Training Log Archive: Nadim

From Northfield Rd., Custer Rd. to Wilson Ln. to Glenbrook Rd., to the county pool parking lot to the trail into Norwood Park, to Wisconsin Ave., to Woodmont Ave., to Old Georgetown Rd., to Huntington Pkwy., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. I wore my new Nike Zoom Trainers that Peggy had given me for Christmas. They felt much lighter than the Nike Triax Structure shoes I'd been using for roads and sidewalks. Having had an extra day off of running and the first in a long while without any working out, I wasn't sure if the boost I was seeing was more from the new shoes or the break. However, it didn't last. I felt myself slowing and keeping a manageable pace. It was in the 40s F. I needed a restroom at the end so I didn't get around to stretching as usual.

Unexpected things came up late in the day as I was gearing up to run.

Prince William Forest, VA. QOC had left up most of the course streamers from the NRE held on 12/13/2020, and Craig Sheldon had setup MapRunF for them. Peggy and I went out to run the Green course. Peggy started ahead of me. I never caught her mostly due to making an error going to #4 and then having a hard time relocating. It was a nice sunny day probably in the 50's F when we ran. I was definitely feeling tired and weaker from my trail run the day before, so I didn't push hard.

S-1 - To start, I used the start button on my watch. I wasn't sure that this was right, since the mobile phone app MapRunF auto starts based on GPS, when arriving at the start location. I seem to have an extra punch because of this with a half-second split. AP thus shows controls that are one off--#1 is shown as #2, etc... This was a very short leg. I pulled up short at where I could see the ditch the control was supposed to be starting on, but didn't get confirmation of being at the control. I moved further ahead after a reentrant junction and the ditch got deeper. I saw a nub of a streamer and my watch buzzed right when I got there. I was using MapRunG--the Garmin app that was made to work with MapRunF courses. My hesitation lost me a little time. My watch showed I'd punched control 123.

1-2 - I went fairly straight, initially using the stream as a handrail, crossing the larger one, then running up the first small reentrant to realign there I'd drifted right. A rootstock confirmed my position. Sweat was getting in my watering eyes. Moving on, I rounded the top of a reentrant on my right, and dropped into broad one. This was the tricky part of the map where it's not obvious from the map that there is a saddle beyond the stream. It didn't mess me up but I got a lot more slowed than expected by deadfall that was too big to run over. I actually had to crawl under one spot. I kept straight using a ditch as a handrail on my right, and a small spur before a stream. Staying lower might have been faster running since I hit more deadfall unexpectedly. I came in low, having drifted right a little, but the big fallen tree mapped as expected in green, got me in the right place. My watch buzzed within a couple of meters of the control streamer.

2-3 - I went straight. At the ridge, I saw the cairn. I'd drifted right slightly as I went over a spur before the reentrant that the control was in. If there were a flag there, it'd have been visible, but I passed the control location slightly, and had to climb back. I think there was a streamer but it was small. My watch buzzed and I didn't look at it.

3-4 - I went north initially, thinking that I could run around the ridge, but the cliff edge I ran to blocked that route. I climbed more, crossed the ridge and ran down past a side reentrant. I crossed the creek north of a prominent spur and knoll on my left, so I knew I was right on target. Running then walking up the next ridge, I made a parallel error. I was seeing ditches and in a loss of concentration, I figured I was near the control--the control was on a ditch. I'd been there on the Red course in the NRE and remembered a lot of ditches. Furthermore, I recalled the map not showing the smaller ditches. I made a sudden turn away, thinking I'd passed the control, since I interpreted from the contours that I was past the control. I went back and checked out several ditches, two which might have been mapped. If flags had been set, it would have been obvious that there was no control in the area. I finally figured that the contours weren't making sense, so I crossed a small ridge and re-assed. Not seeing a side reentrant, I figured I was still too close to the creek so I made my way over and eventually found it. My watch buzzed but seemed to still show that the last control I'd punched was #105, which was control #3. Based on my GPS track, I think I lost about 4 minutes or more with this error, that a flag would have prevented.

