Training Log Archive: iansmith

US Team Trials long course. I again had one of the last starts - at 11:18; the Zhyk finished before I set off for the start and advised me to be careful with my compass and pace myself. After my disastrous sprint and solid Boris'd Middle, I was sitting essentially tied for 7th with Brendan, Giacomo, and Ken at 190 pts, with Eric leading at 201 and Boris, Zhyk, Ethan, Eddie, and Schirm spaced out above us. Ross would be in by petition, so I knew that I needed to annihilate this course to have a shot at the team - but I did have a shot.

I did my best to relax; I read a book, warmed up my brain with the 2008 Chasing the Star Long, and took 2x benadryl, 2x cetirizine for allergies and 200 mg of caffeine beverage to compensate for the benadryl. I nursed a shot blocks packet before setting off for the start with 20 minutes to go. I only jogged the route to the start to save my stamina, and I took a Gu at call up.

My mantra for the day was to fight for every second. I felt fairly strong - good legs, adequate sleep, and only moderate allergy weirdness. I paid no attention to the results and didn't care who was starting around me. I tried to focus on only the course. I started fairly well, with good execution and intelligent routes. Unfortunately, I then proceeded to mess up 8, 9, 10, and 12 to varying degrees for a total of 10-11 minutes of error. I was terribly frustrated (especially at 9), but I continued trying to fight - ignoring the inevitable math about placings, and even trying to ignore my watch. I ran 13 to the end well, but didn't execute the last controls well, including 30s on 21 (hello pavilion under the line). Physically, I felt strong (enough) to the end.

Today was a much better effort and navigation compared to my Billygoat, but it turned out to be just over 6 minutes too slow and messy. I ran alone the entire race; I briefly saw Jeremy Colgan at 1 and Zac Barker before 6. I'm satisfied with the effort, though the mistakes at 10 and 12 were just stupid. Obviously the result is thoroughly disappointing.

1: from the bend in the trail, up the reentrant, past the ponds, contour
2: west to the trail, from the trail bend
3: Straight on the line. A little bit to the right.
4: Intended to cross the dam and attack from the big trail to the left; I should have immediately run up to the trail from 3, and I stupidly went down the first peninsula. Lost 1:20.
5: Over the wide spur, to the hills, marsh, up the reentrant, through the saddle, skirted over the NE reentrant, into the control.
6: Past the pond/above the reentrant, down the spur, kept the knoll to my right, hit the edge of the big cliff, checked big spur to my left, and in. 15s hesitation searching for the right boulders in the circle.
7: Used the line of cliffs as a handrail, hit the hill before the stream, attacked from the pond N of the control.
8: Ugh; intended to go right of the line. I hit the right edge of the second line of cliffs, but I ran too far left on the traverse into the control and had to bounce off the stream. Checked off cliffs as I went, but uncertain. 1:30.
9: I briefly considered the trail, but decided to go straight. I meant to go along the ponds, but I went too low and had to climb up the cliffs through the reentrant. Checked off two small reentrants and tried to contour, but I hit the stream too high. I wasn't certain I was too high, but started descending (it seemed steep) and came down into the control. 4:00.
10: Both frustrated and exuberant to have found 9, I blasted down and checked off the marsh and hills. I hit the southern edge of the big marsh, then missed the control entirely being stupid and bounced off the big trail very, very far from 10. 3:00. Really, really pissed.
11: Decided to go left; I swam through the saplings on the line to the trail, then skirted around the hill to attack from the clearing south of 11. I hit the trail hard and tried to make up some time on a very safe route. Slowed on my approach to the circle for a spike.
12: Meant to go up the stream reentrant, but abandoned my clean compass line when the contours stopped making sense. I was too far left anyway; I realized I was too high when I topped the ridge and it immediately descended to the marsh. 2:30.
13: The only sensible route to me; I descended into the bowl, traversed right, then flew down the trail. Considered attacking before the cliff line, but decided to go all the way to the stream north of 13. Slogged through the marsh, and clean into the control. Saw Clem as I was leaving.
14: Took a Gu at 13, and felt stomach freaking out for about a minute. Picked off the marsh, missed about 30m to the left in the circle. 10s.
15: Wonderful running, delightfully simple map. I was careful on my compass and fought the urge to stay high. Clean, though not the straightest route.
16: Trail, power line/stone wall. A bit surprised to see my pit control so high.
17: Around on the trail, probably not worth it.
18: Straight, though missed a little right and had to slog through the marsh to get to the control. Spotted it from about 50m.
19: Straight, flagging after the marsh's energysuck.
20: Straight, missed a bit right after going over the hill and passing the boulder.
21: Saw the pavilion, but thought it was the pavilion about 100m to the north. Obviously brain was tired, as I definitely didn't miss by that much. Saw the trail and was confused for about 30s before angrily figuring out my error.
22: Heard a massive crowd of enthusiastic cheerers and tried to bring it home.

C • Antihistamines 6

And a bit crushed to see the results. I didn't know what the final ordering would be, but I knew that finishing 12th meant I wasn't on the team.

Long Blue - Splits

Jog to the start with a few fast spurts.

