Training Log Archive: AliC

Event: SMOC - 2013 Spring Halfmoon Lake
 

Warm up, Garmin seems to not be a happy camper... hm, will let it try to dry out...

Red course at Halfmoon Lake

We could just call this one a battle. Out of 13 controls, I'd say the score was 7-6 for me versus the course. But it wins in reality because I never found the darn 13th control, despite feeling pretty sure I'd checked all the veg boundary that could be reasonably considered to be in the circle. But the veg boundary on a clearing that's mostly grown in is maybe not so clear...

Anyways, regardless of the just lots of thick, I got totally lost for the first time this spring, which I think was all my own doing. I crossed a marsh from 3-4 going north-east instead of just straight north and so ended up on a different bit of land than I thought and for a good long time, nothing made sense... Embarrassed by how long it took me to relocate!!

Other controls the course won:
1 - Well, the control wasn't there. So I moved on.
2 - The woods didn't look so green, so cruised through them, just hesitated in the circle because a sweep up and down in the reentrant didn't reveal the control. Ah, hidden at a tree.
4- My totally and utterly lost one. Was just too eager to get across the linear marsh and didn't pay attn to direction!! Bah!
6 - I got across the marsh, but then failed to note that the control was on hill top and not reentrant in the circle, so bushwacked in some gross green in the reentrant for awhile.
10- Slightly off to the north for starters, then the marsh helped me, but took awhile to find the control in the thick.
13 - Um, yeah, didn't find it. Lew promised it was on the north side of some big pine tree. I'm pretty sure I searched all that veg boundary in the circle (some guidance on which of the two boundaries, or maybe if it was on any particular corner/edge would have been welcome...)

C • ~#13's been used before 7

Putting the first control where it should be, after confirming with Lew that it wasn't in the right place.

After some 4h of driving and a border crossing, arrived at the next training, just a bit late. Said hi to Hammer and jogged out with him to the start of a first training, something Sergei L had set before jetting off to Europe!

Whoa, different and fun terrain! Rocky Ridge map, home of the 2006 NAOC Middle. But first, this other course. Getting used to the flatness and the rock features. I did ok, but was a bit wimpy with the swamp crossings, because they were super-full.

Detoured the wrong way from 11, similar to this morning's error. More looking at direction, I guess? Or when a feature forks, really make sure you're going to the right one.

A blast! Hammer had hung out new streamers for the NAOC 2006 Middle. I knew I was tired, so I opted to just run the first 7, but to run them as well as I could. The course was really fun and having Mike shadow me really made me focus, even at the end of a pretty long training weekend.

Spiked most, hesitated at 2, because I thought it was on the cliff not the boulder. Maybe a bit hesitant to 5 on the approach and also 6, which I was almost trying to leave the area of before seeing the streamer! I also felt slightly not sure of everything coming into 7, and thus a bit worried indeed when I didn't see a streamer where I expected. I made my way to the rocky hill top just NW of the control and was trying to relocate, but everything located me to exactly where I thought I was. Turns out the streamer was just very slightly off in a nearby reentrant, phew!

Many thanks to Hammer for an awesome afternoon training!!

C • Middle 2

Yeehaw! First Adventure Race! With Barbara at the Get Your Bearings race at Bishop Lake. (Yes, where I'm planning o-courses for in 2 weeks, but no, that doesn't seem to DQ one for AR...) We came in 2nd overall by 5min and first double-female team!

But hmph because Garmin died some portion of the way into it, I guess while orienteering. Probably my fault for not fully charging plus having on 1sec recording! It also got quite wet in paddling section due to some swimming through marsh and now looks all funky. Probably should have plastic baggied it and put in bag, at least for the potentially wet sections....

