Training Log Archive: syd

I wasn't sure if I would be up for orienteering the day after an 18 h rogaine, but after sleeping for 11 h I figured I had enough energy go to out again. Other than some very sore quads/glutes I actually felt pretty good. I took off at a run and planned to trot for as long as I could. I couldn't run through green, or up hills, but I thought I was moving at a decent pace all things considered. I couldn't actually move fast enough to get lost, so my navigation was solid. My only problem was that I could not remember what some of the clue descriptions meant (my brain must have still been tired from yesterday). That led to some minor struggles in the circle, but no major navigational issues through the entire race! Super fun course. I miss orienteering in Michigan.

C • Nice run on top of the outright win of 18 hr rogaine! 5

Sunday_Long_Bishop_Lake_Oct_2018_8 Red - Splits

Event: Legend of the Dogman (8hr/18hr Rogaine)
 

Dogman 18h Rogaine – Solo (Topo the Mountain)
Finished 1st OA! :)
70/80 CPs

Kevin and I were planning to race this together, but a few days before the race he came down with a stomach bug. He was feeling mostly better by Friday afternoon, but we decided it was better for him to drop to the 8 h and I would do the 18 h solo. It would be my longest solo race to date, and my first solo overnight race, so I was a little nervous going in.

We drove up to Michigan Friday afternoon and arrived at Camp Munhacke around 7 p.m. I checked in, ate dinner and got my gear together. Maps were handed out at 8:30 p.m. We received 3 maps that would take us from the start to the TA. At the TA we would receive the final 2 maps that would connect the TA to the finish. I planned a route to clear the first 3 maps on the chance the entire course was clearable. We hopped on a bus at 11:00 p.m. that transported us to the start location. I tried to close my eyes on the ride, but I was too excited. Once we arrived at a dirt parking lot everyone hiked up a short hill to start at an observation deck. Angel played some music and at midnight we took off!

At the first control (CP 38) each person picked up a small map that showed the location of 3 nearby controls that were not printed on the master map. It was an attempt to break up the field, but I just had a train of people following me to each control location. I don’t really like being followed, so at that point I decided to pick up the pace for an hour or so to lose people. It worked. My navigation was solid and by the time I reached the middle of map 1 Greg was the only person still tagging along with me. Map 1 went smoothly and I reached the end around 2 a.m., which was right on my time estimate.

Map 2 was significantly farther to clear. I decided to keep the pace conservative as I had a long ways to go and I really didn’t want to be lost alone in the woods at night. My first mistake was on 75. I checked off the small gully on the way in, but I think I drifted too far E and missed the gully I wanted. Saw Tony and Richard both wandering around in here. I wandered for a bit and then headed back to the first gully to reattack. Found it no problem. I was worried about 80, but I took a bearing from the N trail bend and hit it right on. Stopped at 40 to flip maps and check my water – it was still pretty full so I didn’t refill. At this point I realized my math was way off on my time estimates. I had thought to be at the end of map 2 at 6 a.m., but it was 5:50 a.m. and I was only at 40. At this point I could either drop 3 CPs (59, 83, 51) and finish map 2 close to my estimate, or stick to the plan. I decided to just go for it. I was feeling good, so I started doing a little more running. I ran into Tony on the trail to 83 and we were together for a few CPs. I had some trouble with 57. The fields didn’t really match, I had a hunch that maybe I was too far E and stumbled on the control as I was wandering W. It started to get light around here and I finished up map 2 around 8 a.m.

