Training Log Archive: slow-twitch

So glad that Brent put on the training weekend, because otherwise it's possible I might still have come up to AK just for this event, in which case I may have been slightly fuming afterwards! Actually to be fair most of the course was nice, but lost a lot of time due to mapping at 5b (picking way down unmarked cliff on the nearly straight route), 6 (though to be honest the mapping was just a contributing factor, not sole cause of lost time here) and 13 (the bridge is out!). Admittedly 13 would have been less expensive had I tried crossing the stream a bit further upstream, rather than going right back to the previous bridge. Lost a little more time in the pine forest - 11 misread the formline and realised just in time the knoll was up on the ridge, not on the side, while 12 kind of ran too far down the big depression on the exit from 11, didn't lose much time, but turned it into one of those niggly legs where I was triple-checking everything and going much slower than I should have (as opposed to a Niggli leg, which is something quite different)

Back to pcbrent's orienteering school, today's class in Woodhill (think somebody said that this bit was called Stag Soup or Spaghetti's Roar or something) Exercise 1 & 2 (didn't really note the time going from one to the other), control picking and (semi-)long legs. Apart from getting distracted by a real control sitting in the forest on the way to the first virtual control, went pretty well especially the long legs part, and felt I had my mojo back (was worried I'd left it back at the start triangle at Muriwai). Could maybe have taken it a bit less aggressively though - or worn long pants.

Mass start/relay. Certainly felt like a good simulation of the nationals relay start: nobody seemed to be taking things seriously, my legs were stuffed before we got going, and I got to watch all the guys running away never to be seen again soon after control 1. (Unlike the real thing, I'm not sure I ever looked at my map before the first control). Still had a mini-pack happening with Reb, Ambie and Angela for a couple more legs then we kinda dispersed, and then I lost contact with the map round the one control in the coastal fringe, and as always when I lose contact there it was game over, so basically just jogged back to the cars once I'd relocated (with a lot of help from a passing Ambie!). Don't mind too much about kinda missing out on the pack racing thing as during the previous exercise there'd always been enough people around to be or not be distracted by.

Thank you Mr pcbrent for putting that weekend on, and thanks to all the others for a fun couple of days!

Brent's not so secret training weekend stage 1 (all times for the weekend are very approximate). "Start practice". If I learned anything from this (other than the fact that Weiti is turning into a bit of a jungle), it's that I might have a tendency to commit to the first good route for leg 1 I see when I pick up the map, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I could miss seeing things like the big clearing attack point above the first "first control" that would have made it quite easy. Missed the final section and had a nice track run to advance directly to...

Slopes and contouring. Valuable session. This can be a bit of a weakness of mine, so good to get some non-race practice and bring "the process" a bit closer to the front of the mind. I'll be the one at the MD next weekend running round spurs mumbling things like "am I rising or falling, will the control be above or below" to myself. Unfortunately the last few green controls became more about relocation practice as getting through the bush became more about finding the gaps than navigation. But I can always use more relocation practice, so still valuable.

"putting it together" - basically a mock course strong on the skill set we'd been working on, to get back to the start point. Did the first 3 controls nicely, wasted a bit of time figuring out the distressed sounding animal down by the main track was a hedgehog, missed the 3 "bush" controls (aware that nobody had come past since halfway through the last exercise), just jogging up the hill track instead, then tried to do the last 2 controls but had pretty much lost focus. Ah well, did the first 3 controls nicely...! Getting back to base found everybody else there, so therefore many people had wimped out even more than I did! And also found the proposed final session was being told where it could stick itself.

Was feeling pretty hammered from yesterday's effort when I started, didn't think I'd be able to stay out for an hour, so pleased that I did in the end (though wasn't exactly a continuous smooth run). Taking an old course on a Weiti/Stillwater map with me helped wile away the time. Still feels fairly natural to read a map on the run. Now just need to work out if I'm reading it accurately!

Last opportunity to really punish myself before easter. Curious to see how quickly I can get out to the highway if I really try. 10:23 from the bottom of our driveway to the front gate (so that must be 11:33 for the return trip). Not sure what the total distance is but must be close to 5 km, with bigger climbs than most sensible people would throw into a 5 km TT. So for a self-declared non-athlete, think I can be reasonably happy. Will repeat one day...

C • Nationals sprint 1

Tutu Road Time Trial - Splits

"Rest day" - though stretches the definition when we spent the afternoon building up the 50 metre grid in the jungliest part of our jungliest block. Plenty of stretching and flexibility training as well as good practice for bastard course setting on bastard maps. Record rate of progress: 5 minutes to cover 10 metres.

Relaxed pace (all I was capable of really) for a few laps of the first cattle free paddock I could find.

Found some odd looking plants while tracking a robin today - can't find them in any of the field guides. When I described them to the flatmate she got all excited and suggested if we come across them again we should collect samples. Never seen her so interested in botany before...

C • Drug Testing 1