4-5 - I ran around most of the deadfall by going to the right. After passing the deadfall, I realized that I'd seen the dot knoll that the control was on when I'd previously scouted the area--pre mapping, and once again as I passed it and saw David Onkst punching on it while I was running the Red course on the NRE. That helped me visualize the area better. I saw the knoll off to my right a bit, so I corrected my aim. My watch buzzed a little before reaching the dot knoll.

5-6 - I tried to run straight, but drifted left. There seemed to be a new rootstock, but I was probably seeing a pair of mapped rootstocks left of straight. I kept on my bearing but sensed from the contours I was to the left, as I neared a ridge. I cut right on the ridge and walked the greener area over small paralllel reentrants until my watch buzzed. I'd expected it to buzz before it did, but it buzzed before I saw the streamer. I may have lost a little time but not much.

6-7 - I ran around the deadfall by going left (south). I thought I needed to cross the stream since it's often unclear where a stream ends as the map showed. In retrospect, I shouldn't have. My initial move to the left needed more correction. As I climbed I didn't at first see the small reentrant I expected to see on my right, were I on the leg line. With more looking, I saw what seemed to be it further right than it should be. I corrected more and ran right to the dot knoll--one I'd hit well during the Red course in the NRE. My watch didn't buzz initially, so I circled the knoll at least twice until it did.

7-8 - I went straight and was again confused by the extra unmapped dot knolls. Reaching the greener area, I cut right, to get into the reentrant. My watch buzzed when I got to a wet area (the control was on a thicket near the start of a stream) but I don't recall seeing a streamer.

8-9 - I went straight but drifted right, after crossing the first stream. I had to hook left when I slowed enough to see the boulder. My watch buzzed a few meters before it. I was inexplicable a minute faster doing this leg in the NRE.

9-10 - I ran straight. Just before crossing the stream, I could see mountain laurel upstream that I correlated with the map. It looked too far away so I turned right and crossed upstream. The reentrant I'd landed in was too broad. I realized I needed to be one over (more downstream). I lost about 35 seconds.

10-11 - I ran straight but got confused. I think there were some additional rootstocks that weren't mapped.

11-12 - I ran straight but having no visual flag to aim me, I missed to the right a little. I probably lost 10-15 seconds as I found the small streamer. It had been hard for me to read the ditch on the map and I never saw the mapped trail that I expected to see beyond the control.

12-13 - I got to the stream junction, took the right fork and started climbing gradually. Going left and right around the mountain laurel, the control I ended up a little lower than the rootstock that the control was on. It seemed small for one being in a green area but I found the streamer.

13-14 - I ran left to get out of the green more quickly, then used contours to correct. I came in from the SE rather than the NE.

14-F - I saw a little bit of a foot trail in the grass, from the NRE. I couldn't tell where the finish line was, but stopped my watch past a camping grill and before hitting the road. My watch indicated 14 punches and I wasn't sure if that was right--it matched the number of controls but didn't count the finish as one. I didn't see Peggy at first, but when I did, I figured she'd beaten me.

Altogether, I might have lost 5-6 minutes from errors and waiting for the GPS in my watch to register getting to a control. Actually seeing a flag from a distance would have shortened my time too. As Peggy said, this was a good mental and physical workout so though disappointing, the day wasn't all bad. We ran into traffic on I-95 both coming from and going to home.

