Race Evaluation
25th Billygoat:
TimGood
| 1. | Prerace: Not sure what to expect today. Very little training recently but had run well (run not orienteered) at long-O and last week at QOC. Ted pointed out that with Canadians at their trials this might be my best shot at top 15. Near the W side at the start so did not get out to bad, but made the mistake of checking my map to be sure 1 was not a fork or skip possiblity and dropped back into the crowd. While climbing I looked ahead on the course noting that 9 is forked and 4 or 6 are obvious skip choices. Got to the top and had to run again before I could check out past 21. | ||||||
| 2. | Follow the pack. | ||||||
| 3. | More following. Feel I am in good shape. Greg, Ted and Nadim are among those near me. Had some trouble on the steep downhill falling 3 times. | ||||||
| 4. | Starting to thin out here. N to trail then W. Greg looks like he is skipping. Ted and Nadim pick up the pace on the trail stringing us out. | ||||||
| 5. | Realize our pack has broken free and I am last. Ted and Nadim are out of sight. I am keying on JJ and Dan Schaublen but there are several others most of whom I pass. Basically go straight. | ||||||
| 6. | +00:30 | I had not looked for any more skips and expect the pack to skip 6. Dan and I start toward 7 but everyone else goes to 6. Dan joins them and I stop to see what I am missing. There must be another skip opportunity. Finally see that skipping 23 should save a lot of distance and give a stonewall handrail to 24 at a time when I will no doubt be to tired to think clearly. I go to 6 also but have to work hard to maintain contact. Coming into 6 we meet Ted and Nadim coming out on the way to 7. Hopefully this brief contact with Nadim does not mess me up. [The last two A-meets when Nadim and I met we both made major errors] | |||||
| 7. | JJ goes N around the green taking one other with him, the rest of us dogleg back out to the S. At this point the pack forms which will stay together for the rest of the course. Ernst Linder, Dan Schaublin, Doug Gosling and me. | ||||||
| 8. | We pick up Marty near 7. Do not know if he has skipped or not. Pass several people who have skipped. I lost track of Dan and Ernst while passing a pack and fear they have lost me but I head straight for the control and almost beat them there. | ||||||
| 9. | I am thinking left fork (W) and and relieved when they agree. Trail around. Ernst and Doug overshoot and Dan tries to sneak in and out. I try the same but they see us. | ||||||
| 10. | +00:20 | I am momentarily in the lead so promptly mess up. The line on the map obscures the trail junction so I race off down the southern trail thinking it is the one to 10. Realize my mistake when I am on the wrong side of the marshes. Come into the control along the E side of the pond. Back at the end of the pack again. Still Ernst, Dan, Doug, Marty and myself. | |||||
| 11. | Straight | ||||||
| 12. | Along the top then cut down when the contours got less steep. | ||||||
| 13. | Water, orange stuff and an orange wedge at the aid station. We are in and out. Easy up the trail leaving 12 then speed up near the top. | ||||||
| 14. | Do not see Marty anymore. Assume he was dropped off the back. | ||||||
| 15. | |||||||
| 16. | At 15 we catch a group of early skippers. They head straight up into the green. We go W to the marsh. Follow the marsh. Ernst goes to W side of big hill, rest of us to the E but we meet up again on the other side. Around the end of the green we overshoot a bit and come in from the S. See another group headed out in the direction of 17. Recogize Dave Onkst. | ||||||
| 17. | Ernst and Dan pick up the pace on the trail leaving Doug and I a bit behind. I close the gap just in time and cut off just behind them. We get a little N and are drawn off toward some people who are high. See Dave Onkst up there. Dan goes right and slips into the control with me right behind him. | ||||||
| 18. | We take off down the spur. Wonder if Ernst and Doug have seen us. Do not wonder long as I hear footsteps behind me, and Ernst has caught me by the stream. | ||||||
| 19. | Know this is a dogleg because I has considered if it was a worthy skip. Assume it must be the Saeger loop. Lots of people around, figure they have all skipped until Ted passes me. He must have made a mistake somewhere. Wonder where Nadim is. | ||||||
| 20. | See Dave Onkst again as I run out. Over at 18 it looks like a pack of people including Erin and Kristen. Know it is the Saeger loop because I pass Jeff Saeger. Ted has taken the lead of our pack and increased its pace. | ||||||
| 21. | Trail to the bend then straight, including right thru the marsh. Who picked this route. Looks like Ted is repaying me for 2 years ago when I took the lead in a pack he was in, and increased the pace and he was dropped. I can barely hang on | ||||||
| 22. | |||||||
| 23. | skip | ||||||
| 24. | +01:40 | Ernst started off the correct way but everyone else was to the N and Ernst was drawn our way. Not sure why. I had planned this route while going to 6 then did not follow it when we got there. Everyone was thinking finish and the pace quickened even more. We crossed the trail at the clearing and I was dropped. Ernst and Dan disappeared, Ted was ahead on the left, Doug on the right. I got confused because I was expecting to follow a stone wall in and there was none. (It was to the S) Ted got confused by the way he had numbered his boxes in the reserve area and slowed momentarily thinking he had skipped something. Doug disappeared and we fell off to the trail N of the control. Had to climb back up. This is my control so I had to stop and admire it for a moment. Did not see any cat vomit but I felt pretty sick. | |||||
| 25. | I had some trouble getting the punch up to the top row. It did not reach from below and my map was in the way from above. Ted got away while I was fumbling. Down the depression to trail | ||||||
| F. | Not close enough to Ted to have much chance of passing him so no big kick. My best placing ever and I did not have to follow Peter to do it. Ok so I followed Ernst and Dan instead. I was never alone on the course. Third year in a row that I was with Dan. Thanks to Rick and WCOC for an excellent race. |
Total Time Lost - 00:02:30