Race Evaluation
30th Annual Billygoat Run: The Goat
Charlie
| 1. | With the big train, latching on to the back of J-J and Stephen, and looking over my shoulder repeatedly to make sure Rhonda is in contact | ||||||
| 2. | Contour, pace, look for the spur, and following J-J still | ||||||
| 3. | Right, with Jim Henderson and well behind J-J and Stephen for most of it, as Stephen really motored down the hill. Saw #7 on the way, and Will Hawkins headed down toward it. | ||||||
| 4. | contoured and climbed a bit, getting stuck in some green and stopping a bit short to review where we were. Saw others taking a lower route. | ||||||
| 5. | +07:00 | Major screw up. Misread the map in the vicinity of 5 and thought it was up rather than down, which caused me to drift right. Ended up between the marshy ponds and climbing through the green, somehow convincing myself I was passing by the small pond left of the line (that I later found out was dry). Wandered on top of the hill for a while (where we saw a guy headed SW - maybe he was skipping 6. Eventually stumbled down and down until we saw some folks, including Rob Freeberg. Down some more and got it, although I wasn't sure it was #5 until we punched. | |||||
| 6. | OK. Some folks coming from the left. Were they skipping 5? Steve Tarry just ahead. | ||||||
| 7. | +06:00 | Another major screw-up. Navigated well to within about 100 meters. Saw stone wall and cliffs on right, but ran into Rob F, who insisted that it was the wrong stone wall and we were too low. Rhonda was too smart for this, but she ended up following me wandering with Rob for a bit before I came back to my senses. | |||||
| 8. | +01:30 | A bit too much through the marsh. Rob found a better line right along the edge of the cliffs. Then passed the control too low and had to climb back up. | |||||
| 9. | +00:30 | Taking the straight line, but ran into Peter Goodwin who was ahead on the trail and headed to #10. Misunderstood his advice to go around on the trail and thought he was telling me the control was not down there, so momentarily confused. | |||||
| 10. | On trail halfway, seeing lots of folks headed to #13, and thinking J-J must already have passed. Turns out he was not that far ahead. Cut off trail at first big hill and contoured rest of way, picking up Rob F again, who had been going in the woods the whole way. | ||||||
| 11. | Contour and climb a bit. | ||||||
| 12. | Uphill and could see the knoll and imagine the spur behind it. | ||||||
| 13. | +01:30 | Saw Peter Goodwin and another fellow pretty well ahead leaving the control, and finally caught them about halfway. Only two runners headed north when we were going south. Francis Hogle and Will Hawkins. Will had finished the course and was headed back out for a run, apparently. Climbed too high and right at the end and got on a big promontory over the pond. Couldn't read the map there because of all the rocky ground print. Peter was accurate, though, and we followed him down. | |||||
| 14. | +02:30 | Trail with Peter, somehow missing the finish area and getting all the way down to the cars before figuring out where we were and heading back. | |||||
| 15. | Walking, and a bit low, but I could see the likely looking cliff uphill and no problem. By this time we are aware that Ed Despard is stuck like glue and has been following pretty much since #7, tight enough that he is camped on the territory between me and Rhonda at all times. He redeems himself somewhat by plying Rhonda with granola bars. | ||||||
| 16. | Reasonably straight and perhaps a bit left of line, generally pace counting after the first rocky area after the trail. Rhonda is looking around and spots J-J ahead heading downhill SW, so apparently too high. We catch up to him and Stephen and tell him there is still a bit to go, so we jump over the knoll and we're there. | ||||||
| 17. | Uphill to the trail, and just below knoll on left, on line for control. See the rocky spur ahead and know the control is just past it. With my shadow and Rhonda a pace further back. J-J, Stephen and Peter have fallen off the back. | ||||||
| 18. | skip, and glad to have it. It wouldn't really have been a bad leg, but I'm fine with going around on the trail | ||||||
| 19. | NNE picking the way through laurel patches to small trail, then NW to larger trail to junction. Right at junction for 200 m or so, angling downhill through lighter green to just above dark green patch above control. Around and in from the east. Ed was recognizing the area because he had visited it on the way from 2 to 3. | ||||||
| 20. | Straight, and could see the long knoll in front of the control for a while. | ||||||
| 21. | SW to trail and trail to jct, then S along wall. | ||||||
| 22. | SW along large flat knoll, then dwon steeply to small trail in green, then S to main trail, looking for amphitheatre on left. Rhonda spotted control, and I punched first, but had to wait for my shadow to punch in front of Rhonda. | ||||||
| F. | Controlled my instinct to sprint for the finish and waited for my lovely spouse. |
Total Time Lost - 00:19:00