From MD Rte. 118, the Seneca Ridge Trail to Riffleford Rd., and back. My GPS tracked this right at 4.0 miles on the way out, but registered a tenth of a mile shorter on the return. Based on past runs that measured just over 4.0, I'm calling this 4.0 miles. It was in the upper 30s F. There was some mud on the trail but most of it was good. The sunny day had been coming to an end when I started. I figured I'd be running past sunset if I went all the way to Riffleford Rd. before turning around but I pushed on anyway. In fact, I thnk the sun had set just before I got to Riffleford Rd. Taking a rest yesterday and sleeping better helped. I moved up all the hills steadily though not fast. I moved better going down too. The 5th mile seemed to take a long while but after that, I got into the zone trying to beat the darkness. At 2 miles out it was dark on the east sides of the ridges. I knew I could bail out the last half mile with a short cut if needed. I pressed on at the cutoff. A nearly full moon was already at 10 or 11 o'clock in the sky--it helped. I definitely saw my moon shadow in that last half mile. I was trying to be careful not to trip on the tree roots, which aren't bad on this trail. I saw one older runner, a father and his 2 kids, and an old hiker with a walking stick--that was all of the people for the whole route and that was nice!

Rachel Carson Conservation Park, MD. Our family met Heidi and David Onkst for another holiday hike. This was very casual and socially distanced with masks--It was in the low 30s F. Most of the mud was icy. We checked out some rocky spots with nice woods first. Most of the lower lands and parts along the stream seemed to have been farmed long ago and was still recovering. They were the thorniest. Low vegetation covered the most of the terrain. There were scattered rocks and a pond. Though it was nice hiking through, using it for running and hiking would be better than for orienteering. It was a nice way to get out and there weren't too many people.

Since we ate lunch after our hike, I wasn't ready to run for a while and I later decided this would be a good point to put in a rest day. I was feeling like I had yesterday with a slight headache and being sleepy. I caulk it up to all the Christmas holiday stress and eating holiday stuff.

Great Falls National Park, MD. From the Angler's Inn parking lot, I started up the Berma Rd., with Peggy. We ran separately. I continued to the bridge over the canal, just south of the Billygoat A trailhead. From there I ran the towpath south to the bridge over the canal for Marsden Tract campers, and lastly, northwest on MacArthur Blvd. to the Angler's Inn parking lot. After celebrating with a big dinner on Christmas Eve, we had big brunch. Peggy got me some running shoes and clothes. With sleeping oddly the combination had me feeling tired and with a slight but rare headache. I thought I was not going to run well. However, my body responded, running more quickly than I thought I was going. It was in the low 30s F. There were groups of people hiking, with more on the Berma Rd. than I can recall seeing before. However overall, foot traffic was down. I guess we chose the right time to go.

For the last week and a half, I've developed some cracks in the hardened skin of my left heel. These are on the side of the foot and hurt sharply when I put my shoes on sometimes. While running I've been okay. Today, I have a sore left shoulder. I suppose that I slept on it wrong because I have no other explanation.

From Northfield Rd., Greenwich Park, to Old Georgetown Rd. to Beech Dr. to Singleton Dr. to Bulls Run Pkwy., to the trail along the middle school to Bradmore Dr. to Folkstone Rd. to Hartsdale Ave. to Heampstead Ave. to McKinley St. to Garfield St., to Roosevelt St., to the trail at Jefferson St. to Northfield Rd. It was raining and the street in front of our house was flowing with it. I went out with a full Goretex suit but wearing that was too much--it was in the mid-50s F. Though I was taking it easier, I was also constrained a bit. I was even getting tired with it on. At about 3 miles as I started climbing back, I got some warning signs from my right hamstring again, like yesterday. I eased off each time that happened but it didn't happen as much as yesterday. The rain stopped and I took off my suit jacket feeling better, and running a little better. Today, I surpassed my yearly mileage for 2019 despite being injured more this year. Earlier in the year I doubted I could do it, so it had become a goal that I've now reached.

