Training Log Archive: iansmith

I attended the wedding of my friends Laura and Ben yesterday. I have not been to many weddings, but I always find them to be good opportunities for reflection and reviewing your perspective. The ceremony was wonderfully done, with arrangements of the Adagietto from Mahler 5 for the processional, and Variations on a Theme by Paganini for the closing. This was my first Jewish wedding, and the content and the excellent delivery by the Rabbi were very moving. Tradition is a powerful force, and while it may not be the solution to a particular scenario that you would arrive at a priori, I suppose that it is the solution adopted by some set of our ancestors and predecessors. The combination of the traditional context, the ebullient remarks by the bride and groom about each other, the collected cheer of the gathered family and friends, and the music was very powerful and moving.

The reception had a fantastic jazz combo, a lovely dinner, and fervent dancing. It amuses me that at these formal events, we clad ourselves in lavish attire and prepare our appearance, only then to disrupt that preparation with chaotic activity. I made some of the classic mistakes dancing - trying gestures and motions beyond my coordination. I am an unpracticed dancer, but I nevertheless enjoyed myself. One of Ben's nephews (Max, I think), a ten-year-old, was an excellent dancer who commanded the crowd.

I ran two Catching Features courses after a long hiatus; I am a bit rusty.

It is also worth noting that Boston was covered with smoke from forest fires in Quebec. The skyline was conspicuously obscured, with visibility reduced to perhaps 1 mile. The air also smelled strongly of fire (or carbon, I suppose).

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HE9OQ4FnkQ (the lyrics are a bit ridiculous)

C • I don't know how I feel about that. 3

It hardly seems worthwhile to log this, but it was noteworthy because it was helpful to get away from a computer screen and breathe the fresh air. I stopped by my bank to drop off some checks, then went to the store The Games People Play near Harvard Square to see if they were open. Unfortunately, they were not, and they did not have their hours posted. That information is of course available online.

I slept in until 9 AM before waking; I had a long day yesterday. Nevertheless, of late, I have adopted a fairly regular sleep schedule, motivated in part by the sun shining through my window and skylight.

An interesting subject that emerged in conversation with Audun on the way to the Park-O: the "Starbucks Rule" for Wind Turbine construction. I'm unsurprised that such correlations are apparent, though I'm confident there are sufficiently many other factors correlated with the existence of Starbucks that you could call the rule practically anything. It just so happens that the not-in-my-backyard resistance to the aesthetic of wind turbines is strongly correlated with urban areas of particular socio-economic flavor. I am curious to see the data on the measurement of the NIMBY distribution across the country and how that value was quantified. Nevertheless, it's a fascinating heuristic.

An update from the Park-O - my bruise is improving; the pain is reduced. It turns out that there is also a bruise at the top of my right thigh that I hadn't noticed. I expect to be active again on Monday or Tuesday at the latest.

For reasons not entirely clear, laughter and humor seem to have a significantly positive effect on our lives. I therefore submit to you some images which made me laugh (more later):

Disapproving Kayak is shocked by your behavior:
http://chzhappychairishappy.files.wordpress.com/20...

C • Wind Heuristic 7

C • Osbornedale? 2

Event: CSU Park-O: Bear Hill
 

Despite my misgivings about my right calf, I went to the Bear Hill Park-O with Audun, who graciously gave me a ride. After some difficult traffic, we arrived at about 6:30 PM. Alex had expanded the typical Park-O event by adding a second sprint; this was a valuable feature since getting to the Fells requires a significant investment of time.

I warmed up for about five minutes and had a decent race. I took the straightest route to control 1, which led me over the top of Bear Hill; I think around on the right trail would have been better. I stopped to tie my shoes at control 4, losing perhaps 15 seconds, and I made a twenty second error turning onto the wrong trail en route to control 9.

The most spectacular event of my race was approaching control 3; I was moving quickly down the spur into the control. I glanced up from reading my map to behold a wire fence with a grid of squares about 6 inches to a side. I don't recall if I was already airborne or whether I jumped, but I collided with the fence at full speed with both my feet off the ground. Curiously, both of my shoes got stuck in the fence, stopping my lower body entirely. My upper body then flipped over the fence. Stopping myself with my hands wasn't difficult because my left quad (where the top of the fence impacted) absorbed most of the energy. I was stunned, but I dislodged my shoes and hastened to control 3; some time later into the course, my quad started swelling and aching. I now have an impressive contusion, though the muscle itself seems undamaged.

