Training Log Archive: pauline

No exercise due to travelling back from Cheshire to Oxford via Watford and Little Chalfont & then trying to catch up after a week away.


Looking back over my performance at the Scottish 6 Days (my first W35L courses), I can see a definite pattern. Days 1, 2, 4 and 5 I ran in BOF silver standard time (i.e. between 1.25 and 1.5 times the average time of the first 3 results), whereas Days 3 and 6 I ran in BOF bronze standard time (i.e. between 1.5 and 2.0 times the average time of the first 3 results). This just goes to show that I was tiring over 3 days, although I did think that days 3 (Tullochroisk) and 6 (Loch Ordie) were physically tougher terrain.

I certainly found I could keep going for the whole of a W35L course with no problems, however I didn't have the strength to run over tough terrain (lots of undergrowth and/or brashings), or up long or steep hills, so I need to work on that.

Still, I'm pleased that I managed to complete the 6 days, running W35L, less than a year after breaking my ankle, and come in the top 2/3rd of the results.

Ankle felt sore during the journey down to Cheshire after Loch Ordie. I hope I haven't overdone things by running on it for 6 days out of 7.

Scottish 6 Days, Day 6 - Loch Ordie, W35L (course 37)
Position: 27/32

My worst run of the week as I was really tired (physically and mentally), having not managed to get enough sleep all week, and I found it very tough going through the knee-deep heather, and the muddy, wet marshes weren't much better, even with elephant tracks.

#1: I was lucky not to mess this one up as my brain really wasn't in gear. I made it safely to the control circle & then got pulled into the control itself by another competitor when I otherwise would have blundered off as I'd lost concentration.

3-4: Finding myself yawning on the ridge before the control was a bad sign and sure enough I lost concentration on the ridge with my control and got confused. It turned out that I hadn't gone far enough (I was still on top of the ridge, rather than starting down the other side, which should have been obvious enough, but somehow wasn't). I douldn't understand why I douldn't see the big crags & then it clicked: I was further NW & higher up than I thought I was. So I dropped down & back round to the control.
Lost 5:15 mins.

14-15: Instead of trying to go fairly straight over the heathery, broad spur, I should have dropped down the marsh & along the path, which I think would have been faster, even though it was 2 sides of a triangle. Then heading down the linear ditch (following the huge elephant track) I misremembered which ditch/stream/linear marsh junction I was using as my attack point, so I carried on further downhill than I should have done, secure in the knowledge that I hadn't got to the junction yet, only to realise and have to climb back up from just below the boulder to my control on the spur.
Lost 2:30 mins.

Otherwise, I had a clean, but slow run, although I possibly didn't take the best route each time, I did execute my route choice correctly.

GPS distance: 6.02km.

Scottish 6 Days, Day 5 - Barry Buddon, W35L (course 37)
Position: 18/34

My best run of the week, much to my surprise. Since I was starting at lunchtime (again), I ate lunch just over an hour before my run & so was fine at the end. I was a bit worried that it would be too bright out in the open & I'd need sunglasses (it wasn't & I didn't) and that it would be too hot without a hat (which I didn't have for running in) and I'd get sunstroke (I didn't - it wasn't that hot). So after lots of worrying, I turned out to have a good run. I was glad I was starting later & so there were elephant tracks through the long grass, or I would have been a lot slower.

I did make a number of small mistakes, though:
#1: I was put off a bit by having to go backwards off the start when everyone else was going forwards, so I was a bit uncertain heading off.

1-2: I was careful setting off on this leg as I could see that it was a tricky one through the woodland with all the knolls. So I carefully ticked off the ditches while running on a rough bearing to the large clearing. But then, exiting the large clearing I got pulled south, rather than SW and ended up in the wrong clearing. I realised straight away & found my control, but having gone wrong I was a bit hesitant that I'd misinterpreted my mistake.
Lost 2 mins.

2-3: Having gone wrong finding #2, I was a bit hesitant heading the 100m to #3, but I found it OK.
Lost 30 secs.

3-4: Again I headed off on a rough bearing, intending to use the bridge over the ditch as my attackpoint, but instead I hit the pair of knolls just north of it & having worked out that was where I was, used them instead.
Lost 30 secs.

5-6: I found it hard going across the open area and drifted too far west to the obvious break in the hills, which I realised was the one beyond my control, so I just bent around the hill & into my re-entrant.
Lost 1 min.

10-11: At the end of the leg, just by the control, I got a bit confused in the bowl at the bottom of the hills and thought my control was in a re-entrant part way up the enclosing hills. So I started to head around the bowl on the path, only to realise that my re-entrant was actually in the bottom of the bowl & cut into it.
Lost 20 seconds.

14-15: I was a bit hesitant running along the side of the ridge & cut across too soon & had to run up & down along the top of the ridge to my control.
Lost 30 seconds.

I had a bit of a battle with another lass on my course (who splitsbrowser revealed to be Anna Chapman) over the middle section of the course. She caught me at 7, and got away from me on the way to #10 (she's a faster runner than me), but then she came past me again on the way to 15 and having watched her missing #16, I didn't see her again.

GPS distance: 7.08km.

Scottish 6 Days, Day 4 - Tentsmuir, W35L (course 37)
Position: 20/34

Probably my favourite day, but then I like this sort of complex, sand-dune area (but where there's grass on the dunes, so I'm not running on sand, which is physically draining).

I didn't make many mistakes, either, and I kept running, which is probably why I got a good result.

#1: I found it hard-going through the brashings & wondered whether I was going to be able to run at all for the race. I wasn't really sure what I was looking for, as I was struggling to interpret the contours, and so I was hesitant & unsure on my way in & wobbled a bit, before finding it.
Lost 30 seconds.

