Training Log Archive: PrueD

I didn't sleep well last night because I was woken by a low flying aircraft at about 1.30am and then didn't go to sleep until about 5.00am. Of course I was sound asleep when it was time to get up - so I was a bit tired today. Nevertheless I struggled out for a bit of jog tonight. Interestingly the storm damage around the Blackburn Creeklands was quite severe, with many large fallen branches and the track blocked in some places. There were a number of groups out training - of particular note was the nordic walking group. I thought they were cross-country ski training but not so.

AND - continuing on from yesterday - I have had many encounters with trail bike groups when out running in the Strathbogies. It used to seem that, wherever you were and however small the track, if there were bikes about then they were sure to find you. They were also usually very surprised to see someone on foot. Once, coming down a steep narrow track alone, I encountered a group who stopped and asked "Are you on your own?". I was torn whether to tell the truth or lie "Of course not, there's 10 men with big dogs behind - but they all run much slower than me!". Another time, on a surprisingly quiet day, I met the motorbike police who asked if we seen any trail bikes around. Of course we hadn't as the local policeman's son was a trail bike rider and had quickly spread the word around. The police then rode off with great aplomb - but went straight down a washaway - only to have to screech to a stop and turn around, redfaced, before speeding off down the main track.

C • Cops 2

After a really big sleep-in this morning I have conceded that I might have had a temporary literary lapse last night - and what was intended to be described as "weeping tendrils" in fact came out as "severed tentacles"! (But hey, guys, it could have been worse!).

Anyway, the skies that were full of promise yesterday did not disappoint overnight, nor again in the last few kilometers of my walk in Reef Hills this morning. The low dark clouds filled me with some trepidation, although, statistically speaking, I knew that I should be safe. The one distant grumble of thunder turned out to be a bikie gang returning from SummerNats (and NO, that is not why I went to Shepparton yesterday).

No personal encounters with bikie gangs spring immediately to mind. Although there was that instance where the Comancheros (well I think that's who it was) came for holiday in Benalla and camped on the foreshore, had big bonfires and generally entertained each other and us by riding up and down the main street. Camping on the foreshore is illegal but no-one complained - apparently because no-one was brave enough to send them off. No other group, that I am aware of, has ever been granted this privilege.

I took my bike over to Shepparton this afternoon and explored the redgum forests alongside the Goulburn and Broken Rivers. Saw heaps of other tracks I would like to explore. Felt really energetic for once!!

The morning was spend pruning back the malicious wanderings of my Benalla grape vine, which had already claimed the BBQ and outdoor setting amongst its victims, and was posing a serious threat to any passing cat or person who sat for too long in the one spot. Anyway - job done - and I plan to sit beneath it peacefully this evening - cruelly ignoring the drip, drip, drip of its severed tentacles.

Still at work - so one can safely assume that I have received no response to Wednesday's offer. This has given me the opportunity to refine my criteria - adding that high levels of intelligence and integrity are essential requirements. This means that members of some football teams or leaders of particular African nations need not apply.

The subject of fences seemed to provoke some excitement earlier this week - so I will continue on this theme. As a rogainer, one becomes somewhat of an expert on fence design and construction. There is the 5-wire barbed-wire type - that has threatened many a young man's career. And then there are electric fences - one-sided, two-sided and multi-level - although one must always wonder, before climbing, what these fences are intended to keep in (the subject of bulls on rogaines will be discussed another day).

There are the various crossing techniques - there is the crawl-under technique, the hurdle-over technique (which, according to some sources, is most commonly used by orienteers who are 8 months pregnant), the hoist (too undignified, according to Louise), the squeeze-through (better suited to fat, rather than muscley people) and the slow and tedious climb-over technique.

C • more fences 3

Nothing. When I got home last night (late) the whole block was was blocked-off due to a fairly major fallen power cable and lots of fallen trees. So no power, no computer, no dinner, no TV and no driving in or out of the area (because I live in a dead-end street, which was sealed-off). It took until 2.20 am this morning to restore.power. Must have been a localised event because the Prez, who lives in the next road, experienced nothing eventful.

Street O tonight at Nunawading. I didn't warm up properly and felt slow and heavy most of the way - a bit disappointing. I miscounted the controls and headed for one more than was required - so did not pick the ideal route. One school with a crossable boundary fence was surrounded by a child-proof (adult-proof as it turned out) fence that I couldn't climb over.

On one metrogaine, years ago, I miscalculated and was close to a control but it was in the next street, some distance around by road. My partner and I knocked on the front door of the house there and politely asked "Excuse me, can we please climb over your back fence?" A very nice man came and and said he would get the ladder - so under his supervision we climbed over the fence, got the control and were on our way. These days. of course, this would be illegal.

