Training Log Archive: CleverSkyIn the 31 days ending Jul 31, 2016:
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Saturday Jul 30, 2016 #
1 PM
(flying) 8:54 [0] 6.7 km (1:20 / km) +5m 1:19 / km
3 PM
(flying) 26:39 [0] 19.4 km (1:22 / km) +207m 1:18 / km
(flying) 1:17:24 [0] 56.69 km (1:22 / km) +615m 1:18 / km
These are not loggable exercise, but I forgot to bring my GPS tracker, which was still on the charger at home, so I wore my GPS watch, which doesn't have altitude information, but it was better than nothing. This was the easiest way to upload the information, and I'll leave it here in case anybody is interested in what sort of places I go. This third flight was the best, and I got up to above 5000 feet.
C • Neat 2
Wednesday Jul 27, 2016 #
Note
I got word today of the passing of Millicent Plant, age 92. She was originally from San Francisco, and I met her when she lived in North Andover MA, one of the stalwarts of NEOC in those days with her lovable curmudgeon of a husband, Jim. Upon retirement, they moved to Frisco CO (as a San Francisco girl, it drove her crazy to have to say that she lived in Frisco). When Charlie and I were recruited to do results for the 1000-Day, starting in the early 90s, Mil and Jim were an integral part of our operation. Their VW camper was our base of operations, and Mil was a key part of the system, sitting at the finish line with a pad of paper, writing down bib numbers and times as runners finished. Others would fill in while she was on her course, but she did the bulk of it, and was the most reliable. We were getting it all on the computer, of course, and our goal was always to not need the backup, but on a number of occasions when we screwed up or had some kind of computer crash, it saved our bacon. We never had a case where we lost the results. To this day, when somebody is doing manual backup at the finish line on paper, Nancy and I refer to that person as a "Mil". Her grandchildren were extremely fortunate, because as far as I'm concerned, she embodied the notion of the ideal grandmother. I stayed at their house in Colorado a number of times, and I remember one episode well, when Charlie and I had arrived after hiking over Red Buffalo Pass from Stan Wagon's house in Silverthorne. It was hot, and we were beat, and flopped down on the porch. Mil took one look at us and asked, "Do you boys want some ice cream?".
Two summers ago, when I was out in Colorado for the US Champs, I took a day to drive up past Steamboat Springs to visit Mil at her daughter's house, where she had gone to live after Jim passed away. We had a great afternoon together, and I'm really glad that I went.
Here's to Mil.
Two summers ago, when I was out in Colorado for the US Champs, I took a day to drive up past Steamboat Springs to visit Mil at her daughter's house, where she had gone to live after Jim passed away. We had a great afternoon together, and I'm really glad that I went.
Here's to Mil.
C • Mil 4
CMT 10:10 [0]
Sunday Jul 24, 2016 #
11 AM
hiking (trails) 36:16 [3] 2.48 km (14:38 / km) +96m 12:16 / km
shoes: Nike Initiator
Ascutney hike to launch, double-trip. As I headed out first from the parking lot with my harness and the easily removable parts of my glider, somebody jocularly remarked, "There goes J-J, screw you guys!". Pretty good time on the way out and the jog back, because I was most of the way back before I encountered anybody else. The rest of the crew had brought a pretty good supply of sherpas, which certainly helped, but I was still the fifth of eight pilots to have all of his stuff out to launch and start setting up.
hiking 15:07 [2] 1.6 km (9:27 / km) +108m 7:04 / km
shoes: Nike Initiator
As I was setting up, I noticed that the battery on my vario (the all-important instrument that lets me know when I'm going up) was close to dead. I asked around if anybody had a spare AA battery, and Magic Mike said he did, but lamented that it was back in his truck. A mile round trip to get a battery didn't faze me at all, so I asked for his keys and scooted back to get it. Good move on my part, as I don't think I would have stayed up for two hours (longest flight of the day) without it.
5 PM
hiking (trails) 18:31 [4] 0.96 km (19:17 / km)
shoes: Nike Initiator
Had to land down near the north end of the Africa field, and the road access is at the south end, so I had to lug everything a few hundred meters before I could pack it up. Two trips again, the first one carrying the glider (which by this point had gotten extremely heavy, I assume it was airlogged or something) with lots of stops, then back to get the harness and helmet and such. I accidentally left the GPS running in the harness pocket, which allowed me to get a decent estimate of the time. At least I was clever/lucky enough to land near one of the few mowed paths so that I didn't need to drag my glider though the tall weeds, unlike some people.
Thursday Jul 21, 2016 #
CMT 10:20 [0]
Wednesday Jul 20, 2016 #
7 PM
pedaling (mountain bike) 1:20:20 [3] 28.01 km (2:52 / km) +187m 2:47 / km
Mason-Greenville rail trail, end to (almost) end to end. I had told myself that I'd turn around at the first major landmark after 40 minutes, and I did, though I now see that there was only a few hundred meters left to the end. On foot, this feels like it's uphill both ways, but on a bike, you really know when you're going downhill -- I was making good time on the way back. I really thought that I had been to the end of this once, many years ago, but the latter part didn't seem familiar, and I didn't see what I remember the end as looking like (though I admittedly didn't get to the end).
