Training Log Archive: Leon

No drinking last night so a solid effort this morning, out to the TV tower, decent loop, no one about either. Still wet though

Double day meant going out again once I got back home, which I did, pushed a little as feeling good and was hungry

Round the park in Riga
Feeling better, but very wet

Very, very hungover in Riga
Got a bit lost
Couldn't run very fast
But felt far better by the end than in the beginning

Easy week - Knavesmire loop. Nice weather

Harrogate West Street O - 28/30 lamposts (1 wrong)

Could have easily cleared if going hard but took it easy
Wet by the end
Thought I had got more than 1 wrong actually
Good fun

Easy week - 6miles down to Shipley station before a rare Tues night at the football

Easy week - Rothwell group run, didn't feel too bad at all so in the end had to ease off to avoid going quicker than intended

Race the Castles Stirling – 3rd, 58.21
Now we are talking – this was a fanastic event, simply brilliant. Anyone who wasn’t there missed out.
Made some mistakes but in a race like this there were going to be some at one point or another.
Running round the castle was ace – made the obvious mistake to #3 many others did, and was baulked on the wall itself so slow to correct. Completely baffled when #7 didn’t appear where I thought it would be. Stood and stared at the map for a good 30s to work it out, at least didn’t run off in a mad direction like some other occasions recently. So lost about 1m50 by this point.

Didn’t fancy climbing and dropping 10-11 so went east, also wanted to simplify to plan ahead, but splits show this cost me about 20s

Wanted to stop and take in the view at both 12 and 13

Lost time to 14 as had route planned in advance and was planning other controls, missed steps after rail bridge and then almost went one road too many to the east when hit road junction but thankfully realised just in time.

Then good up to 22, went back towards station for long leg to 21 as east looked simply too far out of the way – be interesting to see times of anyone who went that way

Lost time to 23, planned to go past fountain and in from north but traffic and road junction confusion and fences in way meant I should have just gone through canopy to south, couldn’t really see why one road and one set of fences were OOB but those running roughly N-S weren’t, possibly should have been a manned crossing here?

Either I was slow, or there was a better route to 25 than my route straight down the main road, we shall see. Was going to go east from 26 to 27 but had a last minute change of plan and went to N corner of field and up paths that way – this seems to have been a great choice, my only issue then was approaching 27 I couldn’t tell where the uncrossable crag finished and the crossable one started so went further than I think was necessary to E of control.

Almost got drawn SE out of 28 but corrected to higher road, legs feeling good at this point.

Started to go NW out of 29 direct to 30 but soon realised uncrossable wall at end and thankfully minimised loss. #31 was a bit odd and confusing with high fences at either end of path. Had to stop and check at both ends.

Pleased with last few tight legs, ran well and no issues, ended the weekend on a high note.

It’s races like this that really show how good urban can be, huge thanks to all who put the race on. Can’t wait to go back to Stirling…

Doing the yellow with Charlotte and a bit more, see above note

Event: Race the Castles
 

Race the Castles Edinburgh - 5th

A lot better than yesterday, thankfully
Though I could have lost the plot after #2 which I lost about a minute on due to poor mapping.
Turned right off road, and south onto the ginnel leading to #2 with note in my head to take first left.
Which I did, into a small courtyard with a garden, no sign of control.
Look at map and really couldn't figure it out, I had reached end of building and gone left what could be the problem? Came back out and saw road, coming in from west which made me think I was in right place, although tree in courtyard gave me the shocking thought I might be in mapped garden/courtyard further east but surely not. Eventually found control where it actually was but locating using road in from west, almost went right round on road to do so.
Post race analysis shows that control circle covers gap in between buildings I went through so impossible to see this for what it actually was, very frustrating. Some other people lost time on this - same reason??

Next 4 were good, pleased with 3-4, then made terrible error 6-7 not clocking the 2 level nature of the marked passage, despite having walked round here many times, and almost got to bridge before having to back track - fool!

After that, very solid, though long leg #15-16 despite going west and getting second fastest have nagging feeling east would have been quicker

Rest of race decent, slightly disappointed in how tired I felt after half an hour

Made tired mistake at end to #27 going wrong side of wall and having to loop to south but these things happen

Do like a long run in!

Nice chat with Mark at the end where we agreed that in the region of #20-#25 had the feeling of being tacked on to make up the distance, something a fair few MOpen course are suffering from

That said, fantastic event and thoroughly enjoyable thanks to all for their efforts

Race the Castles Sprint - 63rd, 24:06

Possibly my worse race ever, or at least for a few years and that includes terrain orienteering

Messed up #3, as I suspect a lot of people did
Might sound like sour grapes but map v difficult to interpret, mainly thanks to the dashed lines, which had very little, if any impact on my course and so I think should have been omitted.
Why I decided to run to the next bridge east before realising I had to go round to the north I don't know.
Then went west from 5 trying to get to 6 without realising I was 1 round south
Then followed someone into wrong courtyard to 7, and followed the same person off the map to 9 over the tram tracks, lazy and silly errors.

10-17 went well, except for being heavily distracted by the person about 50 yds behind shouting a lot to his mate on the way to 14, thought he was shouting I'd run out of bounds or something

Realise now should have gone to steps to NE of 17 on way to 18 but had seen ramp to W of 19 on way to 3 and so went that way
Only hadn't seen wall half way down which is maked uncrossable (the horizontal 'Y')
Now in reality the ramp disappears under the building next to 19 and you can do a 180 and continue on the ramp northwards to 18
However this is not mapped so I assumed, honestly? naively? that this was OOB, esp given marshall at top of ramp
So went round to east in the end, but saw people running up and down the partially unmapped ramp so came out that way
It isn't mapped correctly should have some dotted lines maybe in an inverse c shape going right from the vertical thick black line.
But my own fault for a poor route choice
Then stupidly dropped a level to 20 very wrong, and went down the wrong steps at 21

All in all, a shambles
Luckily this was the warm up!
Must do much better tomorrow, at least this has given my the motivation to do so, however must be careful not to run like a headless chicken...