Training Log Archive: Nadim

From Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD to C St. SE, Washington, D.C. With Max on the bus this morning (after our long ride back home last night), I rode straight to work. I was feeling like taking a nice easy ride after the racing yesterday but I got moving fast early when a guy probably 10 years older than me went past. I caught him again but with some traffic I got behind and lost contact. At River Rd. a younger guy passed and pushed ahead quickly. I cruised behind him, catching others as we went including the older man. A train of 4-5 of us were tearing along at 23 and 24mph down the grade. Our group wasn't very organized and when the younger leader tired, we all passed and he lost contact on the flats. I dropped pace to bring him up but he seemed spent. I moved up, and made some gains on the others but then got passed by the original leader. It was a crazy ride with everyone breaking in different directions at Georgetown. There was foot, bicycle, and auto traffic in DC which made the ride less enjoyable while crossing the Mall.

From C St. SE, Washington, D.C. (via the Mall) to Northfield Rd, Bethesda, MD. I once again got mixed-up with other faster riders. Converging at the Lincoln Memorial, I got with one guy to Georgetown, got ahead of him in the traffic, then tailed him and another 2 guys out of Georgetown doing +20mph on the flats. With a shift in riders and an accelerating pace, I let 2 go and one dropped off behind me. Eventually as one of the 2 slowed, I caught and passed him but I got to moving more slowly the last 4 miles. The recent running and riding kept me less than energetic. I got home at dusk but it would have been dark had I had to pickup Max's trail-a-bike.

Moreau Lake State Park, NY. Walk/jog to the start of the US Classic Orienteering Championships. It was rather steep getting to the top. In the DC/MD/VA area, terraing like this escarpment would have been switch-backed all the way. I rushed a bit to make sure that I'd not be rushed at the start like the day before.

US Classic Championships at Moreau Lake State Park, NY. More later...

Day 2 Red X - Splits

Event: US Two-day Classic O Championships
 

Moreau Lake State Park. From Spier Falls Rd. to the start of the US Classic Championships. I had just missed the earlier bus and with a bit of a wait for the next, then an additional 10 minutes in the parking lot waiting for others, I got off the bus with not much time and 160m of climbing ahead. I started off jogging and walking wherever it was steep with Cristina Louis. I was sweating by the time I got to the start area and was the second person on the bus to reach there, behind Ross Smith who had also been late.

2010 US Classic Championships at Moreau Lake State Park, NY. EMPO received lots of praise for this meet and I concurr that it went well. Had my navigation matched, the weekend would have been about perfect. I was a bit rushed getting to the start. The interval for bus ride to the start was long. I just missed the one before and once I got on the bus, it waited 10 minutes. I had missed my start by about a minute but had kindly been allowed to start a few minutes later. I took off down the trail trying to get a feel for the map but I didn't really navigate until I crossed the second stream. Going high, I let myself get pushed lower by rocks instead of following a bearing over them. I mistook a large marsh for a small one near the control, then took a while relocating. I was worried about it going to be a long day for me when I looked at the next long leg but my leg to #2 was good. I kept a general bearing north of the direct route. I was alone until others started converging from all directions. I ignored Samantha Seager who probably was going to another control. When one reentrant that had potential turned out to be the wrong one, I kept going and felt some confidence. It helped that another guy was headed the say direction ahead of me.

I had a slight bobble on #4 but the next several legs were good. I started #9 well but coming off a large marsh, I had gotten further east than expected. I missed attacking to the north and then turned east again. I partly relocated on a trail but wasn't sure where on the trail I was. I attacked anyway and missed. I finally went back to the marsh, attacked and spiked it. Just before I got there, I saw Daniel Shaublin punching. He'd gotten there from west of me. I chased and passed him on the way to #10. I paused at a clearing with a trail, wondering where the yellow was on the map. The control was just past this point. Tearing-off south of the straight line to #11, I got careless. I crossed the creek but got confused after rounding the ridge on the other side. I saw a control in a reentrant to my left and was sure it wasn't mine. Several other people were punching it. I went on and Daniel caught-up, also confused but only for a second. He convinced me that we needed to descend; we did so but it was down a dangerous rock slope. At the bottom, Daniel took off in the reentrant. After passing some cliffs on the left, it seemed I was too low, despite Daniel being lower. I circled back, read the map better and got into the reentrant near the control. After punching #11, I saw Daniel on the way to #12 and though he didn't need it, I thumbed backward.

I was doing well going to #12 but approaching Kris Beecroft on a steep ridge, I slipped on a wet stick and slide down 10ft. She heard me but had to keep watch herself with hurting knees. I approache #12 at the right height in the small reentrant north of the control but eneded up passing it slightly. I was better getting to #13, basically running on the trail, then cutting west to follow a line of cliffs in. I split the fields to spike #14. Headed to #15, I initially used the traiul but found myself bouncing off the out of bounds road before dropping in one reentrant to the north. I descended the rocky slope to the trail and used it to get to the GO control. Patti Mace was ahead. I fumbled the punchiing at the finish and might have been able to save a second at the very end.

Day 1 Red X - Splits

Event: US Team Sprint Series Final
 

Warmup around the parking lot for the Sprint Series Championships at Spa State Park. NY.

Sprint 1 of the Sprint Series Championships at Spa State Park. NY. I didn't have much invested in this race nor did I put much focus on this race. I just went into it as a chance to run faster on a course. Out of the start, I was okay but missed a turn soon after. I had trouble matching up the trail and experienced it several times in the course. It didn't help that some controls had not been placed to matchup well with the way they were mapped. Vegetation mapping was also perplexing me though I tried not to use it much in deciding where to run. I thought that for a championship, the map could have been better but I wasn't worried about placing myself. I had only signed up for one of the two sprints. There were a few steep hills on the course and I had to walk up parts of both. I felt like I was unable to run fast on flatter grounds. My navigation errors were at #1, #4, and slightly on #5.

Travel day.

From Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD to Arlington Rd. with Max on his trail-a-bike, then to C St. SE, Washington, D.C. It was 54 F and there was a headwind from the east. I was feeling tired and was riding slower. At Dalecarlia where I crested a small rise and slowed more, a posse passed me. I jumped-on behind and flew along for a while before taking a turn pulling on the flats. Traffic broke us up a bit. I crossed the Mall again to get to work.

From C St. SE, Washington, D.C. (via the Mall) to Arlington Rd., Bethesda, MD, to pickup Max's trail-a-bike, then to Northfield Rd. I made a mental effort to try and not push too much. Even so, I felt tired along the way. Like yesterday, I got back just at dusk.

From Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD to Arlington Rd. with Max on his trail-a-bike, then to C St. SE, Washington, D.C. It was in the low 60s F. Max got us off to a quick start by pedaling vigorously much of the way. I cruised steadily increasing pace down to Georgetown. Though I was doing 20mph on the flats, I got passed just before the Glover Archbold intersection. I could see that the Ohio Dr. underpasses near the Lincoln Memorial are nearing completion. They looked smooth from above, unlike the patchy asphalt and broken concrete that was there before. The construction still causes me to detour up the Mall but with that being shorter, I don't mind.

From C St. SE, Washington, D.C. (via the Mall) to Arlington Rd., Bethesda, MD, to pickup Max's trail-a-bike, then to Northfield Rd. I felt weaker than I did last Friday. When one guy passed me after leaving Georgetown, I stayed with him for a while but rode my own often slowish pace afterward. It still was really nice out. I left just before 6pm when I would have gotten locked into the courtyard where I leave my bicycle, and made it home at dusk.