Training Log Archive: ccsteve

Event: NYS's Empire State Games SKi-Orienteering
 

Placed 6th in the ESG Male Masters classification. Felt good, but too many excellent XC skiers.

Started reasonably well, but on the way around the Russian hill, I thought I might have been one trail over and took a quick jaunt (ski-less) through the trees where another person had cut over - the fence I saw wasn't at a trail, but something else - it was complete forest. I backed out. Probably one minute in and back.

Looking now, I see a one way arrow over the map about there partially covering a jog in the trail - another reason it seemed wrong was that my trial was headed back west and I knew the trail in general headed NE - that seemed odd. It was a minor jog, and the map does show that (again - partially obscured).

Control 2 was at the top of Russian, off trail. (Course setter said there were snowshoe tracks, but only 1 was really tracked...) I took my skis off and climbed on foot - of all the legs, I think I lost much less on this one;-) Tactically, it was the right thing to do, and the last 80 meters required it...

Came off Russian and followed the Women's 5k course around and finally down to control 3, and caught up to the competitor that left 4 minutes ahead of me. I bobbled heading into 3 at an early knoll vs the hill, and he pulled back ahead though. (I tucked down the hill and gained on him as he was pretty much standing up straight - the corners are technically tricky;-)

Control 4 took us back through the start and up past the biathlon area, and I caught him again in a section with parallel tracks separated by trees - I didn't see him again after that... I had stopped before the last descent coming off the women's 5k and planned out past the bridge and tunnel crossing, so I expect he stopped in there to read the map.

While reading the map and deciding on a course to 4 a woman (apparently woman's open - also red) caught up and took the direction I decided on. She was in front for a bit, but hesitated where we needed to bush whack again in to the control, and I passed her and as before, never saw her again.

5 was up in the Cascade section and involved skiing around the mountain and then screaming down into a tricky bridge crossing - I enjoyed the heck out of that and let out a whoop as I went, easily making the bridge and startling a couple of women on the other side.

I pressed on and found the right snowshoe trail and ran up it. Apparently there was an incorrect (and unmapped) trail that I didn't take that tripped up some others here. I continued running to the end of the snowshoe trail and back out to tthe thinner trails of Cascade. I skied right through the heart of Cascade and back out a trail we skied the other direction on last year - and it cost me last year, no loss this year.

6 was less fun - the trail was thin and had a single track, but the effort wasn't bad. It was an out and back leg though, so it wasn't as interesting.

7 was down out of cascade (and that can get tricky), but I made the right turns, and headed out.

Since I'd been taking my skis off all day, I did it again to climb up the hill to 7 (and needed to anyway to bushwhack over to it). I had passed the side path on my way out to 5 and knew right where to go.

I headed out of 7 at a better cross angle to cut off a bit of climb, and skied back around and down the mountain to 8 - also tricky there as the trails don't quite touch, but it looks like it on the map... 8 was once again off trail - yes, 6 out of 9 controls were off trail. It didn't bother me as classic skiers trying to ski it were at a serious disadvantage. (IMHO)

Out of 8, I crossed not just one trail, but headed over to a second trail and cutoff a bit of the distance (and climb) to 9. I think this was one of my best legs in comparison to others. (though Jim P still had energy and out ran me doing the same thing;-)

9 back to the finish was about the reverse of the 3 to 4 leg, and other than yet more climb where I carried my skies, was uneventful.

So - other than the bobble on the first and third legs, I don't think I could have picked a better path.

My proof that this was a better year: Last year Aims C beat me 1:06 to 1:36. This year I was only about 10 minutes behind him.

Oh - there were two people in front of Aims by another 10 minutes, but only 4 seconds from each other...-)

I'm sure my skating style stinks, and I still need to get more power and endurance in the legs, but I felt much better on the skate skis. (Jim P - who beat me by 2-3 minutes had about 25 days out skiing and I think I might have had a dozen. Aims counts his consecutive days in the 90s and has records of 120 some...-)

So I was definitely out of the running, but really enjoyed the day and the trip.

The family had come along too, and the kids said they thought it was good. I know better than to ask Lorie yet, she's still too tired to give it any kind of review;-)

(and each car ride was relatively uneventful, and that's a good thing too;-)

Red - Splits