Training Log Archive: jennycas

Event: Australian Championships Rogaine
 

I was looking forward to the rogaine at Angorichina because even though it was going to be fairly steep there should be no nasty surprises in terms of undergrowth. And it's just a magical place up there, the village on a spur above the creek, ringed by all the hills (would have seemed awfully isolated to the sanatorium patients, but that was the point). First time for teaming up with Mark even though we've moved in the same rogaining circle for 20 years. We looked at the map and figured we could do about 3/4 of it which would be about 75-80km actual distance. Decided against the very NW, but started out with the couple of steep pinches N and W of the hash house (54, 53), and then the inner NW. Susanne and Zara were with us for the first 3 controls...more on them later.

Soon worked out that sometimes it wasn't possible to go directly down to the major creek because of a major cliff, so we detoured a bit on 65-62. Easy through 41/51/61. Got to the water at 31 - no fruit there yet. Oh well, only 3pm. 81, 72, up the creek to 91 with lots of teams going the other way except for tall-and-short-girls who were behind us. We went 91-83 but I decided not to stay on the ridgeline all the way; much better to drop down to the creek halfway along. We did an in-and-out run along the creek past the dead goat to 83; looked up at the skiyline and I swear those girls were still up there - suspect they took a side spur by accident. 42 was just on dark and we overshot it a bit. 74, 73, didn't go to water so we can't be blamed for it running out later.

After 92, walking along the creek, I ducked a branch which Mark didn't see and it got him right between the eyes. There was blood and we deemed this a good time to stop for food, and after getting cold sitting in the creek bottom, thermals. But really it was a very mild night. 55, 66, then heading south down this creek towards 33 and water on the road, we passed Susanne & Zara heading north up the creek! What the - where had they been?

At water about 1030pm we saw Kay's team and also Randell's. Neither of them had been to 93 which would necessitate a steep climb over the hill, or 56 near Blinman Pools - and now I know why. From 67 we rock-hopped our way down the creek to where I had convinced Mark that we could leave our packs, go up and over the hill to 93, and come back to the same spot to continue down the creek to 56 rather than descending the hairily steep spur. This took a while. So did 56-44 up the creek including some waterfall climbing and a lot of pool-dodging (there are permanent springs and these redgum-lined creeks are absolutely beautiful in daylight).

At 44 we decided that, it already being about 3am, we wouldn't go east to 69/86/59 but south to 58, a shallow gully on a flat nothing which we were initially too far north of so lost a few min. There were 2 girls shivering and trying to sleep by the water at 47. I said to Mark "I've been there" and he said "So have I and I don't want to go back!". We were both pretty tired but psychologically okay, and I didn't feel we'd slowed down much although I couldn't both read the map and look where I was putting my feet, so had to keep stopping to see where we were going.

48 was okay then disaster struck on the long leg to 85, a flat vague creek in flat vague country in the SE corner of the map. We had a bearing, with the intention to aim off and hit the side creek just W of it. In fact, we somehow crossed over the main creek without realising it, then a road which we thought wasn't mapped (it wasn't, but it was actually S of the mapped road, not N as we thought). We worked out that we were too far S, so went back to the creek but thinking we were E of the control, headed downstream about half a km. Wrong! Then we were confused, and by now it was daylight. Had another go at heading W thinking we were in a ridge SE of the control, but in fact we were NW. Wrong! Should almost have cut our losses, but I really wanted to know how we'd gone wrong. Mark figured it out before I did. When we eventually found 85, having lost an hour, he pointed out that we'd crossed the creek less than 100m from it :(

Okay, salvage time. 76, 46, 84, 94 in the SW. Walking fast but couldn't muster more than a Cliff Young when we tried to jog. There were a few steep pinches up and over each range. Mark's blisters were bothering him though he didn't complain, and I was doing the pace-setting from about 8am onwards. 94 was an in-and out with a steep climb (I take a while ont he descents) then along the (very dilapidated) Heysen Trail to 45. Just before 10am here and we decided we hadn't time to manage over the hill to 57, but down the creek through magnificent red gate-cliffs to 75 was easy. 70 min left here, it only took us 17 to 35, so in fact we had heaps of time but no extra controls we could manage to get - and were in 25 min early.

