Training Log Archive: evancuster

Finally, a good run. Long O Champs at Saylor Park, about 30 minutes north of Woodland Park, CO.
I spiked all but two of the controls, and one was about a minute error, searching through big rocks to find the control, and the other was a 30 second error on the GO control. I overran it, and consequently lost the gold medal to Dan Davis. Both of us were pretty close throughout the race. We would usually arrive at the control less than 15 seconds apart, go our separate ways, and meet back up at the next control. At about the 8th or 9th control, I was thinking it probably would end up with a sprint to the finish, and it almost happened. I hit the road to the GO control just as Dan was climbing up to it, probably about 10 meters ahead of him. For some reason I am concentrating on the fact it is just past the bend in the road, and I see a bend ahead of me. However, as I pick up speed, I notice I am going downhill, and it is turning open, and the control was at the top of a hill, just to the right of the road. I look back, and see Dan popping back onto the road after having punched. I was about 20 meters past the control, and although I pushed my heart rate to its maximum, I came in about 12 seconds after he did. Great race. It would have been nice to win the gold, but I was so pleased that I had run a relatively clean race after 3 days of unmitigated disaster that I was elated.
Actual distance ran, 7.95 k, 340 meters climb, and 575 calories burned.

Swingtime in the Rockies convention.

US Long Course Champs Brown - Splits

Short Course champs at Manitou Lake, Colorado 5 Day.
Another disastrous first control. Probably a 13 minute error. I am really getting discouraged. Had a great day the first day, and then 3 straight disasters.
Headed towards the first control on a compass bearing and was planning on using the top of a fairly sharp reentrant as the attack point. Haven't seen the map again (had to leave right after the race for the dance convention) but somehow ended up way to west of where I should have been. Made a futile loop trying to reorient, and then decided to head back up the braod reentrant off which the small reentrant with the control was coming off of. Went quite a ways and found it. I guess I really didn't keep track of where I was on the map (in fact I know I didn't, sort of hoping it would work out OK). There were too many similar reentrants for that strategy.
The good news is after that I hit all of the controls quite well and would have had a time of around 31 minutes. I haven't seen the results yet, but know I will probably be last.
Oh well, tomorrow's the Long O, and I have one more chance to redeem myself. I really have to stay focused, have a good plan for approaching the control, and keep in constant contact with the map, checking off features as I go.
Actual distance ran was 4.09 km, 239 calories. Forgot to put on my heart rate monitor strap.
I was really agitated before the race, becaue it had taken me 2:40 to get from my brother's house, having got up at 5:20 in the morning. He suggested I take route 67, which turned out to be a horrible dirt road with rocks and potholes, and took me about 40 minutes longer than I had planned and that he said it would take. I got to the race about 20 minutes before my start time instead of the usual hour I like.

Trail O demo at Garden of the Gods. Got 9 out of 11, but one of the controls may be thrown out. Missed the timed control. Generally did better than I usually do in Trail O.

45 pushups

Walk around Colorado College campus.

US Night O Champs at Pleasant Valley Scout Camp in Colorado.
I enjoyed myself, but again had a disastrous control with a 17 minute error. My plan was to find the bare rock, go to the NE end of the cliffs, and then attack the control from there. However, I never seemed to run out of cliff and rocks to use as an attack point. I ended up way east on the tip of a spur, 2 spurs away from where the control was. Came back, still missed the control on the way back (I failed to notice that it was 2 contours below my original attack point. Used the cliff at the top of the reentrant to the west as an attack point, went down below the cliffs, and then did not have any problem. Also bobbled 1 and 7. Was 20 minutes behind Bob Cooley, who made a 5 minute error going to the last control, and the Finn who did the course in 40 minutes. However, it was a blast orienteering at night. The sky was clear but moonless, and the vegetation was very easy to run through. Except for the poor result, it was a lot of fun.

45 pushups

Tried radio O for the first time. Hard to keep track of everything. I didn't draw bearings on my map like one is supposed to do, but I didn't have a clipboard or straight edge. Bob Cooley put on the demo course. He hung 5 radio transmitters, each of which sends a signal for 1 minute, and then goes silent while the next one transmits for a minute, etc. Bob gave a suggested order to take the controls, so I basically headed towards the first control, following the strongest signal for a minute, and then getting a rough idea where the next 4 controls were. Then when the transmit for the first one came back on, I started to jog towards the signal, trying to make hay while the sun was shining, so to speak. It took me 3 or 4 cyles to find the first control, and then about 2 cycles each for the next 4 controls.

Had a disastrous first control with a 13 minute error. The start was a confluence of 5 trails, and I thought I was on the right one, but the bearing didn't match up quite right, so I thought I might have been on the trail to the right, so ran left. When I came to a large trail, I then made a 90 degree error, and ran west instead of south on the trail I thought I was on. Ended up in a corner of the map where I had no idea where I was because I hadn't looked there, because I was sure I was further south. Finally followed a steep bank south until I came to a trail I could recognize. then I blew the 3rd control. I was looking for a cliff at the bend of the creek, but came to another (what I thought was unmapped) reentrant. It turned out the line of the reentrant was obscured by the control circle. I thought I might have been at a stream further east, so headed west, but that was obviously wrong. The rest of the course went OK, but I was very disappointed in the course design of the 2nd half. There was virtually no route choice, and the controls were orange level, with lots of lost distance just running in the meadow. On the whole, a very disappointing day. I finished 7th in M65, but I had enough of a lead on day 1 to salvage 3rd place, although I really did not deserve it.

Actual distance ran 6.87 k

Added Tues. 8/7. Just downloaded my route from Google Earth. I can't understand how I made that huge error unless I was so psyched about trying to keep my lead from the previous day that I choked and didn't think clearly. First mistake was not stopping and confirming that I was on the right trail to begin with. Second error was not checking the bearing of the trail when I turned right. After I made my little sidetrack to the west, I ended up on the correct trail and was at a clearing with a building where I should have easily been able to relocate. I remember being there, but somehow could not get the terrain to match the map. I walked back there after the event, and the mapping is OK, so can't figure out why I didn't relocate there. Then I came to a distinct bell tower with another building in view which was 50 meters from the control. Again, should have easily been able to relocate, but didn't. Very discouraging. I think it must have been nerves, because after the big error, the pressure was off and generally I did OK after that except for another 3 minute error on the third control. Although I probably should have been able to recognize the problems there, it really is difficult, even in retrospect to see the reentrant that confused me because a considerable portion of the line of the reentrant was obscured by the control circle. I should have gone down to the creek, and kept looking at the banks for the control, but again for some reason I thought there was a little spur between the river and the control and the cliff was on the other side of the spur, not the river side. This is clearly an error on my part.