From Northfield Rd. to Old Georgetown Rd. via Greenwich Park, to Cheshire Dr.. to Grosvenor Rd. to the Bethesda Trolley Trail at Fleming Ave. to Old Georgetown Rd. to Northfield Rd. via Greenwich Park. I thought I'd feel better running today and I did for a while. However, I felt that I was slowing down after 2 miles on the small rises. After that it was hard to see my watch in darker places. I kind of wasn't sure how fast I was going. I tried to pickup my pace several times but felt some warning signs in my right hamstring when going down graded slopes. I backed off and tried shortening my stride to finish-up. I was glad not to have hurt myself. I wonder if the hamstring issue could be related to dehydration. I had lost weight and a lot of water in the last day.

From Northfield Rd. to Custer Rd., to Wilson Ln., to Maiden Ln., to Whittier Blvd., to Woodhaven Blvd., to Bradley Blvd., to Valley Rd., to Temple St. to Ridge Rd., to Ridge Pl., to Greentree Rd., to Garfield St., to Jefferson St., to Northfield Rd. This is a close variation of a loop that I'd been doing. It has some bigger hills on it, but it didn't hurt too much. I was not as tired as I was yesterday and I made a good effort finishing. It was in the upper 40s F and breezy.

From Northfield Rd., Custer Rd. to Wilson Ln. to Glenbrook Rd., to Bradley Blvd. to Kennedy Dr. to Dorset Ave. to the Capital Crescent Trail,.to Falls Rd./Glenbrook Rd., to Wilson Ln. to Custer Rd. Northfield Rd. Though I started out okay through about the first 1.5 miles, fatigue from my run the day before caught-up with me. I grinded out the gradual climbs finishing-up. My quadriceps were sore. It was warmer this day--around the mid to upper 40s F.

From Query Mill Rd. on a spur trail near the intersection with Esworthy Rd., I ran up the Muddy Branch Trail (NE) to Quince Orchard Rd., then back to Esworthy Rd., and up to where I'd parked. I skipped the switchbacks inadvertently on the way out but got them coming back. It was about 42 F so there was a lot of snow and ice melting. Though the stream valley is pretty and gently sloped, the trail conditions were once again not great--standing water, streaming water, slushy ice, and mud. It required caution sometimes but overall wasn't too slippery. My small spiked Ice Bugs kept me pretty comfortable. My left knee hurt a little once in a while. I finished-up at about sunset and was pushing it in the last half mile and where I could and on other down slopes. The trail was pretty empty--only about 3 people and a dog.

Cabin John Regional Park, MD. From the playground parking lot off Tuckerman Rd., I went north and did a trail loop. On the way back, I ran in the central section of the park by following the trail parallel to the power lines, and the loop up besides the kiddie train. The conditions were not great--34 F with sometimes icy and muddy footing; it was also past sunset when I finished. I don't think my watch picked up the full distance since just before 2 miles, it took about 20 seconds to cover 0.01 miles. I weighed out at 191.5 despite having a pretty good lunch.

From Cedar Ln., to Knowles Ave. via Beach Dr. and back. Before going on this run, I was feeling poorly. I thought I was going to have a pretty slow run. My stomach was a little unsettled earlier. I picked the location partly since it was flat. The road was closed as it had been most of the time since Spring due to COVID-19 related social distancing efforts by the park. The road being closed was nice since it was dark and elsewhere wet, with some icy areas from partial melting. Passing by earlier in the daytime, I knew Beach Dr. had relatively good footing. The temperature was 34 F. As I neared the first mile, I was surprised that I had been running as fast as I had been. I was not pushing. The good footing may have made the difference since the footing was poor on my last 2 runs.

From Northfield Rd., I went into Greenwich Park, to Old Georgetown Rd. to Alta Vista Rd., to Locust Ave., to Acacia Ave., to Chandler St./Benton Ave., to Cedar Croft Dr., to Rockville Pike. to the NIH Trail to Maple Ridge Rd., to Goddard Rd., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. After the storm yesterday, it got cold and froze. The sunny daylight melted some of it and left ice and slush elsewhere. I decided to use my Ice Bug trail shoes which have waterproofing and have small nubby spikes. Going out, I was slow. The worst ice was on my street and in the park. The pavement was much better on all sides of NIH and even in the Alta Vista streets. It was in the mid 30s F.

