Training Log Archive: bl

Home Sweet Home, 836 miles down the road. From WP to Essex & Lyme, then Branford today & home via 91 & 9E across NH. Could smell the barn, knew I was going a bit fast (even asked myself if I could lay hands on my wallet "in time of need"). Not 5’ later, got pulled over for 60 in 45, 800 mi on the road. Very pleasant officer - maybe helps to look/act a certain way, to tell him all you wanted to do was get home & get your dogs home too - that they’d been in the back of the car 4 nights etc etc. Oh, and that I was at West Point… more etc.

Found Beth’s current registration after one false start but told him I could not get my hands on my wallet at the moment. He could see the back seat was a mess. He does his check-the-numbers thing & wishes me well, and I’m on my way. Not a comment about the inability to produce a DL - which I did find when I stopped at Bow Mobil for gas - in the back where the dogs were holding out. Now to pick up the pieces and reassemble. Mocha with surgery at 0800 tomorrow.

C • Speed 3

I typed in a few essentials and this appeared. I was there (MI) once, thirty years after my mother died and took the identical picture. Then I wondered who might have taken the photograph. The web has an answer for most everything.
A WWW would, wouldn't it?

Decent run for most part but one flag costing 4-5' gives this a B/B-. Was low on #1, cost maybe 30". #2 - was not sure of approach & when I hit the unmapped green saplings (who'd put a point here...) continued on "in prayer".... & prayers were answered.

4 was the bad one - I picked out two cliffs in the terrain that were key in my RC. Seems they were not the two I thought they were. I climbed too high, too much exuberance. When the land started to level, I expected to see a wall, no wall. Continued on but then the slope changed & clearly I was not where I thought I was. I was on the side of a big valley... "the Valley of the Damned". Finally I stumbled on the walk to the start path (!) - so I knew I was high & to the left. Finally got to the right wall - there was another, unmapped one. #6 - investigated a nearby point, not mine. #9 went left & down. Flag was on a tiny RS in a hole - almost did not see it. #11 Mary Jo got there just after me & sat down & complained quite strongly about the lack of course consultancy. To the finish, I should have gotten in the reentrant to the NE - went too E, lost maybe 15".

All fun & games but I wish they'd get it right! The listed climb was about 50% of actual. Noted I'd been there as far back as '78...37 years.

Brown X day 2 - Splits

Event: West Point A-Meet
 

Camp fire stories: Thursday night alone at Mountain Lakes, peepers thru the night and, with first light, RWBs and robins.

Yesterday, I put up the tent @ RP around 3p - no others in sight on the lower level. After dinner in Central Valley, there was a tent city. I was on the edge. Turned out to be Scouts, lots of them. One tent was 10' away, two youngsters sharing. Chatter among quite a few boys (& even the setting up of a tent after 10p quiet hours) prevailed. Still going strong at 1115...when do I say something.... At 1145, "Boys please be quiet. It is well past 10pm quiet hours". It did become quiet. At 0550 today, a "command": "Cameron, time to get up". Answered in the affirmative. At 0615, "Cameron, are you up?". Not 5' later, a knock on my tent with the same question. To which I icily replied "I am not up and I am not a kid". I have a quieter neighborhood for tonight. The turkeys (real kind) were fun to hear.

Soft touch to the morning light.

Stopped to take this just inside the Round Pond entrance. The sign says something like Gibney Family plot, 1803-1870.

C • sailboats 2

Brown X course at West Point, Round Pond. Decent energy and nav. There was lots of blueberry to fight as well as mountain laurel in a few areas as well as rock features omitted that would have taken away some guesswork. Bright, sunny, maybe 65F. I saw a lot of Peter - expected some with his starting 2’ behind me. Caught him on the walk to the start (that I could do) & a marathon discussion ensued (as in Boston). Climb says 105m - my quick count came up with about twice that.

1 - went ok, lost maybe 20” in going too high. Symbol on map was a tiny rock face & it was important to be just right - not too high or too low.

