Training Log Archive: dlevine

Event: West Point A-meet
 

West Point, Green X

Start->1: Couldn't believe how easy this was, so I cut in to the woods early to see if there was something I was missing from my vantage point on the road. There wasn't. 1:49, but I certainly should have done better.

1->2: More or less straight at it, off by a small amount. 3:27

2->3: Ditto, starting to like the map and course. 4:11

3->4: Unlike most, this bag was not visible from a distance, but it was easy enough to find. 2:51

4->5: Went left around the swamp and came out near the trail, but wasted a lot of time figuring out where I was on the trail when I was exactly where I wanted to be. 4:52; analysis says 43 seconds of error - my guess was 30 seconds.

5->6: A DISASTER. Went over the hill, up the road and headed in on a bad bearing (or more likely a bad start spot). Ended up going back to the road to relocate after which it was easy to find. 9:25; analysis says I lost 4:46 here - my guess was five minutes.

6->7: In a pack. 1:55

7->8: Group of five split up with one above me (on the road as it turns out), two below me, and one in front of me taking the small trail. After the trail, he went high while I went low, past the cliffs with a flag (38?) to the bare rock and in. I think I was the first of the five. 8:18

8->9: Up the hill in group of three. Each of us went to a different rock face. I was last to mine, but it was the right one, so I was "first in" again. 4:53. Analysis calls this my best leg - it sure didn't feel that way.

9->10: More or less on the line, but in the circle, I went between the boulders looking for the flag and then had to scramble down to it. 1:24; analysis says I lost 29 seconds, but I didn't feel that way.

10->11: Three of us heading down hill, but I stepped in mud and popped my shoe. By the time I untied it, put it back on and retied, they were almost out of sight. Caught one person at the water stop and more or less followed him up the road and in to the flag. 7:12; analysis says I lost 43 seconds here - that's the shoe.

11->12: Over the spur and down to the road junction, up the rock face any way I could manage and then along the flat at the top to the flag. Semi-chasing the same guy. 5:08

12->13: After getting down the rock, I debated the road, but the woods looked SO open. Ended up seeing the flag from well over 60m away. 3:08

13->14: Again, down the ridge, but the cliff system at the end was tricky. Lots of folks were there and looking around, but without much success. Eventually, we all found it a bit lower than I had expected. 2:45; analysis says I lost no time here, but that must be more due to other folks having similar problems than my being clean.

14->15: Across the stream/marsh and up the hill. Came out at the building/water stop and took the trail over the top. Lots of folks looking for it and finding it in succession rather than as a group. 6:01

15->16: Apparently only one of these folks is on my course and he's out ahead of me (and higher). Flag turns out to be between us, but he really got there first. 1:46

16->17: Went just left of straight, down the cliffs and across the stream. Past the rock before the control and then to the right a bit; turned left into the reentrant and found it. 5:31

17->18: Crashed more to the road than on the line and just ran the road. 1:31

18->Finish: :39

All in all, not bad, except for 5->6.

To/from the start

West Point Time-O

Start->153: Planning to go clockwise. 1:58
153->140: Got there very early and decided to wait as I didn't want to "do the hill" twice; should have waited at 135 and then run down the road to 140. 3:04
140->131: 1:16
131->116: Wend down road to 129 but was there way too early so I foolishly ran on to 116; there was no reason to do this. 2:28
116->117: Came back for this one, but skipped the two contour climb to 129 in favor of trying for 143. 1:12
117->123: Made it by 47 seconds. 3:45
123->118: Damn there were a lot of briars in that "white" depression! 1:50
118->127: Missed it a bit left. Oops. 1:22
127->141: 1:06
141->120: 0:59
120->144: Skipping 132 in favor of 122. 1:30
144->137: 1:27
137->122: Saw 126, but was early. Rough vs. clear yellow not mapped correctly; wet going down and worried about timing to 122, but made it by 48 seconds. 1:44
122->126: Slog up hill realizing that I may have more time than I thought. 1:16
126->124: Should have run road to 134 and then decided about 124, but didn't see that. Went behind building and judged that I could make it through the green. 2:26
124->Finish: Was thinking only about beating 30 minutes and not about tie-breakers so I got lazy. Ultimately, it cost me one place (by one second). 1:25

GREAT EVENT, although I think that there were many scoring glitches. My score is correct, but I heard a large number of folks saying that theirs were not.

C • One Second 1

Saturday Classic, Green X - Splits

So, after six weeks off (due to scheduling conflicts all around), handball resumed this evening with Danny B. and Syed. Danny has lost nothing and is a tough opponent who can nonetheless be beaten if you are persistent and consistent; Syed is talented, but erratic.

Game 1: Trailed 5-5-9 before taking a 12-7-10 lead and then claiming the last nine points in a row, 21-7-10

Game 2: Took the last seven in a row to win 21-9-12

Game 3: Was tied at 12-12-12 before I took four in a row. After that, it got even again, but my lead held up and I won 21-18-17.

We were all a bit gassed.

Event: ROC - Genesee Country Village Nature Center Regular Meet
 

ROC Icebreaker, Red course

Weather was perfect, map was new (to me) and the course seemed like a long sprint with some extra running at the beginning and end. (Other 20 legs covered about 4.3km, so lots of quick turns.)

Ran reasonably well considering that it is almost five full months since I had used a compass. Took a bit of time getting used to the map, bobbled #8 after I got a bit cocky and really blew #15 after I headed off on a bad bearing and ended up taking the trail around. Bobbled #21 and then blew both the GO control and the finish. GO control was the longest leg and I chose to go south around the swamp, but drifted north a bit and hit the swamp dead on before looping around to the south. Finish was embarrassing as I ran right to the event center, missing the turn to the finish. Of course, so did the two folks with me...

Not a great run, but one that I can live with for an Icebreaker/warm-up for West Point next weekend.

C • missing the turn to the finish 1

Red - Splits