Training Log Archive: LardIn the 7 days ending Jun 21, 2009:
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Sunday Jun 21, 2009 #
Event: Harvester Trophy Weakend
Orienteering race 1:07:00 [5]
Harvester Relays, leg 4 for FVO.
Managed to lie down for 5 hours before the race - can't say I got much sleep due to my excitement and other campers excitement but I felt rested and quite OK warming up at 1:30am.
Fraser had got us off to a reasonable start in 2nd place but 13 minutes down. But Steve Barrett (Mr Freshlegs) put that that pretty much right with a storming run on 2nd to get us back into contention at about a minute down. Marcus, despite the tail end of his cold managed to get round OK and send me off about a minute up on SYO and in the lead!!!
I was cacking my pants out from the start so took it real slow along the tapes, getting my map folded and having a plan for no 1. This control turned out to be quite easy but I used my time well to get into the legend and adjust to the map scale. 2, 3 and 4 all went well and I was gaining in confidence. This slipped at 5 where I managed to get to my attack point but failed to get an accurate enough bearing to hit the pit I was after. After a small panic I managed to retrace my steps back to a waterfilled whole and uniquely contoured whole that I could checkup on and had another crack at the pit with a better bearing. Got it. But the 90 seconds lost meant that Ricky Baxter had caught me and we were then never too far apart all the way round. I led for most of the course but as I was playing it safe Ricky was able to take straighter lines and use me to run more confidently (I was stop-starting a lot to read my map/take it all in whilst running over the rough/rocky stuff).
I was cruising allright and started to pull away from Ricky on the long leg and hill climb but then my headlamp started to seriously dim. I tried to carry on for another control but things started to get too dim so I stopped at one and fully changed my battery pack. Janine's battery wasn't exeactly that much better but I was back on track. Unfortunately, Ricky had coaught me back up and took the short lead through the spectator. Again I took the lead on the next hill climb and got away from him round to the changeover but there really wasn't much in it betwen SYO/FVO at tat stage.
Handed over to Roger who made a real comedy of errors at the start, I so wish I had hung around to watch him out down the tapes (what tapes he'd have said!).
Needless to say as the sn was coming up and a beautifl morning appeared SYO and FVO were still neck and neck over the last few legs - FVO being unlucky, SY being lucky I'd say and it was down to Ross on our last leg to do the business. And thankfully, he did - despite losing his near 4 minute lead on the 2nd of 3 loops he went up the last hill in the lead and the team were able to run in with him to the finish - Victory!
Well, was it? Download told a different story........
Thankfully Jon had his clear-thinking head on and after much thought and chat and another system upgrade it was deemed that Ross has actually successfully punched all the right controls!
FVO - Harvester Champions!!!
For the first time EVER, FVO had won this coveted title!
It felt good to be drinking champagne and Brains at 8am!
Needless to say nothing much happened for the rest of the day. We made it to Weatherspoons for a much enjoyed cooked breakfast but then just managed to stay awake to get home....
Great weekend! Thanks Lads!
Managed to lie down for 5 hours before the race - can't say I got much sleep due to my excitement and other campers excitement but I felt rested and quite OK warming up at 1:30am.
Fraser had got us off to a reasonable start in 2nd place but 13 minutes down. But Steve Barrett (Mr Freshlegs) put that that pretty much right with a storming run on 2nd to get us back into contention at about a minute down. Marcus, despite the tail end of his cold managed to get round OK and send me off about a minute up on SYO and in the lead!!!
I was cacking my pants out from the start so took it real slow along the tapes, getting my map folded and having a plan for no 1. This control turned out to be quite easy but I used my time well to get into the legend and adjust to the map scale. 2, 3 and 4 all went well and I was gaining in confidence. This slipped at 5 where I managed to get to my attack point but failed to get an accurate enough bearing to hit the pit I was after. After a small panic I managed to retrace my steps back to a waterfilled whole and uniquely contoured whole that I could checkup on and had another crack at the pit with a better bearing. Got it. But the 90 seconds lost meant that Ricky Baxter had caught me and we were then never too far apart all the way round. I led for most of the course but as I was playing it safe Ricky was able to take straighter lines and use me to run more confidently (I was stop-starting a lot to read my map/take it all in whilst running over the rough/rocky stuff).
I was cruising allright and started to pull away from Ricky on the long leg and hill climb but then my headlamp started to seriously dim. I tried to carry on for another control but things started to get too dim so I stopped at one and fully changed my battery pack. Janine's battery wasn't exeactly that much better but I was back on track. Unfortunately, Ricky had coaught me back up and took the short lead through the spectator. Again I took the lead on the next hill climb and got away from him round to the changeover but there really wasn't much in it betwen SYO/FVO at tat stage.