Alex's second course at the CSU Bear Hill Park-O. I was limping a bit from the injury on the first course and yelling occasionally when impacts particularly jarred my left quad. Nevertheless, I was moving fairly well throughout the course. At control 3, the flag had fallen onto the ground, so I stopped to retie it (15s). I made a 15s error at 5 attacking the wrong spur, and I hesitated at 7 while running on an unmapped trail. Since I knew Ross's finish time, I had two minutes to get from 8 to the finish - about 900 meters. I didn't know the distance, which was entirely on trails, so I put on all the speed I had left. In the last thirty seconds, I revised my goal to finishing in under 14:00, but I reached the finish at exactly that time. I ran the 500 meters from the Go control at 3:29/km pace, but it was not enough.

C • Sorry about the fence 3

I set out in the morning on my typical 4 mile loop. It would seem 8 AM is not early enough, as conditions were already warm with a temperature of about 23 C. I do hope to get into the habit of early morning runs during the summer; runs at 10 and 11 PM are simply too disruptive to a functional schedule. I had much on my mind, many problems to consider, few of which are likely to resolve in the near future or through my efforts running. Nevertheless, I must think on them. Perhaps it is not that I will change circumstances to resolve these concerns; instead, perhaps I will change myself.

On my run, I saw a very small Italian Greyhound. I briefly stopped to talk with the dog's person, and apparently the dog was a female, exhibiting the usual size characteristic from sexual dimorphism. Her legs were like sticks; they looked as narrow as the legs on a Chihuahua.

My calves felt tight throughout the run, so I kept my pace ginger. Depending on how I feel tomorrow, I will likely take a rest day.

Biking to and from the NEOC Board meeting at Sam and Ross's place, including a pit stop at Microcenter on the way. I could easily spend an enormous amount of money at Microcenter; fortunately, I typically go with a plan. I picked up a case for an external hard drive I have had lying around my apartment and a sleeve for my new laptop.

I enjoy biking, even when conditions are hot and stifling. I take great pleasure in traveling under my own power and traveling efficiently. Traveling by bike is freedom.

C • True 1

I went on a comfortable recovery run this evening, after the temperature had fallen to 20 C. Even in the comparatively cool night, conditions were muggy and humid, with a dew point of 17 C. I ran sleeveless in running shorts and perspired significantly, especially near the end when I increased the intensity. I had planned on a shorter 8k run, but I added distance without realizing how far it was. I was surprised at how many people (perhaps 30 on my loop) were out walking along the river so late.

Event: Billygoat Run at Mt. Tom
 

Day 1: 2 meter Results
Day 2: 80 meter Results


CSU, Vadim's training group and Lori's mom all fared well at the ARDF Champs. That the focus of our training was on the 80m band is evident - the quality of our races was much higher on Sunday. Les was very disappointed with his 2m race, and fairly satisfied with an excellent 80m race, in which he finished six minutes behind his German nemesis, Matthias. Lori had one rough control on the 2m band, but otherwise ran well. Despite knee discomfort and an unfortunate trail excursion, she had a strong 80m race; many people afterward were commenting on how fast she was moving when they saw her. Ruth had a rough start on the 2m band, but after finding the first control, she finished well. Her 80m race was strong, and she finished over an hour ahead of her competition. I had a very disappointing 2m race, with 9 cycles of error (45 minutes) relative to the optimal, and 6 cycles of error (30 minutes) relative to the expected. However, my 80m race was excellent, with only one real error at the first control.

To be competitive at the World Championships in September, we must get faster and improve our proficiency on both bands (particularly 2m). I am sure that the top 80m runners in the world are much faster than I am, so I will devote myself amidst my marathon training to speedwork and endurance. Technically, I must improve my ability to determine the correct ordering of controls and everything with the 2m receiver. Given that we have only had a handful of training sessions on the 2m band, our performance was not unremarkable. But we must do better.

The 80m course from the 2010 US ARDF Championships at the Miami University Natural Areas map near Cincinnati, Ohio. I had a decisive performance: the second and third fastest times were George Neal (M50, 63 minutes) and Brian Ackerly (M21, 68 minutes). I had an excellent race; I lost one cycle on the first control when I took a bad bearing, but otherwise was without error. With an absolutely perfect run and considerable luck, I think 43 minutes was possible, but I am satisfied.