1-2: I mis-remembered the control description & thought I was looking for the eastern re-entrant, not the western one, and was a bit surprised not to find the flag in it, before re-checking the control descriptions & realising my mistake.
Lost 20 seconds.

14-15: Having run down the path to minimise the amount of running through the bracken, and taken advantage of the elephant tracks through the bracken (I was glad I was not first off) I then didn't think to pace count to know where I was & couldn't see the land shapes because of the bracken. So I stopped too soon and started looking around on an earlier hill for my control, but nothing fit. Having realised my mistake, I found the bracken ended before my hill and found my control easily (since I could now see the contours).
Lost 90 seconds.

I forgot to reset my GPS watch, so no distance & no heartrate information, just a GPS track.

Rest day (and very welcome it was, too).

Scottish 6 Days, Day 3 - Tullochroisk, W35L (course 37)
Position: 23/31

A very wet day and quite a slog through the woods & up the hill to #5, after which it was fairly runnable. So I was slow.

I played it safe to #1 because I realised I could easily get lost through the vague wood. I may have lost c. 1 minute by going the long way round, but I could have lost more time getting lost.

1-2 Having crossed the stream I ended up going too far north (rather than NW).
Lost 1-2 mins.

3-4 I made a parallel error off the ride corner & came up the northern patch of light green, rather than the southern one. I realised I'd gone too far when I could see the ride. I turned around, met Jon, to go back to the control. Then I realised I could hear the stream & was therefore too far north (i.e. I'd made a parallel error). I hacked through the light green towards my control & then got confused by the clearing, which I couldn't see on my map while I was in the gloom under the trees. So I pushed out to the ride to check where I was, saw the clearing on my map & worked out where I was, went back in & after some uncertainty & found the control.
Lost 5 mins.

4-5 Was a hard slog, straight into the wind & rain when out on the moor climbing the hill up to #5. After that, it all got easier & the rain stopped on the way to #6.

6-7 Coming down the spur off the hill near the control I went too far east & had to curve back round into the control.
Lost 30 secs.

9-10 Got pulled too far down the hill by someone ahead of me leaving the control, & had to head back up the ditch to the control.
Lost 30 secs.

10-11-12-finish: No navigation involved, just a way to get us across the road & round to the finish.

GPS distance: 6.7km.

Scottish 6 Days, Day 2 - Kinnoull Hill, W35L (course 37)
Position: 24/36

Not my best run. Having spiked no. 1, I then decided it was an easy area, with lots of paths and promptly messed up 2, 3, and 4, then I got distracted by Jon on the way to #5 and really messed up. After that I was fine until I fell over (tripped over a stone) on the way out of the last control and fell full length in the sandy soil, grazing my right elbow (and some other minor grazes and bruises).

1-2 Should have cut across more to between the hills and straightened my route. The pit was higher on the small hill than I thought & I missed it at first.
Lost 45 secs.

2-3 From the clearing between 2 & 3 I thought I was on the rightmost (NW) hill, not the SW one; once I realised I looped round.
Lost 1:15 mins.

3-4 I came in too high (following an elephant track). When I reached the higher path I could see an enclosure further up the hill with a control on it, and even though I knew it was too high to be mine, I ended up going up to check, before dropping down & further along to my control.
Lost 1:45 mins.

4-5 I was doing fine until Jon came past just before #8; he carried on up the little path and I got distracted and missed the turn onto the more major path I wanted which contoured round the hill. When I crossed the main N/S track before #5 I thought it was the track, but it was on the side of the spur, not on top of the spur as it was mapped to be, which confused me (I later realised it was because I was further south than I thought I was). I kept going and when nothing fit when I reached the path beyond #5, I finally worked out what I'd done and headed north along it to my control.
Lost 3:45 mins.

7-8 Dropped too far down the slope on the little path, and had to come back up in the green to my hide.
Lost 1 min.

14-15 Followed the elephant track through the gorse, being overtaken by people, and got dragged too far down the hill & had to curve around & climb back up.
Lost 1 min.

When I finished the course, I realised I'd hit exhaustion. I'd only had half my lunch before running, not all of it, and I didn't start until 13:30. Having the rest of my lunch helped a bit, but it wasn't until I had dinner in the evening that I finally recovered.

In future I need to remember:
a) to get enough sleep,
b) to eat lunch an hour before I run if I'm starting at lunchtime.

GPS distance = 7.17 km.

Event: Scottish Six Days Tay 2009
 

Scottish 6 Days, Day 1 - Dalrulzion W35L (course 37)
Position: 25/34

OK 'run', but found it quite tough physically. I may have the stamina to keep going, but I don't have the strength to run through the undergrowth & over brashings.

#1 - I stupidly went through the green, rather than round, to the open; hadn't got my brain in gear at that point. Lost 1 min.

3-4 Found it really hard going through the green. Jenni Adams went through the white to the NE where it was better running, apparently, and perhaps I should have done the same to the path NW of the lake. Lost 3:45 mins.

4-5 Was rather hesitant, but headed directly to it.

6-7 Again a bit hesitant, but hit the white hill by the marsh & went directly to my control.

7-8 Nearly stopped too early, but saw the ride & realised where I was & carried on to my control along an elephant track.

9-10 Came out of the light green a bit too soon & found the control on the boulder. The realised that the slope was levelling out & I hadn't seen my crag, so the boulder wasn't the one above my control; looked to my right & there the crag & control were.

11-12 I headed towards the last control along the elephant track past the fence corner. There were white tapes for juniors from the fence corner, so I followed them reckoning that they were the best route to the last control.

GPS distance = 5.33km.

Travelling up to the Scottish 6 Days.