AOWN -- something scooted across the trail in front of me on the way back. Not sure what it was, but my best guess is a fisher.
AOWN -- something scooted across the trail in front of me on the way back. Not sure what it was, but my best guess is a fisher.
8 PM
CMT 10:15 [0]
Tuesday Jul 19, 2016 #
6 PM
pedaling (unicycle) 34:16 [3] 5.58 km (6:09 / km) +4m 6:07 / km
Bruce Freeman rail trail from the Lowell Cinema terminus to Chelmsford center and back. Only dismounts were at the road crossings, though I got lazy and mounted using the bollards and fences. GPS don't work so good in the tunnel, apparently.
Saturday Jul 16, 2016 #
6 PM
hiking (pavement) 37:00 [1] 2.7 km (13:42 / km) +8m 13:30 / km
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
MIT to Fenway Park, with Mike. Time and distance estimated from the return trip.
10 PM
hiking (pavement) 37:00 [1] 2.7 km (13:42 / km) +8m 13:30 / km
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Fenway Park to MIT, with Mike. Tiime and distance adjusted to ignore the part after we got in the car.
Friday Jul 15, 2016 #
7 PM
pedaling (mountain bike) 1:53:14 [3] 25.07 km (4:31 / km) +229m 4:19 / km
This went a little differently than I had originally planned. The intent was to ride up the old railroad bed, maybe to the end, and back. Pretty sure I'd never done this on a bike before, and though some of it wasn't so bad, other parts were about as awful as you'd expect "riding on railroad ties" to be. At the state line it changes to a rail trail that's a numbered snowmobile route, so much better and my speed increased dramatically. I knew I'd be headed back a different way by this point, so instead of going all the way (which would have been too far), I decided to explore a side trail. Back when they were capable of such things, my parents said they'd ridden their mountain bikes up here and gone to a quarry. It was where I expected, pretty cool, though with signs saying that it's open only to residents of Mason (and their guests), and the FDFs and horseflies were out of control. Headed back, and turned off before hitting the bad section of trail. I could have just headed down Barker Hill Road, but it seemed like taking the trails through the orienteering map would be a fine idea if I could spot the trail, which I did. Had to carry my bike over the beaver dam at the south end of Pitcher Bog, and then the trail going down the hill by the cliffs was rougher than I expected, kind of like riding down an erosion gully. Around this time it was getting pretty dark, and before long I was pretty much riding by moonlight, though I was under a leaf canopy, so it was more like guesswork and braille. But I didn't get off and walk, I kept on riding even though I really couldn't see anything, hoping that I wouldn't crash into anything and that I actually knew where I was going. There were some fireflies, too, but they don't help you see. I didn't hit Dudley Road where I expected, but close enough. The moon went behind a cloud on the road ride back to the car, so sometimes it was really dark. In the end, I was out quite a while longer than I had intended.
It was awesome.
It was awesome.
Thursday Jul 14, 2016 #
CMT 11:45 [0]
Wednesday Jul 13, 2016 #
7 PM
pedaling (mountain bike) 1:08:21 [3] 9.58 km (7:08 / km) +349m 6:02 / km
Willard Brook. I decided to try the lower twisty trails, and went for the easier eastern section first. I think I might be able to do this straight through in the other direction, but this way there were a couple of uphills that were too steep. Then the western section, definitely rockier and more difficult, and I suspect that this is normally done in the opposite direction, but who could I ask? I wanted to find the elusive northern connector, and suspected that it might be where I took the split, but I was way off. Further on, I headed into white woods on a hunch, and hit the trail from the side -- it doesn't really connect up, but it's manageable with a bit of clean woods. I had been up the trail from the north end before on foot, but had hit the dead end. On the twisty section, I had to walk some, and had a couple of wipeouts. Then I did a loop up to the top of the hill on the big trails, thinking I was already higher than I was. I had a weird hunch that I might crash on the descent, and in fact it was treacherous and scary, but I held it together.
Perhaps due to the snow-free winter and the dry summer, it's been a pretty good year in terms of mosquitoes and ticks, but there are plenty of FDFs. There was a good breeze tonight, which helped when it was a headwind. Still 80F when I was done at 8:30.
Thought I had stopped the watch, but I guess not; corrected the time and distance to exclude the drive home.
Perhaps due to the snow-free winter and the dry summer, it's been a pretty good year in terms of mosquitoes and ticks, but there are plenty of FDFs. There was a good breeze tonight, which helped when it was a headwind. Still 80F when I was done at 8:30.
Thought I had stopped the watch, but I guess not; corrected the time and distance to exclude the drive home.
Tuesday Jul 12, 2016 #
6 PM
CMT 9:30 [0]
ish
7 PM
running (trails) 42:38 [3]
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Trail off the end of Deer Run Rd, up to the T junction and back. Ate some highbush blueberries at the turnaround. Warm and buggy.
