Green Y, Day 1.
Two very very bad controls. In one of them, I think I was off the map for a bit. That's how bad that one was.
I counted 8 controls out of 10 as spikes, using my loose definition of a spike, but the 2 non-spikes were really major non-spikes.
My course and route below. The big problem spots were #5 and #8.
No issues with 1, 2, 3, or 4.
From 2 to 3, I had to figure out whether to go around the funny-shaped pond on the left side or right side. I started to go left (when I got to the trail), but only for a bit, because I decided the navigation might be easier going right. Just as I started heading back on the path, to go right, I saw PG come out of the woods, and could tell he was going right also, which made me feel better about my decision to go right. And I actually felt good about him catching me when he did -- he started 4 minutes behind me, and I had fears that he would blow right past me when I was about 5 minutes into my run! As it was, I was 14 minutes into my run, which meant he covered in 10 minutes what I covered in 14 minutes. I have a goal of someday being within 50% of his time, so at that point in the race, I was 40% behind him, not bad (at that point!).
Big problems going to 5. I decided against taking the straight line route, being a bit worried (needlessly, I'm sure) about crossing a marsh which also was green. The problem was, when I started heading towards the control, I wasn't sure exactly where I was. It turned out, from my GPS track, that I was very close to the control on my first approach, but I obviously didn't know it. I wound up somewhat off of south edge of the map, finally decided to find the stream, and after a few more back and forths, found a stone wall near the stream which identified my location. From there I made my way to the control, finally. 26 minutes on something that should have been maybe 8-10 minutes.
No issues with 6 or 7.
Big problems again with 8. I see from the GPS track that I was on the right track at one point, but got pulled to the right for some reason (other orienteers in the area may have been a factor). I finally wound up, to my dismay, on the trail. From there, I found a point where I knew where I was, and took a bearing towards the control. Once again, I was on basically the right track, but got pulled off again. Finally, more through luck than anything, I found it. 23 minutes on what should have been around 10 minutes.
I decided to take the easiest route to #9, even though it was very long. I had had my fill of wandering around in the woods with no idea where I was. This took me 18 minutes; I'm guessing that a well-executed straighter line route would have been 12-14 minutes. I think I over-estimated how difficult a straighter route would have been, and under-estimated how tired I was and how long of a distance I needed to cover on the trails and road. I did a lot less running and a lot more walking than I had expected.