US Team Trials Middle, Moreau State Park. At this point in the trials, it was make or break time for me. I had been on Moreau over Memorial Day last year, and I knew that it was tricky, technical terrain. Chatting with ebone, he suggested that compass would be critically important in low visibility, possibly foggy woods. I focused on having and executing solid plans and clean entrances and exits from my controls.

I don't remember the first five controls terribly well, but I was careful and patient. It rained throughout the day, and it was often hard to discern the marshes.

1: I checked off the marshes, but I think the last marsh seemed to fill the reentrant, and I missed a little left. I stopped where I expected the control, then figured out the rise to my right and hit the control for about a 10-15s loss.
2: I aimed on the line, used the marshes to my left, and stumbled through the marshes in the circle; hesitant, 10s.
3: Used the line of cliffs as a handrail, popped over the hill N of 3, then overran the cliff before circling back, probably 10s.
4: Simplified to marsh, left side of big hill, slid down the cliff (unintended), crossed the marsh, and picked off the last two marshes. Hesitant and slow after the last big marsh, with lots of compass and trying to read the other marshes.
5: Over the hill, along the line of cliffs, but my attack was poor. As I spotted the control, Boris (2 minutes back) caught up to me.

When I ran into Boris, my strategy changed - he was running much more aggressively, which prompted me out of my cautious strategy. The control locations also became much less tricky. I reasoned that Boris could easily lose me, so I kept orienteering and stayed in constant, though I ran much closer to the edge of control. Boris was almost always a useful attackpoint.

6: Mostly struggling to keep up; past the marsh, over the ridge, spotted the nose.
7: Boris and I took different lines; I followed him left of the line, then stayed lower after the path crossing. I checked off the nose, reentrant, boulder, bif cliff to my left, and in.
8: Boris and I again diverged, and I lost sight of him entirely. I took straight/right, through the reentrant, past the cliff, marsh, cliff, wide ridge, marsh, line of cliffs, and up. Lots of compass. Boris came streaking in from the left and beat me to the flag.
9: Chasing Boris, compass, straight. Nose, marsh, around the hill.
10: Aimed to keep the hill on my right, chasing Boris, down into the flag.
11: Straight; almost visible from 10.
12: A very tricky control, though easier with Boris in front of me. Passed the spurs, but I probably would have messed up the attack over the line of cliffs with the sketchy information I had. I think I checked off the cliffy nose just right of the line and the two hills?
13: Took a different route than Boris; I liked the line of marshes left of the line, so I immediately crossed the marsh, popped down to the stream, then rode them to the cliffs N of 13. Boris was to my right, and popped in and out of sight. I went up in the circle to try to pop down into the notch, but 13 came sooner than expected and I lost about 10s.
14: I thought Boris was running too low into the reentrant, but I was wrong. Used the cliff left of line to guide into the control.
15: A nice leg; I had planned to run left of marsh, right of cliffy knoll, and up the spur into the control. Boris, maybe 30m ahead, ran right of the first marsh, so I followed him. The final spur seemed very protracted, but as Boris obviously hadn't punched, I was a bit more confident.
16: Down, up, down, up. Compass, expected the control on the right hill, but it was nestled in the left one. Had to slow to figure out the circle details.
17: Decided en route to 16 to cross the marsh; hopped to the island, then twice across the marsh. Sluggish charging up the hill after the marsh's energysuck, but control was right where I expected. Boris put some distance.
18: No sign of Boris; up, marsh + boulder, up, down. Saw the control from the top of the hill.
19: And in.

I obviously had the best start time, and Boris catching me was a huge benefit. I finished third US and won an individual medal that I don't feel I really deserve. I think I had good command of the woods, but I would definitely have finished a few minutes slower without Boris to drive me on. Luck of the draw, I guess. I did handle running into Boris well, and I definitely was orienteering the entire time. I think that if I had ignored my map, I could have chased Boris down; his maximum speed was curtailed by his need to navigate. It was great seeing how he orienteers, because it was blazingly fast in this terrain.

Middle Blue - Splits

Event: 2013 U.S. Individual Championships/Team Trials
 

Warm up + map.

US Team Trials sprint, Camp Wakpominee, New York.

I was very excited about the trials after my twelve hour trip to Charlotte to attend Andrés' wedding rehearsal dinner and a decent night of sleep. Giacomo and I left Boston at about 9:30, and arrived at the event site with a comfortable hour and a half before our starts. I walked around the permissible areas and scoped out what I could about the terrain. I warmed up for twenty minutes, took a Gu, and read a few 1:5k forest maps, trying to warm up my brain. I had one of the last starts at 3:48, and the day was warm and humid.

The controls were basically where I anticipated them. I had very little zip in my running; I felt sluggish. I can't explain the cause - allergies were a problem for me the entire weekend, so perhaps my breathing was impaired? I stayed on top of my navigation, read my codes well in advance, but I couldn't make up for my slowness. My only mistake of note was a poor line into 14; I had to slow fighting through the green. Today was an incredibly disappointing way to start the trials.

Sprint Blue - Splits

I strongly dislike getting the aglets of my shoelaces caught in the wheels of rolly chairs.

The soundtrack for the next Superman movie shows considerable promise; consider the first track.