My splits, with parentheses denoting a perfect run finding all controls on cycle in the order I took:
Control 2: 11:29 (7:00)
Control 1: 5:23 (4:00)
Control 5: 12:27 (9:00)
Control 4: 9:10 (9:00)
Control 3: 9:09 (9:00)
Go + Finish: 5:51 (5:00)
Total: 53:29 (43:00)

The 80m frequency is more straightforward than 2m because there are no reflections - the receiver accurately indicates the direction and approximate range of the control. Raw speed is then more important than radio aptitude.

The courses were shorter than is typical because sections of the original courses were inaccessible due to land access rights. All the classes were given an extra control (except M21, which already has all five), so M40, M50, and F21 also had to visit all five controls. Because the courses were short, mistakes would be more costly, and I believed that I could push harder without risking exhaustion.

At the start, I ran hard to the eastern edge of the 750 meter exclusion zone around the start, and was apparently feeling good enough to run 3:30/km for the first few minutes. Control 2 turned out to be near where I guessed the closest control would be, so I set off towards it. On the first five-minute cycle, I ascertained that the correct order to visit the first three controls was 2, 1, and 5, with 3 and 4 more distant and near the finish. My bearing to 2 was poor, and I ended up about five hundred meters too far to the south. I doubled back and found it at minute 11, on cycle - a five minute error. I had a good idea where 1 was, and found it 90 seconds off cycle after taking a good bearing and some hard running.

I was about 300 meters from control 5 as its second cycle ended, and I slowed to a walk to try to find it off cycle on the last known bearing. I traveled about 250 meters without finding it, and settled at a trail junction to wait for it to come back on cycle. Les and Jens, an M40 from Boston and a German M21, arrived at the junction after me, also waiting; when the signal came on very nearby, I pushed very hard into and out of 5 and successfully left Les and Jens behind me. I then ran hard to the projected vicinity of 4, hoping to find it at control 5 + 4 minutes.

As 4's cycle ended, I had a good bearing and tried find it off cycle. I passed over a spur, through a reentrant and onto a second spur without seeing anything, so I scanned about until the cycle came on again. It was frustratingly close - within 100m of my position - and hidden in the reentrant I had passed through. After struggling up the steep, muddy sides of the reentrant, I set off at a hard pace towards 3 to try to get it at control 4 + 4 minutes. That was too ambitious, and I found it without difficulty at control 4 + 9 minutes.

I put on what speed I have left - on a suboptimal route - to the go control, which was situated on the bank of a stream about 8 meters wide and 50 cm deep. The finish was on the opposite side up a chute - apparently the set up was to provide photographers with dramatic pictures of ARDFers fording the stream, but I thought it unnecessary. The water did not trouble me, since I was wet from fording several streams earlier, and crossing the stream did wash much of the mud off my legs. Nevertheless, crossing a rocky stream with sensitive electronic equipment solely for photo opportunities was unwise. I was the first finisher, so I enjoyed cookies and powerade while I waited for my competition to come in.

C • Yes! You will own this sport and bring back spoils to CSU. 12

The 2m course from the 2010 US ARDF Championships at the Hueston Woods map near Cincinnati, Ohio. I will upload my GPS track sometime later. I'm slightly satisfied with my result in that I found all five controls, pushed hard, and was the fastest American M21. Brian Ackerly, an Australian, beat me by twenty minutes, and I came in second.

My performance was unremarkable. My inexperience with the 2m band - this is my fourth or fifth time using the receiver, and the first in more than 9 months - was patently obvious. I took the controls slightly out of order (42315 instead of the correct 24315), and lost many cycles. Once I refamiliarized myself with the band and the technique, my performance improved.

Below are my splits and what I think someone of my fitness and ability could have optimally done:
Control 4: 25:11 (9:00)
Control 2: 22:45 (13:00)
Control 3: 29:35 (16:00)
Control 1: 14:46 (8:00)
Control 5: 7:35 (9:00)
F: 4:12

It should be noted that the "optimal" performance is very optimistic, particularly given the difficulties inherent to the 2m wavelength. I assumed I would find the controls on cycle for the optimal; run split to 5 was faster than optimal because I found 1 off cycle. Even in the incorrect order, the "optimal" run would have been just under 60 minutes.

So, I lost 3 cycles on control four, 2 on control two (bad route choice), 3 on control three, and 1 on control 1. It is reasonable to lose a cycle on controls 2, 3 and 4 because of the challenges and uncertainties in 2m, but even allowing for those, I made 30 minutes of errors. I will have to practice 2m more aggressively if I am to compete at the world championships.