From Northfield Rd., Custer Rd. to the Huntington Pkwy., to Old Georgetown Rd., to Battery Rd., to Wisconsin Ave., to Woodmont Ave., to Bethesda Ave., to Arlington Rd., to Wilson Ave., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. It had started snowing this morning in wet flakes, and accumulated almost 2 inches before it changed over to rain. As I went out, it was 33 F and it was still raining with flood alerts. Though the rain wasn't heavy, the snow melt helped make a stream flow down the street. There was enough slush that it channeled where cars had driven. I made up the route as I went and thought I'd run a shorter distance due to the weather. I reasoned that there was a better chance of people having cleared sidewalks in downtown Bethesda so I headed there. Walkways were better in general, but not always. Since the wind was kicking up, it was magnified around the tall buildings and swirled. I plodded along at a comfortable pace not wanting to slip where it was icy. I dressed right with Goretex up and down but there was still the rain and spray blowing around. Some sidewalks on parts of Wisconsin Ave. are still closed due to building construction so I hustled one block when there was a lull in the cars. It was a nice adventure overall since it had been a while since running in similar conditions. My feet got cold initially on the first ice dam puddles but I warmed up and sweat too.

From Northfield Rd., Mooreland Dr., to Glenwood Rd., to the Bethesda Trolley Trail on the south side of NIH, to Jones Bridge Rd., to Maryland Ave., to Fairfield Dr., to Lynbrook Dr., to Chestnut St., to Kentbury Dr., to Chelton Rd., to East-West Hwy., to Old Georgetown Rd., to Huntington Pkwy., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. I felt low energy during this run and I felt like I was moving slower. It was about 38 F starting out. The route doesn't have a lot of climb but the middle sections feel that way.

From Ray's Meadow Park and the Ohr Kodesh Congregation parking lot (near East West Hwy in Rock Creek Park, MD), I ran up the Rock Creek Trail to the trail intersection with Kensington Pkwy., then ran back. The heavy rains had stopped for a few hours before I started but it was wet out. The creek was raging but not overflowing its banks. Though the trail is paved, there were some places where drainage was flowing over it. I had to get in some mud in a few places. I felt tired going out but a little less so when returning, which is generally down the stream course. It was in the upper 30s F and breezy.

Event: QOC PWF Oak Ridge
 

QOC: Prince William Forest at Oak Ridge. This event was QOC's National Ranking Event (NRE). I had done some of the original scouting of this area with others and had even gotten to checkout an early draft of the mapping done by John Torrance. Instead of running my age group, I ran up, in M45+ on the Red course. Had I been further along in my rehabilitation training, I'd have run Blue. Today was a good day for me overall. While not always in contact with the map, I read it well. I used some new 2.0 diopter glasses and that may have helped. Though not all flat, the contours here are subtle. The terrain is a bit more open than many of QOC's maps but there was enough deadfall and other low vegetation to keep one looking for footing a lot. My routes today were rather straight--an 8.0K course is 4.8 miles, and I only ran 4.98 miles to complete the course, including my one mistake.

S-1 - I opted to go high, over the ridges to have more to navigate by. I stayed above the green portions before turning down. The longer route to the left along the steam was probably quicker but I hadn't waited long enough to analyze that before running.

1-2 - I've been feeling too slow to go far around obstacles so I decided against going NW along the stream and around the green. Instead I went pretty much straight, over the high part of a ridge mapped green. The green wasn't very bad. I went left to get past the roughest parts and only walked a short way.

2-3 - On this turning leg, I could see the control after taking about 4 steps away from #2. Another guy was ahead of me too and I guessed he was running Red too.