Map 3 looked like some tricky navigation to start and then a lot of trail running. Mistake on the first control. Tony and I were together heading in to 70. I cut in from the depressions near the trail, but stumbled across a couple of cairns in the woods and thought that maybe I had gone too far. So I stopped and backtracked. Wandered for a while before convincing myself I had been in the right place. Went back and if I had just walked 10 feet farther the first time I would have seen the flag. Ugh. Lost Tony during the course of relocating and headed off on my own for a while. The rest of the S section went smoothly. My new time goal for hitting the TA was 10:30 a.m. and to do that I needed to move through the rest of map 3. I was feeling great so decided to start trotting all the trails/roads through the TA. Cruised through the NW portion of the map. I saw Tony heading in as I was heading back out, so I knew I had a decent lead over him. Also saw Brenda on the road. I stopped at 61 to refill my water. Ran into Richard at 50 and then 47. It looked like an easy shot from 47 S to a trail to the TA, but it nearly turned into a disaster. The trail didn’t really exist, but I was following some faint trail that seemed fine so I wasn’t really paying attention to my compass. And by the time I realized that the trail was not doing what it should I didn’t really have any idea where I was. I took off in a SE direction and just hoped I would hit the trail I wanted. It seemed like it took forever, but I finally hit the correct trail. Whew. It sounds like a lot of people had trouble in here. Grabbed 42 and made it to the TA at 10:45 a.m.

I was the first person to reach the TA that had cleared the first 3 maps, so that was a good boost. Stopped to change, eat and restock on food. I got the last 2 maps and quickly planned a route that hit all the CPs. It did not look like I would clear at this point, but I was feeling great so figured I would keep running for as long as I could and see what happened.

The S section of map 4 went smoothly. I met Rick Waldo around 165 and we were together for a few controls. After 141 the trail crossed a swamp and I didn’t see a bridge anywhere. So I waded across the swamp, thigh deep in muck that wanted to keep my shoes. And doesn’t Rick come trotting around on the trail without a drop of mud on him and tell me that there was a bridge right over there. Ha. We split ways at 179 since he was only doing the 8 h and had already gotten all of the CPs I had left on map 4. I had just cut into the woods to head to 173 when I heard the wind kick up. I looked out W across a field and could see a wall of rain/snow coming at me. :( I huddled behind a tree and put on all the warm clothes that I had with me. A minute later it started pouring and hailing/snowing. Lovely. My motivation definitely dropped at that point. I was still moving pretty well, but I was starting to run out of energy and my trot was reduced to more of a shuffle. I had some trouble with 149. The trails didn’t really make sense and I had to bash through some terrible green, but then I popped out on a trail and the CP was right there. I could barely move fast enough to keep warm so at this point I decided to head back to the finish and see if I could access my TA bag. If I could then I would bundle up and head back out, but if not I would just call it a day. I left 143 to grab at the end if I had the time/motivation. It was around 2:30 p.m. when I made it back to Camp Munhacke.

Steve and Angel were nice enough to allow me to access my bag. I stopped to warm up and then put on all the warm clothes I had (a long sleeve, 2 jackets, a buff, a hat and waterproof gloves). I headed back out to do some of map 5. There was no way I was going to clear the course at this point so my plan was to head E and see how far I got. I was moving pretty slowly by now. I could still shuffle on trails, but in the woods I was so slow. My mind was also really foggy and making any sense of the map was extremely difficult. I made it out to 164 and decided it was time to head back. I went for 162 on the return trip and had some major struggles. I was perfectly on track when I suddenly decided that I had gone too far and needed to turn around. I don’t know what I was thinking. Wandered around for a while and then decided I had indeed been heading the right way. Found the control shortly after. I had the time, so I grabbed 143 and headed to the finish.

Really happy with this race. Physically, I felt great for ~15 h. I was able to trot on trails/roads for a majority of the race. My feet held up really well, I only had 1 blister and they never hurt as bad as they did at CNYO. The cold weather at the end was tough, I’m very happy I was able to access my bag and add more layers – otherwise I probably would have been wearing my emergency blanket. The course was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed the navigation. A big thank you to Lost Arrow Sports!

C • Nice Job! 6

Event: 2018 USA Nationals - Sprint Middle Long
 

To the bridge and back.

A bit chilly. Definitely should've worn a pair of gloves.