I much prefer running on weekends and holidays - if only I didn't have to go to work. I made a pact with myself tonight - the next time a millionaire proposes to me, I am going to say YES.

C • Fences 4

I have had a bit bit of headache for most of my day - which was essentially non-eventful. "Flat white" is the best descriptor!

I struggled out this evening for a bit of a walk. Its amazing how quickly a sense of tranquility returns when you are looking at flowing water (almost a blue colour), freshly washed plants and green growing grass. The bush along the creeklands really has the most beautiful scent, especially after rain. Along with some others I watched a flock of beautiful orange throated parrots (not sure what sort) that inhabit the Blackburn Creekland area. The billabongs alongside the creek were filled with happy croaking frogs and there were ducks swimming by. A most sensual evening!

Hey, I just found a really interesting stream of discussion on "Inov-8 Philosophy" on the home page. It essentially reflects the discussion I've been having lately with Bryan - about forefoot strike versus heel strike, pronation control versus natural foot movement. There's a whole heap of really informative and encouraging information there. As a person who's nearly always had stability control but also a lot of injuries, I now have a preference for a more natural approach. Also, I agree about the varied terrain in orienteering helping to minimise problems - but unfortunately, a lot of our courses in recent times have included long road legs.

I wanted to do something today but I am feeling quite flat - so at this stage, nothing. Anyway, regardless, I still think I will add today's tale, which concerns the wonders of silver electrical tape. In my earlier canoeing days I would always carry a role of this tape as a generic repair kit (for boat, body, tent, in fact for ANYTHING!).

I was reminded of this as I left Parliament Station this morning to cross the intersection of Nicholson and Albert Sts. As a seasoned jaywalker (read sprinter), I am always alert to the daily screeching of tyres, tooting of horns and other indicators of near-misses. Clearly there have been some mishaps - as evidenced by two damaged poles at the corner. One, a traffic light pole, has suffered a major injury (Including a big hole) that has been ably repaired by a large amount of silver tape. Likewise, on another corner, is another power pole with a similar, although smaller, repair. Clearly the MCC thinks that tape is up to the job!

Some years ago I was entertained at dinner by a pine tree pruning crew from Queensland, who had been engaged to prune the entire expanse of the Warranbayne Plantation and were paid by the tree. They were a most interesting and varied lot, some with tatooed fingers, some of Maori origin and most with interesting tales of incarceration and other mishaps. Anyway, one of them had a completely seized-up leg. In conversation, it evolved that this fellow had sunk an axe into his leg earlier that week. However, with time the essence and not want to let down his fellow crew, he had decided to continue on with the job rather that visit a hospital. And this is where the roll of silver tape came in handy....

I wanted to run today but the heavy rain all night and morning made me consider other options - possibly swimming (i.e. in the back yard) or even doing NOTHING. After an uneventful morning conducting battle in Ikea, I decided to give it a go and jogged around my usual mid-week haunts. Had to stop midway for a conversation but turned the clock off for this. The rain has made me think of the department. We love rain whichever way you look at it.

SInce first starting with them some years back there have been a number of name changes - usually as a consequence of a change in ownership or management. There was the Dept of Coffuffle, the Dept of Constant Name Review, Sparks and Embers, Dosi and Dopi and several others. We've been joined up with other agencies (the "One NRE" campaign that ended abruptly after a change in government), and split back many times. The current name even includes a noun that is not in the dictionary (although I haven't checked lately)!

It makes me wonder what will be next. The Department of Fire and Water (Dept of FW)? - not really a good look. Or join up with the Bureau and become "Earth, Wind and Fire" or.... Or will we split and the fire section join up with our brother agencies? (noting that there are NO sisterhoods in fire).

There are several impediments to overcome if this is the case. 1 - nearly all names that combine "Victoria" and "Fire" were registered a number of years ago by some (probably now quite elderly) enterprising deputy chief fire officers. And 2. - a certain right-wing fireman's union would see this as extemely green pickings. At the moment they are actively pursuing a hate campaign against the govt - handing out pamphlets at stations, front page stories in the local paper, full page adds etc) . They have their own barrister in the RC who makes sure that they are on the front foot in every situation, even examining the lovely Simon over why he didn't use more of them). (I'm not going to explain why we didn't use more of them...). Their campaign at the moment is reminiscent of the mountain cow campaign following the 2003 and 2006 fires - "if we had cows here this wouldn't have happened" (noting that grass does not make a significant contribution to forest fuels, and I have never met a cow that eats sticks and leaves).

Anyyway - regardless - the fire agency brotherhood has the power to address this issue in the longer term - simply by increasing the IQ requirements for firemen at entry level.

An early morning's walk around Blackburn Creeklands and Lake in very humid conditions. However the bush smelt particularly nice today with the scents of lemon and eucalytus. Heaps of birds.