3-4 - I took off quickly going straight. I'd partly wanted to get away from the other guy who'd just punched. He hadn't taken a step since getting to the control before I left and didn't look back. I kept a pretty straight route but I struggled matching-up contours. It was often the case that I was confusing up and down. I knew I was on target seeing David Onkst punch on a dot knoll, about 1/3 of the way--I'd remembered seeing this dot knoll when I originally had done some scouting here. I started getting a little to the left to reduce climb 3/4 of the way but I was able to read my way in. I was concerned not seeing the control as I neared the green and saw the stream, but it was just a short way in.

4-5 - I left #4 a little to the left and later compensated. As I popped over the ridge I saw the control and I was on target. Starting this leg, I again was having trouble understanding up and down in the contours.

5-6 - I continued having trouble understanding up and down leaving #5. It looked like I'd be going down across a reentrant, but I started climbing some more first. Very soon after as I was crossing a longer formline contour and on flatter ground, I lost solid contact with the map. I hit some green and went around most of it on the right side. I kept my bearing and kept skirting the deafall by going right. In reality, from my GPS track, I was going fairly straight. I was just not matching things up. I kept doing this as I was looking for a steeper downslope. As I finally found one, I cut left to try to compensate and checkout a valley, but finding what I thought might be my gully, I was actually on a stream. I noted a bend and stopped. About here, my son Max came out of nowhere. He'd been lost for 30 minutes on a control. I told him I was lost too but eventually I told him where I thought we were and I took off. I had to climb another ridge and drop into the next valley. As I did this, the map made sense to me again. Nearing the control from above, I could see Diana Aleksiev heading toward the control on a more direct route. I saw the control seconds later and pushed to get there ahead of her.

6-7 - I've been running slower than last year and a few times last year Diana had passed me on a course. I was expecting that to happen again so I pushed a bit more. I had to leave #6 to the left a bit to get past the deadfall, but after that I went straight. I was looking for a side reentrant and it was the only one before the large reentrant ended. I just kept myself high enough above the larger reentrant to spike it. I think I'd been in this area before when scouting too.

7-8 - Diana was not far behind as I left #7. I headed just to the left of the first big deadfall to start out. I kept going straight afterward, making slight adjustments for what I was seeing. I did drift right near the clearing on the ridge at about midway (I'd been there when scouting previously too--I think the leg line for #2 was covering up some of the large depressions that one time were mapped as ruins) but that also helped me find a good way through the deadfall ahead. I kept moving and spiked the control.

8-9 - As I left #8, I could see that Diana was not far behind again. I went straight at first but adjusted to the right to get around the green on the map. The rest was straight. I picked-up the pace on the flatter ground up top that was very open, and I spiked the control seeing just left of my bearing.

9-10 - With a few shorter legs, I wanted to run faster. I was concerned about making a bonehead mistake but I wanted to stay ahead of Diana. With the open running it was okay, though instead of seeing just one dot knoll in the terrain as mapped, I saw 3. I kept my bearing and used the subtle reentrant to spike it. It was green in the area. Another QOC racer was standing looking at his map with the control about 10m away.

10-11 - I ran straight and spiked it. A family had just left the control about 30 seconds before I'd gotten there.

11-12 - I was getting tired. I started out straight. At one point I was going around some green and fell as I tripped. As I got up, I had suddenly thought myself to be further ahead. I kept my bearing and calmed down reading more while pushing a little less, and recovered to spike it.

12-13 - I was getting a little careless, reading my compass less. I did seen the reentrant off to my right that points to the control. I drifted a little left but saw the green ahead, and then the open ground behind it. I corrected and ran faster.

13-F - I tried to push harder about half way there.

As indicated, this was a good run for me overall. With some more training I hope to regain some speed and strength climbing. I felt that the terrain today was championship quality and so it's good to end the orienteering competition year on a high note. I was right at 10 minutes/K and I haven't been running that fast on most courses this year.