C • You shall lay waste to the world of ARDF. 1

Event: US National ARDF Championships
 

Event: CSU Park-O: Sheepfold
 

Biking to and from Bellevue Pond at the southeastern end of Middlesex Fells.

Distance is a guess; to get to the Park-O at the sheepfold, I decided to bike to Bellevue Pond, then run the ~ 3 km to the Sheepfold. I ran more aggressively than easy pace, but below threshold. My right calf was discomforted and tight at first, but it started to loosen up. I'm not really sure what the source of the injury is - it's been bothering me for over a week, but it's not severe enough to warrant logging as an injury. I can still race reasonably well on it, particularly when I get a good warmup.

Running on the trails through the Fells is gorgeous; I really should get out more often. Despite a temperature of 80 degrees in Somerville, conditions were pleasant in the woods. The time includes the trip to the sheepfold and the return after the Park-O. I didn't have a complete map, so I took the skyline trail for much of the way on the return (as I know its route).

The 6th Park-O of the season was at the Sheepfold. Brendan set an excellent course - the first ten controls were technical, with only one trail leg from 6 to 7. The route to Control 11 was a 600m trail run, but I think ending a course, particularly a sprint, with hard trail running is quite reasonable. The Fells also make it very difficult to set even a 3 km course without using trails. Starting a course with trivial legs is undesirable, of course.

Given my concerns with respect to my right calf, I was moving well. The plateau between the skyline and the reservoir was difficult; I lost time off trail going to controls 2 and 4. I had a bobble at control 9, where I hesitated (perhaps 15 seconds), but the rest of my run was clean. I narrowly edged Audun (22:50?) and was in turn beaten by Dancho (22:18) and Ross (21).

The crowd was respectable given how difficult it is to get to the Fells, with perhaps 16-18 runners. Two beginners and their mighty dog, who hiked the entire Appalachian Trail, tried the advanced course and completed the first 9 controls at walking pace.

I retrieved controls 2 and 3; this was largely trail running, though I got to try the route from 2 to 3 again. I did better during the race.

This outing was very successful - I invested about 3 hours, 15 minutes into the expedition (including showering), was active for about 2 hours, and socializing for most of the rest. A pleasant evening.

Park-O - Splits

In the vein of attackpoint's usual committee decision-making efforts, I pose the following question to the my community:

Ignoring the top level domain (.com, .info, .net etc), what domain should I obtain for my personal use?

I'm a big fan of acronyms of my name (e.g. iamsinht), and some options are:
- iamsinht (distinctive, but less convenient to those unfamiliar with hyperbolic trig functions)
- isthmian
- thiamins (non-sensical, but pronounceable)

A few other options:
- supafishi
- thesalvadoran
- htimsnai
- iamsmith
- Perhaps a word ending in -ian, e.g. 'tellurian'
- discipulus

C • middle name? 4

C • ARDF 3

Attackpoint is a powerful training tool. It enables thorough analysis of training activities, identifies patterns and trends, and stores useful information, like splits, gps tracks, distances, and paces. It has had an invaluable impact on my life much like orienteering has become increasingly more important to me. But in its most important role, attackpoint is a community.

Orienteering has proven itself to be a great way to make friends. The people are amiable, interesting, and encouraging. That the community is small can be an advantage - it's easy to know a majority of the individuals racing at a local meet or an A-meet. I see many of the friends I have made through orienteering seldom, but attackpoint enables feedback and some measure of interaction. Perhaps that interaction is a motivating force for the complexity of many discussion threads on AP - the notion of interacting, dialog, and exchange is appealing.

I hope and trust that the next few years will be at least as wonderful as the past few have been. To everyone who has impacted my life in some way through orienteering: I thank you with the fullest measure of sincerity (unless you're a Canadian).

C • You should thank Canadians more! 13

Given that I was planning on going on an evening run, I checked in with Lori to see if Presto had gotten his daily exercise. She had decided to take a day off after her bike ride, so I stopped by her apartment to pick him up. As we departed, he urgently scampered to the yard in front of the building to urinate, then moved to go back into the apartment. While I took several detours to pass over grass and dirt, Presto decided a sidewalk at an intersection was the optimal place to defecate. After a lackluster start, he brightened up a bit after I did some strides and we passed a flock of geese. And, for unexplained reasons, after we cross Mem Drive to the inland side and started going north at Western Ave, he broke into a run. I estimate the pace was somewhere around 4:30 / mile. I let him run a bit before reining him in. While running with a dog demands some attention I would otherwise expend musing on life and interesting problems, it is pleasant.

