Training Log Archive: TomN

Event: QOC Patapsco Valley State Park, MD
 

QOC Patapsco/CCBC Catonsville Red. First time on some of this map, but we had used the western part in a meet last year. The new terrain was good, the old part was better than last year (because it was basically still winter this time).

Wow, full conditions. Pouring rain at 40 degrees F with 30 mph gusts, about as cold as you can get (paradoxically, it feels warmer when the temperature drops, and the precipitation is no longer wet). And then driving sleet during control pick-up, finally changing to wet snow.

I found that I wasn't hugely motivated for this run, but I tried to keep a steady pace and navigate well. Ted did a good job with the course, laying out some long, interesting legs. Mother Nature added some interest too. The steep hillsides were very hard to ascend and descend in the wet, even with spikes. Well, descending was fine, if you didn't mind a mud glissade with the occasional tree. The river crossings were scary and cold.

Some of the control placements were tricky. I had a few instances of standing less than 10 feet from the control, thinking it should be right here. It was, but it was hard to find. But basically I stayed in map contact, which was the goal.

And I appreciated all the rock detail, too. This is a hard skill for me, which needs work. I didn't handle the cliff control (#6 at the far west end) very well. Came down in between the rocky ridges and chose the wrong one. Something similar on #8, crossed the raging stream on a log with a death fall below, and then wasn't sure which rocky area I was in. All said, a tough course in difficult conditions.

Red - Splits

3x1000 at Einstein HS track. Goal was 4:21. Times were 4:19, 4:18, 4:21. A 400m slow jog (3:00) in between. It was drizzling the whole time, but no big puddles on the track. Not too unpleasant, though, with the temp. in the mid-50s.

Perimeter road at GSFC. Late afternoon run. It had stopped raining, and the temperature had come up. 64F, and pretty windy.

Early morning run, Barker St.-McKenney Hills. http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=6249605. 20 degrees and sunny, but no wind (yet). Not going to warm up much until late afternoon.

Easy run Drumm loop. Back to winter again. An inch of snow on the ground, temp. 27F, gusty wind blowing snow all around.

Situps, 3x20. Snow started at around 8 a.m., but I had already planned on a rest day, so no running this morning.

GSFC perimeter road. Cold today (33F), but sunny, and the best weather we're likely to have in the next couple of days. Legs are feeling good -- a big improvement -- and the only thing holding down the speed was the requirement to maintain a certain blood sugar level. Man, was I hungry afterwards. Lots of running in the past week.

Tempo-threshold workout at Einstein HS track. 12 laps, target pace 1:53 per lap. First lap was 1:55, next 7 were 1:52, a couple at 1:49, then the last two at 1:53. So, 4800m in 22:32 (1:52.6). Approx 10 min run to and from the track.

Training run at Black Hill Regional Park. Greg and Kathleen set out streamers yesterday, on a map used for the "orienteering" part of an adventure race last week. Apparently the features on which the controls were supposed to be located were a bit vague, but I didn't see any problems with the ones they chose to mark.

I overran the third control, crossing the river unnecessarily (twice). Other than that, a fast run in very fine woods. The course design was pretty good. The 5 of us finished at almost the same time, and went for lunch at Cafe Rio.

Warm and sunny today, but it's going to get cold again for the next few days. And maybe snow.

Early run in the 'hood. Well, early for me -- the sun was well up already, no use waking up in the dark.

I used to have an outdoor thermometer with an indoor readout, but the battery died and I never got it to connect again, and anyway, I can get the temperature online -- formerly from my computer and now from my phone. So this morning my phone said it was 37F, and my computer said it was 47F. Whoa, that's a big difference! The phone was Google, which I think gets it from weather.com, and the computer was the National Weather Service. I went with the NWS, but it was clearly wrong. Cold ears and cold fingers. It was in the 30s. I would have put more things on if I had believed it.

Road run at GSFC. Sunnny, mid-50s, with a strong breeze from the west that made my strides feel like long jumps (but only in one direction).

Early run in the neighborhood. Taking Mei-An to the airport (back to school) later in the morning, then it's supposed to be drizzly and not a lot warmer.

Ugh. I didn't think I'd be using that activity designator again this year. Looks like about 12" of new snow, but the ground was so warm that the bottom third of it turned to an icy slush, so it was hard to shovel away.

QOC Turkey Run Red. Nice event in the middle area of the park (geographically and terrain-wise). Distinctly cooler than yesterday, increasing clouds during the day, and snowing at home by 5 p.m.

I had a good run, happy with my route choices and execution. In the lead on Red until #8, which was the low point for me. On this control, my intended route may not have been the best, and the execution was horrible. I intended to hit the road at the northern apex of the curve and then scoot over the ridge to the control. Instead I got into the river area well to the west of where I was supposed to be, and it was too complex to know exactly where I was, so I had to go the river-road crossing and relocate from there. Around 5 min lost, and that was the race. Well, at least I beat peggyd. ;-) ;-) And Greg Lennon too.

C • NICE RUN 2

Red - Splits

Speed work at Einstein HS track. 6x400 with 300m jog between. Target was 1:44. Actuals were 1:39, 1:42, 1:42, 1:42, 1:40, 1:43. A one-mile jog there, and a mile back.

It's about a year since I injured my glute doing the same thing -- first speed work of the season -- and it hasn't fully recovered. The tear is healed, but it left some neurological symptoms behind. Coincidentally, there was an orienteering event at Turkey Run the next day after that run, too.

GSFC perimeter road. It was still 37F at noon, and I didn't bring clothes for that temperature, but by 4 p.m it was almost 60, so off I went. The dirt road wasn't muddy at all.

Forest Glen-Ga. Ave loop.

GSFC run on paved roads. I saw someone coming up the perimeter road, but I was thinking it would be muddy, or at least wet.

QOC Little Bennett Red. I had high hopes for this run, but it was not to be. I was stupid and slow. Well, I've always been stupid, but at least I used to be fast. The whole second half of the course, which was very enjoyable (full disclosure: I provided some consultation on the courses) I felt like I was running through water.

So I overran #5, the little cliff on the side of the ridge. I'm not sure how I could have planned it any better. Over the ridge, then approach the control along a contour. But I was a little low, and went right by it. Then #6, I took the trail around and was waiting for the junction just before the stream crossing, but I zoned out on the run, woke up, hadn't seen the junction, was afraid I'd missed it, couldn't figure out where I was, waffled back and forth, finally pushed on and there was the junction about 50 meters in front of me. At least 5 min lost there.

Oh, and I pulled off a Little Bennett tick last night.

Red - Splits

E-Z run around the neighborhood.

Just back from 2 weeks in Europe, a week at Univ. of Göttingen and a week at Univ. of Versailles. I didn't take running stuff, and there wasn't much time for it anyway, but the weather was great. No snow all winter at either place, and signs of spring are evident.