Training Log Archive: Rosco

A lovely run on a beautiful evening round Gargunnock with JonX. We went exploring some new paths. We nearly got chainsawed. And then we nearly got shot.

Feeling significantly more perky - I wonder if I'm leaving my tapering a bit late cause I remember after the JK feeling awesome?

Scottish Relay Champs, Tullochroisk, for the FVO Flyers.

The pressure was on for this one having totally screwed up at the British and with Ewan coming up specially for the relay. Unfortunately Roger pulled out due to illness, but since he had screwed up even worse than me at the British, perhaps Lard replacing him was no bad thing....

The 1st leg rivals did not seem too intimidating so on the startline I resolved to do my own thing, to be In Control. Ed Nicholas hared off at the start, but, no offence, I was more worried about Richard Guillaume. As Ed ran down the slope, I spotted the path/knoll as I expected and broke away from the guys in front to get the control. Forest Gump was in front (I think his gaffle was a bit shorter here)) and Rich G made a bit of a mistake on the 3rd control. He was on the same gaffle as me but I didn't realise until after the race. There were loads of guys running all over the shop and it was hard to tell what was going on so I just concentrated on my race and I was running well and felt really in control. Still a little tired, I think my slower than normal pace was helping. As we started going up the hill everyone seemed to disappear and as I was crossing the road I was wondering where everyone had gone! Had I missed one?! I was sure I hadn't so kept going hard but steady. There was a big posse of (I hoped) B course runners ahead of me going up to 16 but that meant I really had no idea how I was doing. Was fine until the wee short leg to 19. There was another flag visible and that distracted me and meant I ran right past my control. Took a hideously long 45 seconds to sort myself out trying to be calm and not let waves of internal panic overwhelm me. Lack of confidence from this meant that at 20 I checked out a control on a wee knoll before my reentrant, wasting a few seconds.

Came in and was told I had handed over to Lard in the lead. Hurrah, job done: I can orienteer. If I hadn't screwed up 19 that would have probably been my best ever run.

Unfortunately Lard couldn't live with Mike Sprot and then Ewan was feeling a bit out of sorts, but still a podium place was ours, which is an excellent result for my wee self. Can't help thinking though that on another day.....

C • Well done that man 1

wu feeling guff and wd feeling rather better.

Event: Scottish Championships
 

Scottish Champs at Tullochroisk. Fabulous weekend in glorious sunshine making Scotland like totally the most radical country in the world dude.

This was a lesson in how not to prepare for a race. After a significant amount of racing over the previous weeks my wee legs were beginning to complain. Clues were there last Saturday at the Chasing Sprint and these developed to Clear Signs on Wednesday at Kinnoull. I was hoping a couple of rest days might see me right, and they may have done, if I was not a dork. But I was: as a tired dork, I slept in a bit this morning and then I hadn't packed and then I forgot, as I always do, how slow people drive. These factors combined to mean that I arrived at the start with 20 seconds to spare, tired, without control descriptions or proper levels of hydration and fuel.

Sure enough, I set off and felt exactly like I did last year prior to training - sluggish, flat, not racing, but running to get round. Nevertheless, tt was going fine, in a mediocre sort of way, until I chose an extraordinarily dense straightline route to 14 which annoyed me. I was also getting irritated by being the first to visit half the controls and waiting ages for them to wake up. Then I got stupidly confused going to 18 and then it was so rough to 19, 20, 21 and I was tired and grumpy and I took a bearing to 21 which did not take me to 21 and I was just like oh sod it! So I jacked it, in the hope of having a modicum of pace for the relays tomorrow.

C • sounds familiar.... 1

Rushing to the start like a dork.

strolling back to the finish blrgh tired loser.

The lesson here is that if I had proper preparation I'm pretty sure I would have got round, even though I was tired.

Fail to Prepare: Prepare to Fail.

Yup, tired.

Decided it was time to sort out my big pile of maps. I now have 3 slightly smaller piles of maps. Excellent progress.

C • What a good idea 2

Event: Kinnoull Hill Race
 

Kinnoull Hill Race. More of a trail race actually. In fact it was probably less hilly than the Kilmarnock 10k.

Conditions were perfect, which was lucky as when I was getting my gear together I had forgotten we were going to a hill race and had only packed my trainers. As it happened, trainers were the way to go with some very nice dry paths.

The start was pretty tame and soon I was in second, with Dan Whitehead pulling away at the front. I thought I had spotted Ray Ward on the startline and was expecting him to come past any minute but when Donald Naylor went past I realised I had been mistook. At least he wasn't wearing a kilt this time. Soon I was down to 4th as I struggled up the hills; thighs suggesting that a bit more time between races would be appreciated. Once up to the tower though, I knew it was mainly downhill/undulating so I leaned forward and opened up. Revelling in exactly my sort of downhilling. By the far corner I was back with Naylor, but not expecting to stick with him and so it proved as my tired legs struggled back up the wee slopes. With the weekend's racing in mind, I eased off a bit but then lost some time when the path hit the fence as I wasn't sure whether it was left or right (it was left) and I could hear someone a bit behind. By the time we were out of the wood he was closing fast so I kicked in for a comfortable 3rd.

A lovely race and nice to be on the podium. Would like to do it when not knackered but then Naylor had just done the Island Peaks race....

C • great time 5

To/from start/finish jogging/strides

Easy-oasy run from Longhurstville round some nice wee woods.

C • Half-yard 1