My right calf has a bit of a twinge; I will treat it gingerly leading up to the ARDF Champs this weekend.

Congratulations to the 2010 US WOC Team, especially well deserved first-timers Ali Crocker and Nikolai Nachev!!

As per the latest OUSA Rankings update, I'm now an 80 point runner! Woohoo! My ranking improved from 76.79 in April to 80.85 because of some solid runs at West Point and WCOC and dropping some lowish scores from April and May 2009. Also noteworthy is Brendan's 89 point ranking, up 11 points from one year ago.

My results have been buoyed by 4 80+ point runs (of 8) in 2010:
- BOK Middle (81.43)
- West Point Middle (89.59)
- WCOC Middle (84.42)
- WCOC Long (80.82).

It greatly amuses me that my best results are on middle distance courses, and that only on the sprint distance have I failed to break 80 points. I think this is because the two sprint courses I have run in the past 8 months have followed middle distance races on the same day; I do systematically worse on the second race of the day compared to the field.

I still have a very long way to go; heuristically, my speed is only 80% of that of an orienteer like Ross or Patrick. Nevertheless, I'm very encouraged. If I can average 85 point runs at the Fall A-meets, I will be an 85 point runner at the end of the year.

C • Also... 1

I went for a morning run along the same route I did yesterday (my standard, 30 minute run) - and finished 3.5 minutes faster (speed was 12.5% faster). I suppose I was running at a harder intensity, but it didn't feel particularly difficult - I held to 4/4 breathing for most of the run. I suppose this sense of freshness and speed comes from taking an entire week off.

I went for an early afternoon run before my performance at a nursing home with my chamber group from the Harvard Medical School chamber society. I'm playing the Brahms Horn trio with Andrew Noll and Reid Merryman, both of whom are students at HMS. Naturally, my thoughts are at the Team Trials with those who are competing.

I finished The Name of the Wind, and I was chagrined to find that the subsequent two books in the trilogy have not yet been published. I do recommend it for anyone who enjoys well written fantasy not unlike The Wheel of Time or the Harry Potter series. It's much less frustrating than the former and darker and more mature than the latter.

Anyway, I purchased an audiobook that Amazon recommended to those who liked Name... called The Blade Itself. Unfortunately, the book on audible was by a different author, and the book was not of the genre I expected. So, a disappointing flop.

I have many thoughts and observations about the human condition. We have such a fascinating existence with this strange axiomatic set of physical phenomena and properties, social contracts, complex behaviors and evolution in time, and so on. Seeing the many residents of the nursing home was a bit disheartening, though my fate will not be the same as theirs. I will take much better care of my mind and body and take whatever precautions I can to have a full, meaningful life as unencumbered by limitations as possible. I mused that behind each of those often expressionless faces was a lifetime of experiences, memories, joys, sorrows. Obvious legacy and remembrance is not the best measure of the impact of a life, but I was overwhelmed to consider the collective lives of the people before me, the people whom I would touch ever so briefly before drifting away to my own fate. I cannot help but be moved and remember those who have come before me. Similarly, I hope to encourage and enrich the lives of those whom I affect now, and nurture those who will come after.

What a fascinating existence we have.

C • Your presence was missed at the TT. 3

Event: CSU Park-O: Franklin Park
 

I have rested the past three days - largely because my right calf has been intermittently hurting. It feels much better now, and I am taking a rest break for some perspective. I am attending the US ARDF Championships in ten days, and the competition should not be too intense. I'm a bit wary about the 2m band, which I haven't used at all since the previous US championships in June of 2009.

Tonight, after waiting more than a year, I finally cooked the bag of red kidney beans I own. The result was edible if unremarkable; I should have soaked the beans overnight for a better result. Nevertheless, I consider this a culinary step in the right direction.

I'm somewhat surprised that my bag of kidney beans did not have any cooking warnings, since apparently kidney bean poisoning from Phytohaemagglutinin is a serious concern.

C • beans alone a bit dull.... 4

Picking up five controls from the long course. Nominally, the US Team was helping out with maintenance like control pickup, but there was a large component (predominantly CSU) of non-team members. Today's crew consisted of Boris, Ross, Sam, Mikkel, Brendan, and me. It should be noted that several doughty WCOC members picked up over half of the controls in the northern and southern sectors. Only the controls in the center of the map remained.

