Training Log Archive: ParkSchool

Caryl Short

An even more demoralizing run today, including a mispunch for a DQ. What makes this performance even more diaappointing is that I can't explain what went wrong or figure out how to fix it. I thought I had an intelligent plan to #2, counting on hitting the wall corner ESE of the flag, but then I couldn't navigate the last 75 m successful. Plus I couldn't figure out what I had done wrong. And when I tried to return to the stone wall, I still didn't know where I was, so I had to go all the way back to the stone wall S of the control. Next I veered totally off course on the long leg to wind up hitting the uncrossable fence NE of #17. So much for the idea of bombing S on my compass line before navigating carefully from the trail bend N of the control. At least I know what went wrong at the mispunch, where I foolishly eschewed either simple trail run to #13 to navigate through the green along the marsh/stream N of the control. I then came over a series of little spurs and I found a cliff with a flag on the SE side as expected. And to top it off, there was Katia, who had started in front of me on the same course. I was distracted enough to say hi rather than check the control code. On the way in, I lost another 8 minutes on #14 when I did just what I wanted after noting the boulder just N of the trail but still didn't find the flag. I came to the logical conclusion that I had not climbed enough, but didn't find the flag in the next higher reentrant. I went further still and recognized that I was in the marshy area NNW of the control. Even then it took some time to actually find the flag. I sure I walked right past it 3-4 minutes earlier, but was just not secure enough in my location to check the area carefully. I finished my lost weekend with poor route choices to #16 and #17, where simple trail runs would have been most effective. All in all, this was hardly the weekend I had planned, and pretty much killed any plans I had of performing well in the USOF Red standings for 2010. Just last weekend I was thinking that I could still complete on Red. Now I'm not so sure.

Event: WCOC / US Team A-Meet/WRE
 

WCOC Ansonia Middle Red-Y. After my fine result on the middle at West Point, I was really looking to make a statement. Unfortunately, the statement was, "You don't belong in the big leagues!" I only had 2 significant problems, but they were major mistakes. First I somehow contoured too much around the hill between #2 and #3 rather than descending. As a result, I wound up recrossing the main NS trail rather than the smaller trail 50 m in front of the control. And if I had considered that I was crossing a large trail, it would not have cost me much. But I didn't, and instead ran around like a crazy person checking every boulder I could see and trying to make sense of the fact that there was a rise in front of me but none on my map. Finally I consulted my compass which told me I was facing E not W. But this was not the worst of my follies. For reasons that remain unclear to me, I mistakenly navigated directly from #7 to #11. This was certainly not an ideal route choice, but it was hardly a major disaster as #8 was only 150 m away. However, I became flustered and tried to correct my mistake too hurriedly, and then I was out of contact with the map. In retrospect, I had crossed the EW marsh S or #8 and not the NS marsh just W of the control. I suppose the fact that I crossed a trail should have alerted me to my error, but sadly it didn't until another 10 minutes had been lost. All in all, I very disheartening performance.

Red Y Day 1: Middle - Splits

Caryl Short. Felt good and ran somewhat faster than expected during warm-up run for WCOC.

Event: CSU Park-O: Pine Hill
 

Caryl Short.

Pine Hill. Was expecting a lackluster performance following three straight overnights and a relatively energetic run with dogs just prior to the event. In retrospect, lackluster would have been very welcome. Got confused on trails heading to #2 resulting in a large loss of time, then struggled with route choices for the rest of the evening. The woods were very green, and a sensible person would have spent much more time on the trail network. At the end, I got to compare wounds with Ross, who also emerged quite bloody. However, that was where the comparison ended, as he finished quite impressively in under half my time.

Needham Town Forest.

Needham Town Forest.