Monday Jul 11, 2016 #
6 PM
CMT 9:14 [0]
running (trails) 51:37 [3] 6.67 km (7:44 / km) +108m 7:10 / km
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Willard Brook, the lower twisty trails. Reconsidering the feasibility of doing this on a bike, I think it's mostly doable, though the western part will require some dismounts. I should try the eastern part first, rather more civilized. I do wonder if the actual distance is longer than the GPS shows, because it's definitely not capturing the twistiness of these trails.
Friday Jul 8, 2016 #
6 PM
pedaling (campus bike) 22:18 [3] 7.14 km (3:07 / km) +14m 3:05 / km
When they provide a perfectly good parking lot right at the concert venue, why in the world would you park all the way up at the train station in Mansfield? On the Schwinn with slick tires.
11 PM
pedaling (campus bike) 22:50 [3] 6.69 km (3:25 / km) +19m 3:22 / km
This is why. In The Dark, with a headlamp. After a brief skootching through the parking lot, and some riding on sidewalks, I hit the rail trail and was back at my car and on the highway and most of the way home while some of the hippies were probably still waiting in traffic at the Xfinity Center.
Thursday Jul 7, 2016 #
7 PM
pedaling (unicycle) 28:37 [2] 4.32 km (6:38 / km) +27m 6:26 / km
Highland St. loop. A little wobblier that usual, I think, had a few dismounts and gave up on the hill just before the house.
Wednesday Jul 6, 2016 #
6 PM
CMT 9:18 [0]
7 PM
pedaling (mountain bike) 1:06:23 [2] 8.85 km (7:30 / km) +106m 7:04 / km
Low key ride in Willard Brook on a very warm evening. Early on, I ran over a stick that popped up and hit me in the right knee, like stepping on a rake. Still a little sore the next day. I intended to stay on large, easy trails, using the map in my head, but sometimes things don't turn out that way, and I ended up having to push the bike some. In avoiding some private-looking land, I went over an esker on a trail that dead-ended, but I headed off on some white woods riding, which is always fun. (You read that right, Willard Brook has woods that are open enough for off-trail mountain biking. In July.) After going over another esker, I got caught behind moutain laurel that was too thick to carry the bike through, though if I had realized how close I was to the trail (just south of the km 5 mark), I would have done it anyway. I had hoped the dry weather would have diminished the FDFs, but they were stil out there (though seemingly not too vicious).
Monday Jul 4, 2016 #
Note
Travel day back from Rome.
Sunday Jul 3, 2016 #
hiking (pavement) 6:00:00 [1] 16.4 km (21:57 / km)
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Walking around greater Rome with Nancy and Stephen, time a wild guess, distance from Nancy's phone (maybe includes some train distance?). Train to Ostia Antica, then walked around there for a while. Trail to Ostia Lido, and walked around until we found a publicly accessible beach, then back to the train station. From Circo Massimo to Colosseum to Piazza Venezia, where we caught a tram back to Trastevere, and wandered around there some.
Saturday Jul 2, 2016 #
4 AM
running (pavement) 26:20 [2] 1.61 km (16:21 / km)
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Jogging over to the Vatican to mail postcards. (Didn't have satellite lock, and I think maybe this included stading in line at the post office.)
5 AM
running (pavement) 26:20 [2] 3.36 km (7:50 / km) +49m 7:18 / km
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Circumperambulating a country. (Not really 5 AM, the watch hadn't figured out what time zone it was in.)
running (pavement) 14:55 [2] 1.61 km (9:17 / km) +16m 8:50 / km
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Jogging back to Trastevere. Hot.
9 AM
hiking (pavement) 6:00:00 [3] 10.7 km (33:39 / km)
shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Walking around Rome with Nancy and Stephen, time a wild guess, distance from Nancy's phone. Started with fun and games on the bus system, eventually got close enough to Villa Borghese (see below), then the Spanish Steps (undergoing renovations and closed off), then down to some other piazza (Farnese?) Campo de Fiori where we watched the first half of the Italy/Germany soccer game, then back to our apartment for the second half, and out again into Trastevere to watch the overtime to the disappointing end.
10 AM
orienteering (park-O) 37:16 [1] ** 1.67 km (22:19 / km) +18m 21:11 / km
spiked:6/6c shoes: Saucony Guide 8 Powergrid
Not actually orienteering, but walking around Villa Borghese with Nancy and Stephen, while Stephen took us to where the controls had been.
orienteering 1 [0] 0.0 km +46m null / km
Not me at all: Stephen wanted to do the Park-O, so I put my watch on him and sent him off to do the M21 course from 2012 (without control markers, of course) while Nancy and I sat on a bench and rested our aching feet. Just posting it here so he can see it.
Friday Jul 1, 2016 #
hiking (pavement) 8:00:00 [1] 12.3 km (39:01 / km)
Walking around Rome with Nancy and Stephen, time a wild guess, distance from Nancy's phone. Santa Maria in Cosmedin, then dragged our luggage to the new apartment in Trastevere. Basilica di Santa Maria, up the hill to Piazzale Anita Garibaldi and Faro degli Italiani d'Argentina, then St. Peter's, a tour of the Vatican Museum, and back to Trastevere.