Handed over to Roger who made a real comedy of errors at the start, I so wish I had hung around to watch him out down the tapes (what tapes he'd have said!).
Needless to say as the sn was coming up and a beautifl morning appeared SYO and FVO were still neck and neck over the last few legs - FVO being unlucky, SY being lucky I'd say and it was down to Ross on our last leg to do the business. And thankfully, he did - despite losing his near 4 minute lead on the 2nd of 3 loops he went up the last hill in the lead and the team were able to run in with him to the finish - Victory!
Well, was it? Download told a different story........
Thankfully Jon had his clear-thinking head on and after much thought and chat and another system upgrade it was deemed that Ross has actually successfully punched all the right controls!
FVO - Harvester Champions!!!
For the first time EVER, FVO had won this coveted title!
It felt good to be drinking champagne and Brains at 8am!
Needless to say nothing much happened for the rest of the day. We made it to Weatherspoons for a much enjoyed cooked breakfast but then just managed to stay awake to get home....
Great weekend! Thanks Lads!
Run warm up/down 20:00 [2]
Saturday Jun 20, 2009 #
Orienteering race 42:25 [4]
Middle Race on Clydach Terrace, South Wales.
The intrepid FVO team had flown down early morning to Cardiff and after shopping/faffing at Tescos we made it to this superb little race on the edge of the Valleys.
It was a brill little area, great course with 28 controls, lots of twisting and turning and short fine o legs. Not pushing hard because of a mild cold and concern over the Harvester but ran pretty well catching up Monro half way round, swopping the lead for a bit before outrunning him on the heathery last bit (belly's gonna getya!).
FVO boys packing in with Marcus and Roger up front in 1st and 3rd.
Then off to Harvester - great campsite on the hill top, excellent amusement in Weatherspoons in Tredegar (fistfights and very naked ladies!) but loadsa cheap food and beer!
The intrepid FVO team had flown down early morning to Cardiff and after shopping/faffing at Tescos we made it to this superb little race on the edge of the Valleys.
It was a brill little area, great course with 28 controls, lots of twisting and turning and short fine o legs. Not pushing hard because of a mild cold and concern over the Harvester but ran pretty well catching up Monro half way round, swopping the lead for a bit before outrunning him on the heathery last bit (belly's gonna getya!).
FVO boys packing in with Marcus and Roger up front in 1st and 3rd.
Then off to Harvester - great campsite on the hill top, excellent amusement in Weatherspoons in Tredegar (fistfights and very naked ladies!) but loadsa cheap food and beer!
Run warm up/down 25:00 [2]
Thursday Jun 18, 2009 #
Run 1:03:00 [4]
FVO Soup and Run from the Inman's.
Thanks to the lateness of various people we avoided the heaviest of the rainshowers. Out the back to Pisgah along the nice path with a new house being built right in the middle of it, down the ravine across the pipe bridge up to the Longhursts, let ourselves in and cleaned out their pantry, loops round the nice woods with the quarry back down across the pipe bridge and up the darn path to town and back up Glen Road.
Soup Chez Janine. Manage to get Rog entered onto the Middle Race on Saturday, despite his lethargy.
Thanks to the lateness of various people we avoided the heaviest of the rainshowers. Out the back to Pisgah along the nice path with a new house being built right in the middle of it, down the ravine across the pipe bridge up to the Longhursts, let ourselves in and cleaned out their pantry, loops round the nice woods with the quarry back down across the pipe bridge and up the darn path to town and back up Glen Road.
Soup Chez Janine. Manage to get Rog entered onto the Middle Race on Saturday, despite his lethargy.
Wednesday Jun 17, 2009 #
Note
(rest day)
Giving the Ben Sheann race a miss - club race at the weekend and I want to make it count!
Tuesday Jun 16, 2009 #
Intervals 1:00:00 [4]
FVO training at the Uni, up onto the footy pitches.
I wasn't gonna go, but glad I did - really good turnout tonight - pretty motivating, until I felt too knackered to do any more.
Managed 6 x 60/60, 3 mins rest, then 4 x 60/60, so only missed 2.
Jamie flying, and Rog, and Steve and....... all but me.....
I wasn't gonna go, but glad I did - really good turnout tonight - pretty motivating, until I felt too knackered to do any more.
Managed 6 x 60/60, 3 mins rest, then 4 x 60/60, so only missed 2.
Jamie flying, and Rog, and Steve and....... all but me.....