Training Log Archive: Linear Ice

I just spent a frustrating amount of time trying to download my Garmin track from yesterday..... because I wanted to look at the Vortex from just before Control 17..... the one that pulled me in for 40 minutes before spitting me out, and then finally allowing me to find the control with still enough time to spare to get 18 and 19 and then finish within the 3 hour time limit.
But the Vortex also stole the track, and replaced it with 13 hours of driving and walking around Colorado.
Summary. Great course. I really enjoyed it, despite having spent the hours of 7 AM to 9 AM wondering if upset stomach, generally altitude tiredness, blah blah blah would even allow me to run. As I suspected, the ailments all pretty much disappeared once the map was turned over and my concentration went to other more productive activities. Wonderful map and terrain; I really like running through the sagey areas and the woods, and down the slopes. Lots of changes in orienteering skills needed/fast running/slow climbing, peeking around big boulders or running confidently into reentrants. A very fine event and I was very glad to receive a DF (did finish) despite apparent reports that there was a wild woman making a home out near 17.

I LOVE my Icebug Acceleritas. Best part of the day. =)
And then I had a few explosions.
Today, i made a special point of trying to better in the control circle. I planned to visualize what the control placement would look like, with the features nearby, terrain, vegetation. I forgot to tell myself to continue to do the other stuff too.
SOO..... to 3, I ran out at a 45 degree map error angle; nice and fast because I had a nice handrail... the spur to 3. Except I hit Aspen trees. Oops. I recovered and was quite proud of myself in a perverted way to only have lost 2 minutes. I saw Mike Carlson at 3.
Then, on 4.... I found the control just I had visualized it. Except the number wasn't correct. So I circled WAAAY back, relocated, checked again, and came BACK to the same number. It WAS correct!!! Argh. I just read the sheet wrong and didn't realize there was a control number tucked inside the lower ones. Again, perverted sense of "yay, at least I visualized it correctly!).
Then, on idiot mistake number 3, to 9 I ran 180 off, hit the road and ran South for quite a qhile before realizing THAT was wrong. By this time, I think I was in oxygen deprivation due to trying to make up for the stupid mistakes. I know this is never a good idea. Had a good route to 9 I thought but started getting sloppy and just lost it. Saw Smoke somewhere down there, but eventually decided I had gotten all the good orienteering that I was due for the day and walked home. Seemed like that took forever too and I was wondering if maybe i had wandered into Montana by mistake. But finally made it to the road and then to the Finish.
Was greeted by Mike Carlson and Pete C. who were worried maybe I had retwisted my ankle or who know what... I had been that long. Got a few "what happened to YOUs?" Felt good to be back and I can't wait to go get some Mexican Food.

Event: 2012 Western States Orienteering Championships
 

Here I am, writing this just one day late and already the details have escaped from my mind.... along with everything else, perhaps as a kindness so that when I sit on that rocking porch , I'll be able to remember the "glory days" that maybe never quite were.
But now that I'm thinking waaaay back to yesterday, that really was a pretty good day. The terrain was very nice running and although I hesitated a bit more than I should have when coming up to controls.... I selected good routes and ran as planned. Walked the uphills, checked off features. All very nice. Fairly easy course. And ended up second in the F50s behind someone with alien vowels in her name, so that was pretty nice place to be. Maprunner bested my 3 minutes, and she is looking fit, confident, and almost ready to be an F50.

Day 1 (Saturday) - Green - Splits

Another follow-fest from my vantage point. Running through the sage was fun, with the little paths and occasional necessary little jumps and skips.
And the map was nice, but with the wide open terrain and so many runners it was easy to just look at the map and think "Yep, seems like they're going in mostly the right direction".
Which meant I had no excuse to walk. At each control I thought, well I can't walk NOW, this is (flat, or open, or on a trail, or .....) and as I result I ended up with a very good overall pace for me but there wasn't much real navigation. Glad I survived the altitude.

Very fun event, I really liked the small loops, multiple great maps, awesome terrain, people.
I was a bit overly eager on the first loop and out of practice and so the first loop featured poor execution, including a major bobble on leg 2 when I got distracted by all the people going to a nearby control on a different loop. I knew it wasn't my control, but it still got me flustered and running stupid.
Then I twisted my ankle to 3, messed up a LOT to 4 by turning things inside-out (made a hill a depression).
The other loops were all fairly reasonable. I did the last one completely alone (the benefit of messing up was I got rid of so many of the other distractions - they were way ahead). And then on the 5th loop, the together loop, ran quite a bit with Sue and Dick N. and I think they did most of the good navigating but then on the last control I was able to run it in.
Very fun, and I'm hoping it helped to get my head back into maps.

Event: 2012 Laramie Daze
 

Lake Elmo early run with Chris and Robin, around ski trails and the big lake (not THE Lake though). Love the early morning runs. Then drove my daughter up to Duluth. Saw that Jay Cooke SP is still closed.