Training Log Archive: davelevine

Event: QOC Great Falls MD
 

Great Falls MD - Long
22 controls; 9.4 km; 350 m

Actual Distance Traveled: 13 km
Actual Climb: 398 m

I did not finish the course. I ran out of time and had to head back before I found all the controls. I found the first 16 controls and was looking for 17 when I decided to head back. Considering the length of this course and the time allotted to finish the course I knew that I needed to have a good day in order to complete it. I probably should have arrived and started earlier.

There are sections of this map that I had problems with today, and have had problems with in the past. I'm not sure if it is me or the map. One thing that I feel confident saying is that the terrain is repetitive. Not all the subtleties of the terrain are mapped but I'm not sure if they should be considering the scale of the map.

I overshot on a few controls but the one that gave me the most trouble was 15/139. It took me over 46 minutes to find it. I walked right past it once before I found it. For the most part I wasn't way off when I was searching for it but I was far enough off that I wouldn't have spotted it, I finally found it when I tried heading north from a re-entrant that was due south of the control. I was just trying another approach. I wasn't sure that the re-entrant I started from was the one on the map but considering that I found the control I think it must have been. The straight line distance from 14 to 15 is 310 meters. I traveled 2.1 km before I found 15/139, or 7 times the optimal distance.

In retrospect I think my approach to searching for 17 was flawed. I should have made my way to 2 and then headed due east. I didn't have any trouble finding 2, which was very close to 17. Instead I tried heading straight for 17 and would up in an area to the east of 17 and unsure of exactly where I was. When I looked at the map when leaving 16 I had a feeling that 17 wouldn't be an easy control to find. If I had taken another 30 seconds I might have noticed how close 2 and 17 were to one another.

The weather was nice: cool and crisp, a little breezy but not too cold.

Advanced-Long - Splits

STEAL 5:00

I spent a little longer than usual checking out a bike this morning than I usually do. The first two bikes I tried to check out wouldn't unlock. The third one looked good. I adjusted the seat, unlocked it, and then noticed that it was missing the foam pad on one of the handlebars. The fourth bike didn't give me any problems but I was so consumed with making sure that the bike was okay that I forgot to put my helmet on. I realized I wasn't wearing it about 10 seconds into my ride. I pulled over on to the sidewalk and donned my bicycle helmet. The rest of the ride from Takoma Park to Columbia Heights was relatively uneventful.

AWE 0:57
MAMA 2:02

STEAL 4:40

MAMA 2:05

Stopped in DTSS on the way home to have a bite to eat and play some cribbage. I won more games than I usually do and had two 24 point hands.

C • Two 24 point hands 2

STEAL 4:30

AWE 1:00
MAMA 2:05

STEAL 4:50

AWE 0:50
MAMA 2:00

Very choppy ride. Lots of stop and go. I stopped at 6 red lights. Last night I only hit 1 red light.

STEAL 4:35

AWE 0:55
MAMA 1:55