Training Log Archive: Nadim

Event: West Point Annual National Ranking Event
 

West Point National Ranking Event, West Point, NY, on the Round Pond map--Day 1. I ran the Green-X Middle course.

S-1 - I started well, contouring, then spiking the control from above.

1-2 - I stayed and even climbed higher. It looked like I might drop too far going low but really, that was the better way to go. Once across the wet bare rock, I dropped and spiked the control.

2-3 - I climbed slowly and contoured the last part past a big boulder before getting to the correct one. Diana Aleksieva passed me just before I got there.

3-4 - I came out of the control a bit to the left. I had to climb at the end so I lost a little time.

4-5 - I went fairly straight. Alex Merka and another orienteer were nearby. I think I gained on them since their bearings were off.

5-6 - Alex, Matt Smith and another orienteer all passed me but were off to the right. I think I got to the control first, having spiked it.

6-7 - I chose, perhaps incorrectly, to go to the shorter distance to the right. I reasoned that it was rocky even when the map said it wasn't, and I was moving too slowly to add distance. Alex and another person went left aroud the hill. Matt passed me. Alex seemed to come out ahead on the other side, but she may just have been moving faster. It helped that several people were in the area, but I still had to find the rock myself.

7-8 - I slowly picked my way down the hillside. I was glad that others had worn a way down through the green.

8-9 - I went a little left of straight across, when leaving the road. Once in more open terrain, I cut right and spiked the control. Others were converging.

9-10 - I decided against using the road but that was a mistake. I kept pausing as I tried to pinpoint my position. I was feeling I'd gone too far when i had much more to go. I punched an incorrect control and kept going to eventually find it. I lost time though I didn't go much out of the way.

10-11 - I decided to go around the marsh on the left side. Visual inspection seemed to show it being shorter that way though this was not so clear from the mapped green. I got to the rocks (finding another control?) then went on a bit more wanderly to get to the correct control.

11-12 - I started good and confidently. I saw a set of big cliffs ahead and decided the control was there. It was the wrong set of cliffs. I wasn't checking my compass. Getting to these incorrect cliffs was slow since I had to cross deadfall. After rounding the cliffs I came back and got to the control. I could see that Max was not far behind. He'd been doing well but at the point I saw him, he'd already sprained his ankle badly. I just thought he was walking slowly due to being below and still climbing the hill.

12-13 - I eventually got above cliffs and could see ahead. I passed one control and saw where people were going towards another. I read that mine was further to my right but in fact I was passing my control. I came back after finding nothing and lost over a minute.

13-14 - I went straight and found it pretty well.

14-15 - I found myself in the green longer than expected. I cut right to get out and found the control.

15-16 - Straight.

16-17 - I was slow getting down the steep rocky hillside. I got on the trail but jumped off it. I misread the map by confusing the mapped trail for cliffs. It looked like it was ending so I went into more rocks before it hit a green area. The rest was easy. I went around the mapped green, and spiked the control after losing time on the rocks.

17-18 - I got on the trail again. Some people cut up very early. I did a little later but should have stayed on the trail even longer.

18-F - I wasn't moving that fast--too out of shape and with tired legs/knees.

We drove Max to an urgent care facility for his sprained ankle. It had swollen to baseball size initially. The closest one Peggy found was in Kiryas Joel, NY. Several huge 7 story walk up staired buildings on hilly ground there struck me as different. The culture there was even more so. It was a Hasidic Jew enclave. There were lots of children seemed dressed up and were playing in the streets. Mothers watching them wore head cover and were dressed similar to each other. I felt out of place. While we waited for Max to get medical help, Peggy read about the area--there was unexpected high poverty and it turned out to be the lowest median age local in the USA. After Max was done (they didn't have an x-ray technician there at the time), I went to get the car and saw the men of the area wearing some really big round hats with their suits--can't remember seeing the hats before. I was getting stared at because I was in after running tights. I felt like I was in a different country but it was interesting.

West Point National Ranking Event, West Point, NY, on the Trophy Point (campus) map--Day 1. I ran the Green-X Sprint course.

S-1 - I started very badly. The scale initially got me.--transitioning from 1-10K to 1:4K. I decided to go on the left side of the wall but confused the road mappings. Maybe the leg line covering some of the road, and not having a good bearing was a part of it. I went past what was #2 and kept going almost to #3 before turning back. I got confused with the road mappings too, with there being being two tones. I think that even the parking areas should have been mapped for auto traffic. Eventually I went down the stairs to get to #1 and lost 2 minutes :(

1-2 - I reversed my way to #1, by going up the stairs. I was glad the my knees didn't hurt too much with this. My new running shoes felt pretty good.

2-3 - I stayed low.

3-4 - I took the low road to the bigger one, then stayed along the bigger road to avoid further confusion. Julie Kiem punched as I closed-in.

4-5 - I gained on Julie and ran straight across the grass.

5-6 - I went to the left along the big road, but I hesitated not being sure if the control was across the intersecting road ahead or not. It was not.

6-7 - I chose to the the right side of the large building because I couldn't quickly see a way through the walls on the left side like Victoria had. I passed Julie on stairs, still trying not to hurt my knees too much. I went through the canopy and cut right on the other side.

7-8 - I went on the right side but I did climb up the ramp instead of going around.

8- 9 - just staying in contact with the map, I moved well around the building.
I was reading the control to be a wall but it was a cliff and pretty easy.

9-10. I contoured leaving #9, then as soon as I hit the road, I could see the control.

10-11 - I went on the right side of the large building, past a parental family and up the stairs. I left the trail and went across the grass to another sidewalk. I went around the smaller building on the left side.

11-12 - I went on the right side of the building and onto the grass to the next small building.

12-13 - Straight.

13-F - Straight. My legs/knee hurt going down so I kept the pace easier there.

I did pretty well after my blow-up at #1. It would have been much more fun otherwise. The course was easier than the previous year.

Middle - Green-X - Splits

Sprint - Green - Splits

From Northfield Rd., to Grant St., to McKinley St., to the Old Georgetown Rd., to the Bethesda Trolley Trail, to Northbrook Ln., to Keystone Ave., to Southbrook Ln., to Old Georgetown Rd., to Maple Ridge Rd., to Park Ln., to Landon Rd., to Moorland Ln. to Charlcote Rd., to Northfield Rd.

From Northfield Rd., Charlcote Rd., to Hampden Rd., to Wilson Ln., to Honeywell Ln., to McLean Dr., to Bradley Blvd., to Glenbrook Rd./Little Falls Pkwy., to the Little Falls Trail, to the Capital Crescent Trail, to Bethesda Ave., to Clarendon Rd., to Denton Rd., to Edgemoor Ln., to Exeter Rd., to Battery Ln. to Park Ln., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd., It was a bit cool out but I got warmed-up anyway.