So this really was a blast. We opted to 'trek' first, doing 3-2-1 along with a good troop of others (you could chose to paddle or trek first, and what order you did the controls.) Opted for the more direct marshy route, 'cause we're tough. Then paddle times. Barbara did a great job keeping straight lines and effectively dodging other boats in the narrow passage. I jumped overboard to nab a control that canoes were lined up for, which was probably a smidge quicker, but not terribly so, because I ended up blocked in by a canoe and wasn't enough dedicated to submerge myself in the totally blech gross marshy water.... In total, we were 3rd or 4th for this split (1h02, only timed to the minute).

Next biking, which we sailed through, even if a few teams were faster. The control in the pine plantation was totally my fav. Getting to bike truly off-road and off-path, woo! We cut one switch back of the bike trails, but generally that didn't seem that worth it, better to go with the flow of the one-direction singletrack. 4th fastest bike split in 0h52.

And then time to play o! Erm, treking I mean. =) I'd planned the route before hand, since you have oodles of time to do that, and Barbara and I pretty much did just as planned, cruising around. Kinda wished I had long pants on though! A 2nd fastest split on this moved us into 2nd overall, fun to come in and ring the cowbell. Love that as a finish mechanism!!

C • excellent start to your AR career :) 2

C • Halgofs Silva won the Africa ARWS qualifier 3

Morning-ter-vals! Nice cool morning, the sun did it's thing and rose... On the bike path to Wildwood and around the purple + green loops. 10 x 1 min with 1.5 min rest.

Right ankle has been flaky recently, lightly popping every few strides. On the intervals, not the easy jog. And happened yesterday after about 6k and on Tuesday after about 3k. Hope it stops, it doesn't hurt, but it's annoying. Also left knee had some sharp pain returning home on the bike path today, not sure what that's about either. Recording in case either turn into more long-term problems, don't think they are yet.

Yeehaw! Playing mountain bikes with Barbara and Michelle at Bishop Lake. Awesome times, it really is just loads of fun, I love the swoopiness. I'm not sure I would like it as much with loads of rocks a la East Coast. The roots are plenty enough to keep me occupied for the moment!

C • Murray Lake is fun 5

Meant to bring along my maps for courses at Bishop but forgot them in my doorway, boo. So just went and ran the inner hiking trail loop and headed on off!

C • Did we get the permit yet? 5

Yeehaw, finally back biking into work. It's lovely. Way better than the bumpy drive in. It's really true that the bike path is in better shape than the road....

Anyways, after work puttered down to Dave's to replace my abandoned-in-Ian's-car shoes (not a bad time to get some new shoes anyways) and pick up my team uniform. Black and pink. So stealth, y'all should watch on out. =)

Unfortunately, getting shoes took too long, so missed the group run at Fallen Timbers. I still am kinda mystified by why exactly the running club meets at a mall. Went for a run on my own and tripped upon the commemoration stuff of the actual Fallen Timbers battle. USA (4,600) versus Native Americans (1,500). USA wins, takes over all Native American occupied lands in the general Ohio area, in very much a jerk move.

Spring, spring, spring! It may very well go away again, but it's marvelous out now! A nice loop around Ottawa Park, staying as much off the paved path and on grassy softness as possible.

Last Zumba class of the term. Joanna led the first half, Maria the second half. Maria is oodles more fun to follow and just by leading the moves more dynamically, it is more of a workout. But Joanna's versions really got my arms, holy moly!

Small numbers, probably due to exam period. Speaking of which, I had my statistics exam this morning. Not too bad and glad I took the class, way more comfy with actually applying stats things now.

Upstairs in the gym for 4 miles on the bike. As a bit more token training for Saturday, to wake the bike muscles up...

Loving that it was warm and still sunny as I jogged back to the office at 8pm. Mmmm.... went home and transplanted some tomatoes, making the kitchen a mess!

A lovely spring day for... a rollerski! Nice low impact recovery activity. And so much more fun to rxc when it's not frigid out. Just a putter around, lots of people out with dogs and kidlings.

And mixed a little run in too. Except, I think I left my running shoes in Ian's car, whoopsie. So went out in the winter running shoes, which now feel heavy and too warm!

C • Ian's car 2

Hammies, 3 x 3 x 10