The WCOC "The Hatter's Return" A-meet, Day 2 Long Distance WRE course at Huntington State Park. I had an acceptable race: a clean run with no major errors, good intensity and endurance throughout the race, no problems focusing, and a satisfactory result. My race was not fast - I finished 22 minutes behind Ross, and 9 behind Brendan, but I am not disappointed. I believe a run of this quality is now typical for me. I am quite glad that I beat Emily by about 2 minutes, but her pre-race conditions weren't optimal. Nevertheless, such victories are to be cherished; as I recall, this is my first non-sprint victory. I was both faster and cleaner than my long course at West Point.

On the long (800m) first leg, I charged off in the appropriate direction, noted the marshy reentrant and hill halfway to the control, and selected the big reentrant right of the line as my attackpoint. However, I wasn't in contact, and I quickly confused myself. I relocated off the marshy reentrant on my line, but lost time clambering up cliffs I should have gone around. I executed the rest of the leg ok, but I wasn't really in a racing zone.

I regained my focus but had bobbles at controls 4 (overshot), 9 (bad route choice), 10 (overshot), 12 (suboptimal route choice), 14 (hesitation), 16 (dumb route choice), and 24 (hesitation). I was in good contact for the latter half of the race. I passed a few people, though I'm not sure they were on my course. Confidently running past older orienteers is (perhaps unjustly) a good ego boost.

Of note, I avoided error at 26, which turned out to be a difficult control. I had just climbed some cliffs to 25 and was very tired, so I was a bit more cautious at 26 than I thought I needed to be. I checked off the boulder cluster, cliff, small reentrant and spur, and hit the control about 15 m to the left. Even with that error, I had the 7th fastest split. I also tied with Schirminator for fastest finish split.

Blue2 Day 2: Long - Splits

M-21+ Day 2: Long: Blue combined - Splits

Event: WCOC / US Team A-Meet/WRE
 

The WCOC "The Hatter's Return" A-meet, Day 1 Middle Distance WRE course at the Ansonia Nature Center. I finished 24% back of the winner, Ross, and despite my numerous little mistakes, had a good run. I felt strong physically and coped adequately with the navigational challenges the course presented. Ansonia is a beautiful park with gorgeous woods and challenging navigation. Conditions were cool and rainy, visibility was good, and tights and a short-sleeved shirt were adequate. My many small mistakes cost me an excellent run, but I am nevertheless pleased with my performance.

I started fairly hard, and in general was moving well - my best legs had paces in the neighborhood of 6 minutes per kilometer. I missed slightly left of the line at 1, but found the saddle I was using as my attackpoint ok. At control 2, I checked the large boulder on the line unnecessarily, and lost some seconds to hesitation. I had a thirty second error at control 3; I was following the southern edge of the rock fall, but there were so many boulders of the appropriate size that I was confused. I pushed hard to 4 to try to lose Andrei Logvin, whom I had caught at 2.

I made a significant mistake on the vast, featureless hillside at five. I checked off features adequately in the middle of the route, though I hadn't read well enough to correct. My original plan was to run to the trail bend just east of 5 and attack from there, but I decided instead to go straight. I then missed right by perhaps thirty or forty meters. I started to relocate when Andrei came running by on his way to six, and I doubled back. I did see Ali chugging along while I was faltering down the hillside.

My route to six had a rough start; I inefficiently traveled to the trail above 5 and 6 - which was a good route. I attacked off the big boulder just south of 6 and passed Andrei again. Control 7 looked to be difficult, so I was careful. I decided to go high and clip the edge of the rock features, while straight was probably the best route. I attacked off the big boulder near the trail south of 7, and I lost over a minute on my cautious and slow (if safe) path. I then made another small error by charging straight down the hill from 7 to the trail, rather than going more directly north. My route into the circle and the control were fine. I bobbled 9 when I didn't go quite far enough up the hill and started moving south. I saw the control and doubled back.

Control 10 was an interesting leg; I skirted the top edge of the rocks near 7, and passed the big boulder I had used to attack 7. I ran through the cairns (though I didn't see any) and spiked the control. I think going higher was a better route, both because of the attack off the cliff and because the running was better.