Red - Splits

Carderock Park, MD. From the towpath, Peggy and I ran the Billygoat C Trail going counter-clockwise. It had been a while since doing this, and since the trails there fork, I may not have been on all parts previously. It was also a lot rockier than I recalled. The rocks forced us to walk in several places in the first mile. We felt like we were taking it easier once we hit the towpath for the return but we speeded up in terms of minutes per mile. There seemed to be a running group on the towpath as well as a lot of hikers on it and the Billygoat Trail. It was damp and in the upper 40s F. We had planned to run the Berma Road from the Angler's Inn, however with the new parking barriers along MacArthur Blvd., the lots there were full. Even the lots in Carderock were extra busy.

From Northfield Rd. to Old Georgetown Rd. via Greenwich Park, to Ipswich Rd. to Fleming Ave. to the Bethesda Trolley Trail, to Old Georgetown Rd. to Northfield Rd. via Greenwich Park. It was 54 F when starting so like the last time I ran this route, I ran in shorts and a long sleeve t-shirt. My stomach was a little unsettled. There were few people out.

From Northfield Rd., Greenwich Park, to Old Georgetown Rd. to Beech Dr. to Singleton Dr. to Bulls Run Pkwy., to the trail along the middle school to Bradmore Dr. to Folkstone Rd. to Hartsdale Ave. to Heampstead Ave. to McKinley St. to Garfield St., to Roosevelt St., to the trail at Jefferson St. to Northfield Rd. I felt out of breath in the first mile and not too strong afterward. It was in the upper to mid-40s F and calm. There were a few more holiday lights over the course than last time.

From Northfield Rd., Custer Rd. to Wilson Ln. to Glenbrook Rd., to Bradley Blvd. to Kennedy Dr. to Dorset Ave. to the Capital Crescent Trail,.to Falls Rd./Glenbrook Rd., to Wilson Ln. to Custer Rd. Northfield Rd. I felt slow starting. Once going downhill, I was better but I slowed before the turnaround gentle climb back. I felt better on the return but was probably just moving slowly. It was around 40 F starting out but getting colder quickly.

Takoma Park, MD: From Wayne Ave., I took the paved Sligo Creek Trail north past Forest Glen Rd. to the 3rd bridge over the creek where the trail splits just north of Belvedere Blvd., and then I ran back. It was in the 30s F with breezy headwinds, but the trees blocked most of it. I struggled. My stride was blocky and stiff. The climb felt like more than it was. There were lots of runners walker and cyclists despite it getting dark as I ran. I hadn't run this section of trail since 2003. Back then it was nothing for me to do a nice loop using Sligo Creek and the Paint Branch through Wheaton Park.

Lake Clopper, Seneca Creek State Park, MD. From Kingfisher Overlook, clockwise around Lake Clopper on the Lake Shore Trail. The trail had some parts relocated again for erosion management, but overall these don't make much difference in distance. The trail is heavily rooted across many areas so I was careful to step high. Though in the 30s F with a steady breeze, I still sweat a lot. I took it easy to not overdo it after my run yesterday.

Afterward, I went to the Germantown Campus of Montgomery College. I'd hoped to be able to do some field checking but it was getting too dark and with the campus empty except for security guards, I felt too self-conscious. There is more vertical relief than I envisioned from the contours of the map that I've been drafting. I want to keep up my running and to not forego the training while trying to get maps made. A good aspect of the pandemic restrictions has been that I've been able to focus on fewer projects including various chores around the home.

