetts Ave. It felt like I was climbing most of this ride and my speed was slow too. When stopping my watch at a traffic light I didn't restart it correctly so my time is estimated.

From Northfield Rd., to Huntington Pkwy. to Irvington Ave., and McKinley St. to Bradmoor Dr., to Greentree Rd., to Fernwood Dr., to Democracy Blvd., to Rockledge Dr., to Rockspring Dr., to Old Georgetown Rd., to Tuckerman Ln. to Rockville Pike., to Beach Dr., to Connecticut Ave., to Jones Bridge Rd., to Rockville Pike., to Woodmont Ave., to Battery Ln., to Park Ln. to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. It's about time to start cycling again. I'd been working late a lot and some days there's been rain. The rain came late today so I rode. I wouldn't have been able to run. My right knee is hurting above and to the left of the knee cap. Sometimes it feels like the knee cap is injured and sometimes it feels like a hyper-extension. I don't recall hurting it at all on Sunday when I ran--only afterwards. I have to be careful going down stairs and it hurt both going down and up. I was able to cycle okay but on climbs it hurt too. I kept the pace comfortable and was happy to average above 15mph with the lax effort. Though I wore a cotton shirt, I hardly sweat. Though the ride was not long at all, it felt weird to ride a little longer; probably the longest this year.

QOC: Jug Bay, MD. I ran the Red course. It was fun and Gavin Weise had set it. Running Red was a questionable decision. Having made reservations long ago, we'd originally planned to have gone camping on this weekend; when it wasn't clear that there'd be a Beer Chase. The pull of addiction got to Peggy the most and she thought the hot weather would have been bad anyway, in the mountains. I thought otherwise. We've rescheduled the camping weekend. Another reason that running Red was questionable was that I've been injured and not training much. Having run well for months, and through the winter, my left knee has been bothering me since March. I'd gotten better a little by running mostly on dirt and grass, but earlier this week I'd pulled something in my right calf.

S-1 - The first beer went down well. Ted Good and a few others were faster guzzlers. I didn't study the map but had glanced at it. I didn't start immediately to take the road. but did after rounding the house. I paced myself. It was already hotter and more humid that I've been accustomed to. I trailed both Ted Good and David Onkst. Some others followed but most went the direct route. I left the road before David did, and I didn't see where Ted had. I saw Wyatt Riley and Ted Good going to #4. I goofed early, heading toward control #5. I realized it after checking a reentrant. Sort of back on track, I climbed out after crossing the creek and aimed. I missed to the right. Relocating by seeing the ditch end, I attacked again and hit it well. I probably lost 90 seconds or a little more overall. Ted indicated the control was possibly on the wrong dot knoll.

1-2 - Dennis Doherty had punched #1 ahead of me but he went off to the right. I cut left a little, ran to the big reentrant, and cut right, getting there before him.

2-3 - I crossed the big reentrant, and trailed Jan Merka and someone else. I gained ground and spiked it.

3-4 - Running fairly straight, I caught Jan and punched.

4-5 - I basically went straight and gained on others. I saw Peggy too. I wasn't sure which control she was going to, but maybe it was #2.

5-6 - I went into the reentrant and ran the flats intending to go up the large reentrant on my right. However, it was a little thicker in there than anticipated. I had trouble seeing the reentrant on my right and thought I might have passed it. I cut right to get up the hill and on the trail. I stayed with it to the bend around the first stream and attacked successfully from there. I found that I was behind Dennis Doherty again.

6-7 - I went straight and hit the control pretty well. The location seemed vague. I was expecting it a little earlier.

7-8 - Straight and spiked it.

8-9, 10, 11 - Out to the field, and to the transition controls. I headed toward the finish too but stopped myself before punching it. I got ahead of Dennis by drinking beer faster.

11-12 - Taking the forest route, I gained on someone while talking with Dennis who was behind me. I used my view of the barn to know how far to go but the control was visible from the trail anyway. It did seem just a tad bit early based on the relative position of the barn.

12-13 - I intended to go straight but the elephant trail through the tall grass drew me to the barn. From there it made sense to run up the road a little. I felt confident enough to navigate straight but knowing how setting controls on the marshes here can be hard due to a lack of cross reference features, It was safer not to risk a misplaced control. I left the road at the trail intersection, hit the first marsh, ran north up it to the end, then attacked and spiked the control on the second marsh--both marshes were dry. I thought I heard Dennis behind me at one point but never saw him again.

13-14 - I went straight at first, but aimed off to the left later. I gained on another guy, eventually catching and passing him by running on the ridge. It was longer on the ridge getting to the control than I'd expected but I spiked it.

14-15 - I went around the green on the right side, but came in early. The guy I'd seen at #14 had gone straight and we crossed paths. I dropped into the control ahead of him again.

15-16 - Straight, but using the mapped green to align a little, after crossing the road. In the end, I spiked it with the guy at 16 still close behind me.

16--To the Transition - Without my map, I can't recall the sequence but I pretty much spiked everything and basically went straight. Flies started biting my back from time-to-time. I saw Wyatt Riley finishing his 3rd loop as I was going to the barn.

21-22 - I got confused and was heading to #28. Figuring I needed to go to #22, I went toward the barn, and took trails to the bridge. I rounded the spur and ran/walked along the base of the hill. After this point the flies biting my back were more frequent. I started regularly swatting my back to shoe them away and relished going through low branches.

22-23 - Crossing the flat marsh, I climbed the spur. About 5 ft. up, I almost stepped on a good sized black snack who was wiggling as fast as he could to get away. Once up the spur, I mostly took trails to save energy. I cut corners to save distance. I'd interpreted the ditch for #23 as 2 dot knolls. I saw Vido and Diana heading the other direction. Hearing them later, I figured they were trying to relocate. I missed the ditch, saw a dot knoll, went to the field edge to relocate, and lined-up with the barn. Going back, I saw Vido and Diana again heading toward #24. I found it seconds later.

23-24. I went on the left side of the changed and unmapped vegetation (saplings that had grown-up since mapping was last done here. I spiked it but was slow.

24-25 - I went fairly straight but very soon after leaving #24, I saw Victor Lin. Victor trailed me to my left for a while but I got to the control first.

25-26 - After crossing the reentrant, I decided using the trails again was best since I was weak. Victor went straight. I cut a corner and hit the next trail at a good bend. I should have stopped when the trail took a sharp bend, but I kept going until I hit the next big reentrant. I came back along the drop off and found the control. I probably lost +1 minute; it was just being fatigued.

26 - 27 I kept low initially crossing the marsh, I climbed out on the line and kept straight a while. I aimed off left a bit and followed the streamside to the control.

27-28 - Straight, emerging very close to the barn to spike the control.

28-29-30 - I was good getting to the transition but someone passed me on the beer split. I think he'd run Green.

After getting some water hose spray and drinking fluids, I enjoyed hanging out and seeing people's faces again. There was a breeze much of the time but the sun moved our shade away. Peggy had been in for a long while and had eaten too before she felt sick. Laying back on the grass, she passed-out and threw-up. It was likely heat exhaustion. She cooled off in Dave and Peggy's house but seemed to recover pretty well.

I was glad that I'd finished okay. It was harder than past Beer Chases for me. While sitting around I noticed that my right knee was hurting. I don't recall doing anything to it. I guess it was just a physical day for me. I think I'll be okay and not have 2 bad knees. I was more glad that my right calf didn't hurt too much. I did take it easier on the hills so as not to hurt it more. Pausing now and then probably helped too.

Red - Splits