Nick Duca caught up to me just after control 10; he and I took divergent routes to 11, but arrived at the control simultaneously. He took the lead and beat me to 12, but I countered with a hard push to 13 and punched ahead of him; Nick and I were 1 and 2 to control 13. Unfortunately, I then made a small mistake where I was too low in the circle at 14, and lost about ten seconds and the lead. I was slower to 15, and made a 45 second error at the go control when I attacked too far to the left.

Picking up controls; Boris gave me ten controls that were relatively close by. I got a chance to revisit control 5, which gave me some trouble during the race.

Blue Day 1: Middle - Splits

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rage at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

C • At the ripe old age 3

Event: CSU Park-O: Pine Hill
 

I set the fourth Park-O of the 2010 season at Pine Hill south, starting from Medford High School. I chose to set Peter's Hill and Pine Hill this year specifically because I find it very challenging to set courses there.

Many thanks to Bill Pullman and Alex Jospe who set and retrieved the beginner course respectively. Also thanks to Ross Smith and Eric Benson, who retrieved part of the advanced course. I must also thank everyone who refrained from killing me in the aftermath of control 12, which I set near a dense thicket of green briar.

I'm generally happy with the course; Pine Hill south is not a kind place to orienteer. I like Ian, but Control 12 should have been perhaps 100 meters farther north where the vegetation was passable, and I would have set control 6 elsewhere had I vetted because the reentrant for control 6 was vague.

Ross and Eric set out to retrieve seven controls after Michael Commons returned. When they took longer coming back than I expected, I set out with a flashlight to run a trail loop and see if I could find them and lend aid if needed. This was foolhardy because even if they were in distress, I was unlikely to accomplish anything. A piecemeal search effort does little but provide a vague sense of purpose. They returned a few minutes after I left, and all was well. The time from this exercise was that which I spent setting and retrieving controls and running around looking for Ross and Eric.

C • Nice job 1

To and from Medford HS.

It looks very likely that I will not attend Day 2 of the US Team Trials on 16 May because I am performing part of the Brahms horn trio with a Harvard Medical School chamber group that afternoon. I am unlikely to make the team this year (and if I did, I would probably decline), and the loss of utility from the stress of trying to accomplish both the race and the concert to the best of my ability exceeds the gain from running the long.

This decision is ironic, because when I learned of the date of the Team Trials in the fall, I canceled my commitment to play with my large ensemble - the Metropolitan Wind Symphony - who is also performing a concert on 16 May.

If anyone from the Boston area is interested in attending Day 1 of the team trials (probably leaving early Saturday morning and returning Saturday evening), please let me know.

To and from work. My right hamstring and calf are somewhat irritated, though not enough to be considered an injury. In the interest of expedited recovery and getting everything done at work, I chose to take a rest day.

CSU running interval session at Harvard Square track. I took the Green Line (as the Red line was experiencing delays) and arrived just as they started the first interval, which I consequently skipped. I donned my new sleeveless running shirt. The session was 2x (1600 on, 400 off) + 4x (800 on, 200 off).

Interval: time on/time off
1600 m: 602 / 306
800 m: 259 / 149
800 m: 255 / 214
800 m: 254 / 211
800 m: 255

I then went on a gentle cool down run. I met Terry, Mark, and Jonathan, all of whom are very friendly and encouraging. Brendan, Simon and I ran together most of the time; we are about the same speed.

Afterward, Brendan and I had burritos at Felipe's (which is an Anna's clone) and discussed organizing a North American version of Tiomila.

C • Tiomila 5

The Garmin track is from the cool down only, but I had a ginger warmup en route.

To and from Brahms Trio rehearsal. Our concert is in fourteen days, and Sherman Jia, a very talented violinist whom I met in college, came by to listen and critique our performance. It was very constructive; he's an insightful coach.

I do take a measure of pride in my ability as a horn player; being able to do something well is edifying. I have had the privilege of playing with many excellent musicians, and that the French horn is in higher demand than other, more common instruments gives me more opportunities than perhaps I deserve. I certainly have room to improve, but I enjoy playing, and I'm comfortable with the amount of effort and time I currently invest.

Perhaps most valuably, music performance gives me an avenue to meet many wonderful people and is a catalyst for building meaningful friendships.

Brendan took Presto out for a run, so I elected to focus on my work tonight in lieu of training. A full rest day before intervals tomorrow would be good anyway.

I'm planning on getting some quick dinner in Harvard Square - Qdoba or Chipotle (e.g.) if haste is necessary, or Border Cafe if time warrants - tomorrow night after intervals if anyone is interested.