From Blockhouse Conservation Park at River Rd. (main parking in the pipeline ride), I ran the Muddy Branch Trail upstream (NE) to the second intersection with Query Mill Rd. and back. It was about 42 F starting out. I paced myself well, keeping unexpectedly smooth mile splits despite some big hills. It had been a while since I'd run this section. As I drove out, I could see a parking lot for Cabin John being busy and sure enough the parking lot on River Rd. for Blockhouse Park was about as busy as I'd ever seen it. I hadn't expected to see anyone on the trail heading NE since it was rare to see people on it before. This time, people could be seen just about every half mile. The vegetation in Blockhouse Park has gotten to be more open than when I'd mapped it. Most of the way upstream of where I'd mapped was very open too. Pacing myself easy where it was less hill let me be able to climb when needed. I didn't push much so this made for a pleasant and confidence building run. As my route passed Esworthy Rd., and Query Mill Rd., I saw some potential alternate areas to park, that would cut out the bigger hills on this route.

From Cedar Ln., to Knowles Ave. via the paved Rock Creek Trail, then back on Beach Dr. Since the Beach Dr. has been closed during these COVID-19 times, I could use either the paved trail or Beach Dr.. It was around 40 F with a wind from the north. I ran out on the paved trail to avoid the wind but didn't mind it at my back returning. My quads were tired and I felt slow. I started okay but felt like I was tiring before the first mile mark. In the second mile I caught a woman who was alternately walking and running but she passed me back. Working on my foot strike on the paved road helped me to gain speed and finish faster.

Rock Creek Park. Starting from the DC/MD border on a flat portion of the Valley Trail, I turned off up the Pine Trail to the eastern top of the park, then looped back to the Valley Trail via the Holly Trail. I crossed the creek on the Sherrill Dr., NW bridge, then used Beach Dr. to reach the connector trail to the north to get to the Western Ridge Trail. I knew I'd be short of 4 miles if I returned directly so I looped on a social trail to the paved Rock Creek Trail on the western edge of the park. That and another unpaved trail got me back to the Wester Ridge Trail and the DC/MD border parking lot, but I was still short on distance. I went north in MD on the Rock Creek Trail to the first bridge over the creek, then took unnamed dirt trail on the eastern side of the creek, to the Valley Trail, and to the DC/MD border parking lot. Having the day off from work made this possible but with rain moving in (it had already showered in the morning), I wanted to get done early. The trouble was that my body wasn't quite awake. Even the first mostly flat mile was slow. There were several steep climbs but when I climbed I sometimes moved at just above a walk pace. Going down was slow too, where too steep or tired to be safe. By the end of the run, I felt I was wearing too much clothes--it was 46 F. After finishing, as I was driving away, raindrops started falling.

It was in the upper 40s or lower 50s F. I took off my jacket but kept on my gloves at about 2 miles into the run. I was sore and a little like it'd be good for a rest day so I started out easily. There is a fair amount of climb on the route so it was good to not push. From Northfield Rd., I went into Greenwich Park, to Old Georgetown Rd. to Alta Vista Rd., to Locust Ave., to Acacia Ave., to Chandler St./Benton Ave., to Cedar Croft Dr., to Rockville Pike. to the NIH Trail to Maple Ridge Rd., to Goddard Rd., to Lambeth Rd, to Moorland Ln., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. There were not a lot of Christmas lights put out but I did see a blue inflatable hippo which Peggy tells me is worth 30-50 points.

From the intersection of Elmhirst Ln. and Elmhirst Dr., to Elmhirst Pkwy. to the Elmhirst Trail, to Cedar Ln., to the Rock Creek Trail, to Old Spring Rd., and back. It was 40 F starting out. I ran there again since the day had been windy. There were a few runners and walkers out on the trail. I tried to keep decent running form and to not overstride. I ran negative splits and tried pushing it in the last mile.

From Northfield Rd., Custer Rd. to Wilson Ln. to Glenbrook Rd., to the county pool parking lot to the trail into Norwood Park, to Wisconsin Ave., to Old Georgetown Rd., to Huntington Pkwy., to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. It was in the 40s F and there was some wind. In the tall building canyon on Wisconsin Ave., it funneled so much that it was hard to go forward for 100m. I felt pretty good the first mile but was tiring afterward. I dragged on climbs and was not energetic finishing. We celebrated Max's birthday at home.