Training Log Archive: Nadim

45 sit-ups.

Event: QOC Turkey Run Ridge
 

Prince William Forest, VA. From the Turkey Run Center, I warmed-up jogging back and forth between the center and the start of QOC's event. My legs felt okay but not very bouncy.

QOC: Prince William Forest (Turkey Run Ridge Center). I didn't do well at making the transition to the more technical terrain of Prince William Forest today. The courses were pretty good and set by people working in a course setting clinic with Francis Hogle instructing. The difficulty was compounded by the map being out of date in some areas. Very often what was shown as light green was deadfall that should have been mapped as fight. In other places, fewer though they be, the fight represented evergreens including rhododendron, which was light green. I did feel like I wasn't able to climb hills well and this seemed to be a vestige of running the trail marathon last week. If I had gotten some training in over the last week I might have shaken more of it off.

S-1 I ran down the road and around the bend a bit to follow the reentrant down the stream. Paralleling the stream at the next intersection, I cut left at the creek at the bottom. I followed the next stream on the north side up, to the road (feeling tired along the way), then went in almost straight once across the road, to spike the control.

1-2 I didn't think it'd be worth going to the road through the green so I went across straight, counting valleys and climbing up on side reentrants. I was a little shaky but spiked it again.

2-3 I went straight across reading carefully the whole way however at some wider and flatter reentrants, I got unsure of my position. I crossed what should have been a very noticeable open area. This was where the double cairns were. However on the map, it was not yellow, and I didn't actually see the cairns. I convinced myself that I was higher (to the left) than I really was. At the next stream, instead of going down it to a junction to relocate, I kept going and made a parallel error less than 100m from the control. I cut right after going up a reentrant to a saddle. Vido was running hard the other direction as were a few other people. I knew Vido was running Red and if I'd known that Blue and Red were set the same thorugh this point, I might have realized my error. When I got to a stream, I crossed it but as soon as I did, I realized it was far too big. I had ended up well north of the control. I corrected climbing up a reentrant. Instead of following it to the top, I attacked early, convinced of where I was. I missed and fumbled around in some deadfall green that was mapped light green and some of it actually off of the map. Eventually I came back and stumbled upon it, not exactly where I thought it'd be--I thought I might have been at #4 but was just as happed to be at #3. I must have lost +10 minutes.

Making sure not to repeat a bonehead error I took a while to make sure I had the right bearing. I ran a little to the right getting to #4 and hit that well.

I ran to the right again going to #5. After getting across the stream, I cut left a little to get around some mapped deadfall. Unfortunately, I didn't correct and I also had the wrong impression of where the control would be. I passed Peggy who was running from my left to my right climbing a ridge, then when my hill ran out, I realized my error and followed the contour around the spur to the control in the reentrant that Peggy had just punched. I probably lost 90 seconds to 2 minutes.

Peggy was almost out of sight as I began the leg to #6. She was already taking the route I'd have chosen, below the ridge line and under the green, so I chased. I didn't catch her until just at the control. It was a little further up than expected.

I ran out of #6 toward #7, on the left side of the reentrant. Peggy had already begun going up the right side which was thicker. I was able to pass quickly. From the saddle, I went on bearing and found it just slightly to my left.

For #8, I angled to the road, then cut right. This got me around some green but after turning left into the forest for only 150m, I was thinking I'd made the wrong choice. It was still thick and thorny. Once I got to the stream, it was better. I got to the next stream quickly and climbed up to the dirt road. I kept going straight, eventually getting to the ridge and hilltops. I stayed on these until reaching the next stream, then followed streams up to the control. I passed Amy along the way as she was headed the other direction. I was hesitant at the end about which hilltop to go to--I guess I'd turned left and right so many times on this long leg, that I finally got confused.

I went through the mapped fight (mountain laurel) with ease, then cut right at the bottom to spike #9.

I went a little to the left for #10, trying to shorten the distance, rather than go around the hills. Once across a larger stream, I came upon unmapped deadfall which made negated my route choice. I got across the next stream and into the forest earlier rather than deal with more visible and mapped green along the stream. I nice flat open area near the second stream was like an old lake bed but was hardly recognizable on the map. I was uncertain of my location but made a correct guess. Things started matching up and I moved well to the control. Just before getting there, I saw Amy walking in to it but I got there ahead of her.

I went out to the road to get #11 and attacked early on purpose to shave some seconds off. However, I followed the reentrant to the right rather than hit the little road cut. Thinking I was left of the road cut, I cut right, went to a hilltop and realized my error. I had made the cut just at the right place because when I turned back and up the hill on the other side, I hit the control perfectly. I still lost 2 minutes.

For #12, I went left and contoured around near the stream, then hooking right, into the reentrant.

I followed the stream down to #13 without any issues.

For #14, I ran around the hill to the right, then followed the green in to the control.

I ran up to the trail, then along the road toward the finish. Before the parking lot, I cut right, behind the water tower and got around a bunch of families. Seeing how I'd already missed 10 min/k for the course at the start of the leg, I was hoping to at least break 100 minutes and did so with a few seconds to spare.

Blue - Splits

I had intended to run at Seneca Park after visiting my mother and sister but when I got there, I realized that I'd forgotten my running clothes at home. :(

45 sit-ups.

45 sit-ups. There was not much time with needing to watch Max while Peggy was out of town.

Spinning and watching television. I felt pretty strong. It was a rather nice +60 F day today but I didn't run at lunchtime and with Peggy away on a business trip, there wasn't much time for one after work either.