4752

The West Point Long Distance course. Much like the sprint from yesterday, my run was only acceptable. In general, the navigation was not difficult - much more emphasis was put on route choice than on most other Long courses I have raced. The routes to 2, 8, and 15 were all particularly important and costly if chosen poorly. Obviously execution of the routes, especially on the difficult hillside with 8-14, was very important, and the course was very physical - lots of hills and steep sections.

I chose a good route to 15 - left to the trail, an acceptable route to 2 - north to the road and right of the line, and a poor route to 8 - along the side of the hill. It's particularly unfortunate, since the 7-8 leg was not radically different from 1-2 from last year's middle distance. As with the Middle, the best route was south through the parking lot to the fenced paved protrusion, then up the hill. My route was accurate, but slow; I lost two minutes to Brendan. I then messed up twelve, drifting far to the north into the saddle, at the cost of about four minutes before correcting. I was very slow to thirteen and fourteen, where I took a Gu. Fortunately, I chose wisely on the long leg to 15, and picked up two minutes on Brendan. The last controls were fun and quasi-technical, with emphasis on choosing good attackpoints. I twisted my ankle leaving 16 and hobbled around for a minute or so.

I was clearly fatigued from the races the previous day; I was not moving as well as I had on the middle distance course. While I'm not overly discouraged by this result, it is not a significant improvement over my previous long races; for instance, both my US Champs races in October were superior to this one. It is true that my race performance was superior to last year's West Point long course, but I still am disappointed. In the short term, I will focus my efforts on the WCOC meet; in the longer term, I will go on longer runs.

Also, kudos to Sam, who finished 2-0 against me this weekend. It should also be noted that she out-trained me in April by almost five hours (even counting lame cross training, like biking). I will regroup and then move to challenge her again.

I went on an easy recovery run, and stopped to pick up Presto for his evening excursion, since Lori is in Florida. He only pooped once, though I carried the bag an extra thirty minutes before deciding he was done. I picked up the speed thrice to a rep pace, which he seemed to enjoy. My original pace - about 6 min/km - doesn't seem to be one of Presto's eigengaits; he lagged a bit behind until we started moving faster. It's possible he was perturbed by the heat, or less enthused because I wasn't his person, but the run was pleasant.

C • Presto! 2

Blue Long Distance - Splits

Event: USMA West Point A-Meet 2010
 

The West Point Middle distance course. Overall, I had a clean run at a respectable pace on a day when almost everyone made big mistakes. My run was not immaculate, but my mistakes were small, and my overall placing quite good. While I'm ecstatic about my result - 7 minutes behind Boris, and 6 behind Ross, I was not satisfied with my fitness and cleanliness of execution. Nevertheless, this is essentially my best result to date, and leaps and bounds better than my result last year.

I will post split comments detailing my routes. I finished 8/31, scalping several much faster orienteers whose made costly mistakes. I also won the finish chute leg by 2 seconds (woooo).

Positives:
- Started cleanly and conservatively to get into the map and avoid blowups.
- Avoided major mistakes on a treacherous course.
- Maintained a reasonably steady effort throughout the course.
- Had good, if not spectacular flow.
- Recovered from errors well.
- Chose and executed acceptable route choices.

Negatives:
- Fitness was inadequate, particularly for uphill legs (2, 6, 9, 11, 12).
- I was too slow to be competitive.
- My race had a few small bobbles and hesitations, e.g. at 2, 4, 8, and 10.
- While the conservative start set a good tone for a clean course, I lost a lot of time at the beginning. I was 3.5 minutes behind Ross at control 4.
- I had not thoroughly decided how I was going to attack the (n+1)th control before reaching control n.

For whatever reason, I tend to suffer comparatively more on the second race of a day than much of the competition. Note that my heart rate averaged 181 for the course, but I was still four minutes behind Ross with only a 0:20 error at control six.

In general, I had acceptable flow. I was reading ahead well up until the end of the course. With the exception of my error at six, my splits were all between 15 and 50% back of the leader. I had poor choices at 1 and 7, and a hesitation at 14, which accounted for all my 40%+ split deficits.

Ultimately, my problem was that I was not moving very fast. A comparison of my splits with Sam is instructive, because the ratio is generally constant. Kudos to Ross, who crushed the rest of us like the British crushed the French at Trafalgar, and to Sam, who has fired the first shot of our conflict.

Blue Middle Distance - Splits

Red/Blue Sprint - Splits