Mark jokingly said "It's important to get in as early as possible if other teams are on the same score" and so it proved to be. We were very pleased when we downloaded, to find that we had cracked 2000 points even, but completely stoked to find out that this was good enough for 3rd mixed! Of course, this paled into minor significance besides Susanne & Zara's 1st women's and 4th overall, or Sarah Buckerfield's amazing mixed win and 2nd overall, but it was still 11th place, and a decent reward for effort :)

Also a great night out with a really good mate (who's only 5 days older than me). We reckon that if the Aust Champs in 2015 are later than May then we should team up and have a crack at mixed veterans...

Needed to stretch legs after driving to (and through) the Flinders ranges so went for a run down the road from the campground at Angorichina Village after setting up my tent. Hard to explain how starkly beautiful it is there, perched on a spur above the creek with hills rimming the horizon all around. Sunset wasn't bad either, with a rogainers' moon in the east. Got a lungful of dust from the cars driving in, though.

Squeezed in between picking up Susanne from the airport and Chris Brown from the airport. Nice run with F&T, Simon, John, Sus (of course!) Zara & Callum. Felt 'cold' but Sat night will be at least 10 degrees less, I'd guess.

Haven't had much energy for running lately, so went riding. Felt better-oxygenated afterwards, and compiled a mental rogaine packing list during. Discovered today that I urgently need to buy winter stockings - before conferencing in Melbourne next week - as my orthotics have eaten holes in every pair I own (mff munch chomp).

Went out 20 min earlier tonight and was having difficulty seeing my watch by the end. Having difficulty running, much sooner - lungs were the limiting factor. But glad I did it.

Somehow, on autopilot on the way home - watching my feet in the gathering darkness - I crossed over East Parkway instead of following it and only looked up when I came to an unexpected roundabout! Took me a few seconds to realise I had made a 90 degree error and was already at West Parkway...

And step 1 in the rogaine-packing plan brought forth the discovery that moths have eaten holes in the beanie which Zara gave me, and also been at my best jumper (mff munch chomp - grrr).

Just starting to rain on the pond. Nobody in my lane (but me). Which was convenient to start with, boring by the end.

Before going to the haircuttery. Not enough daylight remaining for intervals but also too stiff in hips/hamstring for speed work anyway. Will avoid sitting at my desk as much as possible over the next couple of days, otherwise 6+ hrs driving to the Flinders on Friday won't be good.

As I passed a lamp post in the park, its light went out. Expected to see an eagle on the next lamp post...

From Fern & Tyson's on Turners Ave we (F&T, S&B, Lauren, Troy & me) went east up Suffolk Rd to Upper Sturt Rd - some people had never done the goat track before, and if they'd seen it in daylight then maybe they wouldn't have - and down Olave Hill Rd which gave us a beautiful view of the city lights. Perfect night for it and I felt stronger on the hills than I sometimes do, although by the end hamstring had an opinion.

Yeah nah, no way I was up for running 21km on pavement this morning even if hip/hamstring had been perfect, so instead I woke up at approx the start time of the half marathon and subsequently rode up to Wallaringa's event at Belair (Long Gully) whereupon I spent a couple of hours on the finish computer. Such a pain that all members of a group have to be entered separately in OE and, when they finish, then download the equivalent number of times to the number of members in their group - I didn't manage to capture all of these and so was struggling to sort out which were really missing runners, and which were part of an already-finished group, when we wanted to start control collecting.

C • Ditch OE, ditch computer 1

Frank drove up to the top of the park and controls were collected in clusters on the way back down. This way I got to run through the nicest bits of the park without the slogging up and down. Worked out why V couldn't find the control she had trouble on, but it was correctly placed - just that many of the rocks in that area are about the size of those which seem to have caused people issues at the recent US champs!

C • Rocks.. 5

Got dropped at the bottom of the hill (too slack to ride UP to either Belair or Blackwood from the park entrance, but my excuse is that hip/groin was twinging) and rode Brownhill Creek before heading home.