Orienteering - race 1:18:00 [3] 8.0 mi (9:45 / mi)
Northern champs
Body and spirit broken, and that was before I even started. Lesson - know when not to bother running.
And the long version. Head off from the start, exhausted already. Down a ride, which is v deep in mud and veg and stuff. Pass number 4 which is ok, then blunder in a number 1 direction not really caring. Stuff it up predictably. Then stop short on 2. I am so pants. 3 and 4 was ok, then take a roundabout track route to 5 as the forest is so shit (v steep, v muddy).
6, 7 and 8 pass in a tired blur. 9 was an ok route but fluffed the end by a fair bit, and I was feeling quite shit. Bex's dad burned me off on a track easily. By 10 i had Kirstin which was nice as it kept me going (note: but looking at the splits I slowed once I was with her. I need to learn not to sit back and relax). No real misses on the rest, but so so tired. I need to work out when I can and when I can't run when I am ill. Today I couldn't.
I think I have been to this forest before and didn't like it then.
2nd. Hev beat me. Quite a few retirals. I'm not surprised. It was so muddy.
Recovered with pie and mash in the Whitby pie and mash cafe after. Felt much better.
Trail running 25:00 [3] 2.0 mi (12:30 / mi)
Got up early, drove to Scarborough, had a mooch. The rest of the family really wanted to stop at a cafe. We are tight for time for the orienteering already, but I don't want to be a spoil sport. I try not to stress. We get to an industrial estate at 11:05 to get bussed to the event. My start is 11:59. The car parking people thought no one else was coming so there were no buses. One of the car parking guys was going to drive, but then he didn't want to take the kids without car seats. Lots of faffing, and we eventually drove the bus route in our van, following him in his car. Get to the bus drop off, absolutely nowhere to park. Tit around for a bit. Marshalls not coming up with any solutions. In the end I have to head off, leaving Ray and the kids doing god knows what but the kids missing their runs for sure. Peg it 2k to assembly with my bag. My calf hurts from the first step, and I have been burning up with fever all morning (you were burning up yesterday and did ok so you'll probate be ok Ray told me). Get to assembly, drop the bag, then sprint the 800m to the start. Get there with 1 min spare, so head to find a bush, missing the first minute of the -4. Someone gives me a bib, I pin it on, then do my laces, then do my hair, get descriptions - oh shit it is 8k and 450m - 10 secs to take a deep breath and try to get some composure, then go.