I was expecting to work this weekend but the damp conditions resulted in a last minute cancellation - so as a result I didn't plan to go back to Benalla and will most likely stay here this weekend. I will probably take my elderly mother Christmas shopping. She's the one who incited last weeks comments about elderly drivers - when, owning both a car and licence, she peered at me from about arms-length exclaiming "where are you dear?" - leading to Little Bub being appropriated accordingly! Mum is normally housebound and on a walking frame - so shopping will be done by wheelchair (does that count as training?) to ensure that there are no escapes.

I really need a map on which to focus when walking as otherwise my mind has a tendancy to run amuk, ie today. Anyway, today's story follows yesterdays. I thought I would describe what its like to go prescribed burning - a "bushwalk of no return"!

As orienteers we are all familiar with dressing in the lightest possible clothes and shoes and then flitting through the bush leaping rocks and logs in single bounds (although not always - such as in Mrs Prez's most recent example).

So imagine wearing huge, cumbersome overalls, with the crotch located fashionably around your knees, ill-fitting steel-capped boots and a plastic helmet (rule No 1 of "safety in the forest" is"never go under a tree without wearing your helmet")! Then head off into impenetrable bush (e.g the sides of Mt Samaria or in the Strathbogies). Follow a really poor map - contouring along steep hillsides and climbing through rocks, over logs and through patches of head-high bracken. Set the bush on fire behind you (note - beware if you are prone to making navigational errors - there is NO going back to the last known point). A handy tip (learnt only from experience) is - only light-up patches of bracken AFTER you have come out of them. And of course you have a partner (also for safety reasons) although they are completely out of sight somewhere - uphill or downhill - but are in occasional voice contact.

Have a nice day!

Enough gibberish - sorry! It is a very hot and humid day - I haven't done any exercise and, at this stage, dont intend to.

I'm currently revelling in my new job. I'm still one of the 1000 or so people rostered into the recently rebuilt state control centre but am no longer responsible for the rostering, the operation of the centre, the agency's state-level emergency management function and, worst area of all - community information! Burnout material!

My new job, with the same employer, is writing witness statements for the RC (and no, I don't invent "I did this.." and "I said that.." statements) but rather collate statements relating to the upcoming RC review of prescribed burning, which has always been a political hot potato (half the community wants more and the other half wants less). Anyway, it has been interesting learning about the politics of the various parliamentary inquiries and the extent of the government's subsequent obligation. In a nutshell, fuel reduction burning made a minor impact on fire behaviour and intensity on "the day", and more burning was unlikely to have had an impact on the outcome. However burning is a useful risk management tool under less severe conditions.

A leisurely evening walk around Blackburn Lake area.

In view of the rising temperature all day, I have decided to tone things down a bit this evening with a more mundane topic - cats.

There are two cats in my life. Eddie, the ugly redhead, who lives in the flat upstairs and who, along with the very large screen television, form the entire universe of my neighbour Mark. The other is Benalla resident - the formerly gorgeous and glamorous feline fatale Claudia (yes - named after HER), the chinchilla (not allowed to say "cat"), who now sports an unfortunate "bed-head" hairdo of the variety favoured by teenage boys, as the result of a pre-summer home hair-cut.

And how do I get on with both cats? Well, like many forming human relationships, any attempt at friendship is frequently met with a bite. However, fortunately, to date neither cat has sustained a serious injury.

I only have dial-up in Melbourne and the rotten thing keeps logging me out just when I am putting the final touches on my story. So now I have to type tonight's story again quickly.

Anyway, tonight was Wednesday Street O at Bellbird Dell. Attendances were down because of school exams. It was a warm night and although most people complained they also ran. I ALMOST ran all of it (but not quite). There was plenty of route choice. This was followed by a BBQ. Adam used his massage table as a dining table - and this conjured up all sorts of ideas (sorry Adam)!

Yesterday's story ((written today) relates to the aboriginal boy who was to be charged with receiving a stolen freddo frog, but who thankfully got a reprieve at the last minute. This situation indicates the sad and sorry state of our justice system when dealing with juvenile justice in indigenous communities.

Anyway, as the recipient (or should that be "receiver') of goods falsely acquired, the story was of personal concern. In April I purchased a property from a vendor who had originally purchased the property with the proceeds of crime (some of the $20M defrauded from Clive Peters - "so..so.. eeasy!!" ) The crime was discovered in July and, although the property was settled in April, the title was only lodged in the Titles Office in June. I wondered why the property was so cheap and why the vendor did not haggle at all. I think she knew that the game was up and was trying to offload property quickly. Anyway, the property is still mine (well - really the bank's) having not been reclaimed, and I am still a free woman.

