Discussion: Snow cover

How's the snow cover in the forest - I presume you got some in the past few days?

And is it staying cold enough to keep it soft, or is it likely to get pretty crusty by race weekend?

It's really hard to say. We've got some hard freezes scheduled, but also a bit of time above freezing, and even some rain. The snow I've seen is about 4 inches deep with areas of 5. It's dry, powdery, and slick over a super-saturated extra-mushy ground layer. The best case is a hard freeze crust with thawing top and casual frozen water (i.e. favoring studs), and the worst case is heavy wet snow over a very wet ground (i.e., favoring enormous cleats).

There will be snow cover. Although we got several inches, we had really warm weather for several days before so the ground underneath is still pretty warm and the snow is melting from underneath. We're looking at days getting just above freezing and nights well below. So how much melt we get is going to depend a lot on how much sunshine and how long and far it gets above freezing.

It is definitely deep enough to get wet shoes and socks, but not enough to slow you down a lot. The steeper areas in Hueston Woods and Friedlander will be physically tough.

This could favor a late start time.

It can work either way. You can get tracks and trampled snow, which could help, on the other hand the increasing slipperiness and muddyness can slow you down. A trail that is an easy run when you're the first person, can sometimes become treacherous and slick after many runners have passed. So it will be interesting to see if starting early or late confers any apparent advantage.

Current conditions: Still close to 100% snow cover, although roads are clear and in good condition. There was melting on Wednesday with above freezing temperatures, and the snow layer is pretty thin in most places. A bit crusty base, powdery surface. Not terribly hard to run through. Temperatures will stay well below freezing today but should get slightly above freezing for a few hours during the day on Friday.

The forecast: Oxford (night championships) is expected to get some additional snow Friday night, continuing into Saturday. Loveland (relay championships) is supposed to stay closer to freezing and have snow changing to rain, a rain-snow mix, or rain going through the day on Saturday.

Precipitation should end late on the day Saturday. Sunday will be very cold, with temperatures well below freezing at the start, and unlikely to get above freezing during the day.

One travel note. Students at Miami University are finishing exams this week. There could be a lot of traffic leaving Oxford on Friday. This probably won't be a significant issue for orienteers coming in to the area.

For the kids. Hueston Woods has a fantastic sledding hill. Open until 11pm. Armco Park (Sunday) also has a decent sledding area. Armco closes at dusk.

I wonder if the full-body sled-ability of a hillside will factor into any route choices this weekend...