Training Log Archive: Nadim

From Northfield Rd., to Del Ray Ave., and back. I went into town for lunch and had to rush back for a conference call.

Event: QOC Lake Accotink
 

Lake Accotink Park, VA. Walking from the event pavilion to the start near the dam.

QOC at Lake Accotink, VA. This is the traditional opening event of the club's season. John Torrance set a variation a normal score-o and gave the option for advanced runners to do what he termed a "dog bone" score-o too. The dog bone required one to do designated pairs of controls, and required more strategizing. We were allowed to look at the map before going out, so I looked for a little while. It was set such that once could be efficient through most control pairs. However seeing the routes while standing around is quite different than executing them. The park is small to begin with so with a lot of control pairs, I lost track of which ones I'd done. Running out of time at the far end of the park, I missed a relatively easy pair high up. When I realized it, it was too late to fix it. I did what I could on the way back and finished with almost 4 minutes to spare. It turned out that I'd missed 2 other control pairs without realizing it. It didn't bother me too much. I was happy that I was navigating well, spiking most controls. The worst that I did was leaving one control pair early on and getting over close to the start of another pair that I'd already done (lost about 5 minutes). I figured that the forgetting to do some legs on something like this wasn't so big an issue since it's so different from standard orienteering.

Lake Accotink Park, VA. Walking the finish near the dam to the event pavilion.

From the stone arch bridge at MacArthur Blvd. (near Wilson Blvd.) to the C&O Canal Towpath, to the Angler's Inn parking lot through Great Falls Park, to Falls Rd., to River Rd., to Seven Locks Rd., to MacArthur Blvd and to the stone arch bridge. It was getting late in the day so I took Peggy's advice again and ran from the stone bridge. This way I was not going to get locked-in from my usual starting area at Carderock, on versions of this loop. I felt not so great starting off but with the temperatures in the upper 60s and low 70's F, I got it into gear. My left toe felt better using my road shoes but sometimes I felt the injury from my long run 6 days earlier. For the initial 5 miles, I focused on my running form. I slows on the small climbs at the canal locks but moved well on the long flat stretches. After a restroom break at the Angler's Inn parking area, I moved much slower. The hill is steep and the footing not so great in places but I was just tiring too. At the top, the route was more rolling and I wasn't able to hold my pace. It took some good mental stamina along running on the trails along Falls Rd. and River Rd. It was truly dark by the time I got off River Rd. The hills on Seven Locks were really slowing me down. The last stretch on MacArthur Blvd., was better and it's always fun running across the stone bridge where I finished, knowing that it was once the world's longest stone arch.

From Northfield Rd., to the Bethesda Metro Station. As I neared the station, I could feel my tires being softer than they should have been--after all, I'd just inflated the tires yesterday. I slowed down on the bumps and curves so that I wouldn't crash on a flat tire.

Today marks my 37 year anniversary of training to be a runner. I'd run a few races before then in school, but 9/5/75 was the day I went to Cross Country practice with a friend. It was the second or 3rd day of 9th grade school for me. Others on the team had been training together for almost a month. Today was also my kid's first day of 4th and 7th grade and it'll be interesting to find out what they get involved with that might shape their lives.

From the Bethesda Metro Station, to Northfield Rd.