Training Log Archive: cedarcreek

I've been using the Attackpoint event calendar extensively for a few months now, especially with all the TROL events OCIN has put on over the winter.

I've used future-dated notes for adding events and reminders I didn't think needed to be on the main attackpoint event calendar.

Many months ago I noticed hkleaf used some html codes to add event site URLs to his future dated notes.

Well, today I needed the URL for the OCIN Route Gadget site, and I realized I could put a future-dated note way out into the future, and then add the html codes for a URL, and essentially have a few bookmarks on my (alleged) training log. Check 'em out below, just above the graph for "Recent Weeks".

Short run around the 'hood with Katie.

I felt terrible almost the whole time. I got home from work at 7:30 and finished eating about 8:45. Waited as long as I could for my stomach to empty, but it was getting late and I just had to go running.

Beautiful night. Started with a clear sky and a full moon, but about halfway through some high clouds moved in fast and covered the whole sky. The moon behind the fast-moving clouds was so cool.

I think it was about 65 degrees (19C?) at 11pm. The temperature is supposed to drop like a rock and be close to freezing at 6am.

Event: OCIN TROL 11 - French Park
 

Green course at French Park, in Amberly Village. Set by David Williams.

A really fun course on a perfect, springlike day. I was the last starter, since I arrived with a huge backlog of starters to enter. (I've really, really got to arrive earlier. I know.)

As the last starter, I had heard to avoid the middle green, but there were mixed reports regarding whether or not shorts were advisable. I suspected a slow day, and since it was just so perfect a day, I went with the shorts. Dick thought shorts would be okay since it was 90% trail. I related Dick's comment to Mike, and he said, "Yeah, but the other 10% is like Texas thorns." To which I took a deep breath and thought something like, "It's too late now; I'm going."

I was very surprised how interesting the course was. It was a little too easy, with legs that looked yellowish to my eye. But there was a lot of route choice, and because parts of the woods were thick, I ended up loving how the course used a lot of trails. The best part for me was the medium length legs crossing the slopes. They looked scary to my East Fork trained eyes, crossing like 5 or 8 ditches. But there wasn't really an around option, so I just took off on the line and found out the woods was fast and the ditch crossings mostly quick and painless (mostly).

The woods did turn out to be pretty slow, but not too many thorns. A few. I was going slow enough that I had a few pricks, but nothing more than a speck of blood.

The route gadget is very cool, especially for the first three places up to about leg 7 or 8 or so, then it becomes more a race of two. Big kudos to David for all the route choices. Even using so much trail, the choices made it interesting and did work to sort the runners.

The climb ended up getting me. The approach to the finish was just single long climb up the main spur of the park, and I was just dead. I felt great, really great, up to 6.

I think David really did a great job setting this. The best part of his course for me was the way he used a lot of the map but with only three major climbs. It would be really easy to just take the runners all over the map but with tons of gratuitous climb. The cross-slope legs, especially in the better forest, were really fun. (It did take me a while to realize the map was 3m.)

Green - Splits