2 - Lost more than 2’ here - looks trivial, thought I’d see the flag 50m away but I went too far left looking for what I considered a spur and then around & around in the area, finally down and more toward center of reentrant. It was on a downed tree at the foot of the spur, a bit hard to see I thought.

3/4 - I first saw Peter here, on way to 3. Wondered who was ahead as I did not see him get there in the open woods we were in but there he was, the 2 plus minute loss 50m ahead of me. PG left 3 going north to the road, I went east below the swamp. Did not see him at 4 so I assumed he’d come & gone as I did think the blueberry route was slow.

5 - Just north of 4, there was PG coming along from behind on my left. We struggled up the steep reentrant and then down to 5, arriving along with Ken Walker, I think it was.

6 - I started west with the path in mind but when I saw that it was a gradual uphill, opted for the contouring instead. PG was 20m ahead then. It was a bit of a confusing contour process to me. There were others in the mix. I made sure to go dead west and not get pulled down the slope. Punched just behind PG.

7 - We went west & accessed a trail system that took one right to a jct very near the flag. Peter was chatting with Charlie DeWeese; I was 50 m behind, keeping track of where I was, paying attention (tho it did essentially end in a nearby T jct). I punched at 7 first (then Charlie & Peter) & was off on my own to 8 as far as I could tell.

8 - I come onto the trail some 200m NE of 8, looked left & there is PG coming my way.

9 & 10 - straightforward on top of the ridge, just a bit ahead of Peter

11- Peter passed me on the downhill trail. I was more cautious or just slower. Was just behind him at 11 which, we both agreed later, came too soon.

12 - Down & down amidst the rocky terrain, care not to fall. Maybe 5” behind Peter at 12 & then to 13 & finish, pretty beat but satisfied with the run.

C • To 4 I went just north of t... 2

Brown X Day 1 - Splits

Map walks at Mountain Lakes and some at WP. Made it to Round Pond camping by 3p, $15/night with hot water; Mt. Lakes $35/night and still in winter's sleep so to speak.

Had breakfast with a high school classmate who lives in nearby Somers.
Caught up a bit last October at the 50th but, still, visiting nearly 51 years later
is cause for pause.

Mountain Lakes in North Salem - ran one of the Brown Xs (3.8k, 180m, 1/75 map) I missed last October. Accurate enough, woods very open, black features so so in places. Didn't like #8. Camping tonight at Hemlock Pond with Z & M & we have the after-dark park apparently to ourselves. Dip in the lake and dinner at the modern Cross River plaza on Rte 35.

220 miles to park entrance off Hawley Rd in surreal northern Westchester.
Crossed NH on Rt 9, most everything in somber grays. Color began around Springfield and again in the Hartford area & back to mostly bare woods along the Waterbury-Danbury stretch.

C • Park to yourself = skinny d... 2

Brown X Day 1 - Splits

BHS track on the way home from work. No plan, just warm up and see what
comes or goes. Ended up with 100s & 200s with walking in between. Not interested in logging specifics - too much work! - but 200s got predictably more facile - as in "I'm not actually a wax person". Left a bit soon since Beth and I are gong separate ways tomorrow: me WP, she SLC & CA, back 5/14.

There was a young woman at the track with a starting block, practicing starts (between smart phone consults and changing of spikes). I started a
conversation to learn she was a BHS senior, 100 & 200 runner, best 25.9; guessed 400 around 58 --- nope, had not been under a minute. She went to a NH Invitational a few weeks ago ("too hot"...NH in April?)..."something like a 1000 participants"...NH again?

Not sure where to go & settled on Hammond NP parking which proved ideal.
Except not really covered enough for the chill wind in the open. Across the greening field to Eagle Tr, down nearly to Br. Londonderry Tkpe, left on Webelos Tr to BLT, along it and back on Eagle.

An Eagle scout as part of his project has made very nice trail signs although too many and several are at trail intersections that don't yet exist - the crossing or connecting trail is yet to be. The signs had to be present by his 18th birthday to qualify for his Scout merit efforts.

Bought a new cell phone after not coming up with mine after about 12 days.