Training Log Archive: PG

Second day at the A meet, sunny but cold and windy, actually probably just about perfect for running.

Start operation went well, dealt with any problems smoothly. Nothing like having a good crew. And best as I could tell, the whole meet went really well. One thing I'm sure of, WCOC is a great club.

I had just started the last of the workers and Ross and several team members arrived to clean up everything, and they did a first-class job, and all with a smile. Such a pleasure to have folks like that.

And meanwhile, an old orienteering friend had ambled out to the start, he wasn't competing, could he ask me a question or two.

It seems he is where I was about 2 years ago, having to deal with prostate cancer. Lots of questions in fact. We took a long slow walk back, a very frank discussion including stuff that guys don't normally talk about. He is pretty stressed, as expected. He too has a journey ahead that will not be pleasant. But I think this helped a little.

Driving home, I realized I forgot to tell him one thing, that there has been one unexpectedly positive result of my journey, that I now appreciate the good things in life and don't sweat the bad stuff as much. And that is not trivial.

Event: WCOC / US Team A-Meet/WRE
 

Helping out at the WCOC meet, in charge of the start, which really meant having a fine crew (Lex and Pete, Rick and Linda, Boris and Kat, Ruth Johnson, and Gail) and then staying out of the way. And then a bunch of team members came after their runs to clean up at the end.

A little rough around the edges, the rain didn't help, but no problems.

Stopped by at the DeWitts in late afternoon to do a little gear organizing for tomorrow. Lots of folks there. And it all reminded me of what a fine bunch of folks are in WCOC. Such a pleasure to be associated with. And then you add Valerie and Sandy to the mix. Very fine.

And then dinner with Judy and Jeff, and Rick and Linda and Lindsay, lots of good stories.

Have a few extra awards planned for tomorrow. All can be eaten or drunk.... :-)

Passed 150K. Was I supposed to have a party?

C • It sounds like you did! 3

So when is the last time anyone had an orienteering lesson?

I ask this only because there is a widely held belief among practitioners of both sports that orienteering and golf are essentially the same thing. And today, for the first time in a few years, I had a golf lesson.

So the pro asked me what I was having trouble with. And I said, check my fundamentals (grip, stance, alignment, posture, etc.), something is screwed up and so nothing feels right.

So he had me hit a few balls, and in all honesty they weren't bad, better than my average effort recently, and then he showed me what I was really doing, and mainly my alignment was way off. And we spent ten minutes working on that (get aimed correctly, then straight back, straight forward is the mantra), and I was a new man. Off to play a few holes, it was a remarkable difference.

Of course alignment plays a major role in O'.

I remember a long, long time ago, when I was not so old and Peggy was just a young babe, and I was giving her an O ' lesson of sorts, and I thought it would be useful to check her alignment.

So the instructions to her were simple -- run due west. And just so I could tell how often she was looking at her compass, since I was running behind her, I told her to yell, "Beep," every time she looked at her compass.

And we started off. And I had quite deviously chosen as a starting point a spot where there was a fallen tree just to her west, so the first 10 or 20 yards had to be to the northwest. And then I figured she would correct back to due west.

But it never happened. She kept going merrily northwest, beeping quite frequently, until after about 150 yards I invoked the mercy rule and stopped her. I was also laughing too hard to keep going.

She obviously had an alignment problem. The compass was getting lined up to due west by bending the wrist a lot, not by turning the body. And the result was a fundamental skill in O' that she hadn't mastered. And this was a way to point that out, and therefore the first step to fixing it.

Do we ask ourselves how good our O' fundamentals are? And regularly get them checked?

C • Do we even know what our O'... 3

Short and flat, but all I had time for.

C • The start 2

So the logo contest is coming down to the end. One hopes.

The committee has recommended option D, with E and B as alternatives, giving the Board three to choose from. The vote is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday.

Will this finally settle it? One hopes.

Or will those unsatisfied press on? Will there be talk of rebellion. A new federation (just for the purpose of being able to have a different logo)?

You'd think we'd realize there are better things to spend our time on. Though this has been entertaining. And I have been very impressed by writings of a couple of younger members of USOF. Perhaps someone should be recruiting them for the Board?

C • Younger USOF members? 4

Another not very long, not very hilly, and not very energetic ride. Just enjoying myself, plus sweat some, plus get the body (especially the butt/crotch and hands) used to it again.

Very windy, out of the west, but it gets deflected by the hills and trees. Sometimes it feels like you're going into the wind most of the time. Today felt the opposite, had the wind with me a couple of times I didn't expect. Not that I'm complaining.

I've been thinking maybe I should do a longer ride, like a century, just for something different. The only organized one I've done (as opposed to just riding 100 miles on my own) was Mt. Greylock several years ago. That was a lot of work.

Hmm, maybe a different one, and less hilly, would make more sense.

But there does need to be some challenge. Otherwise, what's the point of doing it? And we have plenty of time to be sensible.

Back roads mostly in South Deerfield, beautiful morning, plus a side trip down S. Main St to checkout the storm damage from yesterday, a couple of nice old maple trees came down.

Not pushing the pace, as the heart rate would indicate.

I think the heels are slowly getting less bad. Might even have to start a little running before long. Meanwhile, the rogaine practice continues, with the most success (psychologically) coming from the O' equivalent of running as fast as you can and maybe you'll miss quite a lot but you'll have a few really good splits -- i.e. swing as hard as possible and then go and try and find it.

Went to see The Square, an Australian flick. Sort of interesting, but would have been a lot better with sub-titles as the Oz was very hard to understand at times. Gail seemed to handle it a lot better than I did.

She also seemed to keep track of the different characters much better than I did, including several scruffy similar-looking guys doing all sorts of bad things. And on the way home, it was clear that she understood a lot more of the plot than I did.

Maybe if there ever is a DVD I can rent it, Gail says they often come with a sub-title option. I wouldn't know, never rented a DVD (or a VCR tape).

I think such ignorance of cultural icons is in my genes. I don't believe my mother has ever been to a McDonald's (or even know what that is), or has ever had a Coke. Some of us are just hard-wired to be out of touch.

On the other hand, I think I may actually have enjoyed the flick more than Gail did. A little hard to tell.

C • English subtitles 7

C • yo' mama 16

Up to Lake Wyola (43:55) and back (34:15), light wind from the west. Trying to just do a modest effort, but uphills are still uphill.