C • Chocolate 4

Another close-up view of a rising tide. In other circumstances (beach, at sunset, with the right company) this could have been romantic. However the view through a pair of leaky goggles at the Nunawading pool was not. However, the good thing about both Nunawading and Benalla pools is that, when the aqua-aerobics sessions are being held, one never feels fat.

I have story to tell - but it's been a chocolate day (incited by a slightly messy work bus trip to the funeral) and I've lost interest - so it will have to wait until tomorrow.

Early morning walk around Blackburn Creeklands and Blackburn Lake.

Benalla made the news yesterday when an elderly (80+) gentleman visited the KFC near my house along with his car. Not sure how you could fail, on such a grand scale, to circumnavigate a roundabout in a 60 kph zone. 500+ on-lookers also felt the need to be there.

Benalla is full of elderly drivers who wouldn't have a hope of retaining their licences in Melbourne. Those who dont have a car drive their scooters down the middle of the road pretending they are in cars.

C • KFC 2

An early morning's run at Reef Hills - with the distance measured by car and the time measured by my new watch ($8 from Reject Shop - so it must be accurate). Accompanied by Peter, who only runs when it is over 36 degrees. Today is forecast to be 40 so he was just warm enough.

More on my goldfish (yes, I know - the sign of a boring person). I have 8 goldfish and 1 little black fish - a combination which is meant to bring good Feng Shui. Racism is alive an well in the microcosm - little Blackie has no friends! It all comes down to leadership. I've tried rules - but no-one ever follows them. I've tried incentives, shared mealstimes for example, but Blackie eats at a lower level and only after the others have finished.

Until recently there has been regular demographic change as the result of a hungry kookaburra who has been diving in and has so far made off with Mavis and Manuelle - right in front of me - necessitating a trip to the pet shop for reinforcements. I now have a pond cover. And yes - they are ALWAYS pleased to see me (especially when I'm holding the tin of fishfood)!

An open water swim in Lake Benalla - the first for the season. And as I thought, it was much warmer than I had anticipated and I could have swum there several weeks ago (although not as far back as the Aus Champs). The temperature was mostly several degrees warmer than the heated pool although a bit cooler with depth and also in the shade. There was a bit of weed growth starting around the edges. I can't remember the name of the weed but last year it filled up the lake and was not only an environmental pest (I hesitate to say disaster - but it spreads so quickly and has no doubt spread down the length of the Broken River and is probably well entrenched by now in the Goulburn and Murray Rivers), but it is also a drowning hazard - so, once it gets going there will be no more swimming. Anyway, they say it came from a garden pond upstream as it used to be sold as an aquarium plant. I have a garden pond at about the right distance upstream but don't have any of that weed - but I can't speak for the previous owners of my house (although the Bendigo orienteers who previously owned it may be able to shed some light.)

Annoyance of the day - leaky goggles - and they are brand new Speedo goggles which ought to be better!! My old goggles disappeared at Nuanawading pool into the same hole in the ground that also swallows up water bottles, ski hats, ski gloves (left hand only) and sun glasses. It is never the old things that disappear - just your favourite things!

Friday the 13th. Nothing. Now that I have started a new job I am certainly much less tired that I used to be on a Friday evening, so that's good. Drove back to sunny Benalla in the evening. Everything that was green 2 weeks ago has dried out.

I apologise for the guestimate in distance. Hopefully I'm underestimating rather than exagerating. I'm too lazy to measure manually and I have lost my little measuring wheel. Dave Knight tried to convince me that I need a Garmin last night - and I'm thinking about it - but I'n not sure about downloading every geographical embarrasment for all to see.

I meant to go for swim tonight but it got a little late and I ended up walking (briskly) around Blackburn.

I'm beginning to think that a cross-training, even including walking, is a good thing - as it appears that I am one of the last Vicrtorian female orienteers (mature ones, that is) and possibly male orienteers who has not broken down. Actually, I've had nearly 10 years of injury leading up to this and have only come good in the past few months - so hopefully it lasts. I am cross training, massaging and stretching regularly. Traditionally I overtrained or only did one activity, but I think that moderation and variety might be the key to longevity in physical activity.

PS - I wish Tackpoint has spelcheck cos Im geting paranoyd abbut mi grama and spelin erars.

C • measuring distance 1

Street O at Bulleen. A hot night with a small turn out of "real people" (there were a lot of school children but not many other orienteers). A remarkable number of people who normally ran seemed to be walking. The courses were shorter than usual - and much shorter than a course held several years ago on the same map (where I came in in the dark). I jogged slowly most of the way but had to walk up a few hills.

The BBQ afterwards was particularly enjoyable as a it was a balmy evening and it was tempting to continue to sit there for some time - enjoying good company and good conversation.

The day at work was a bit messy as I was diverted to organising peer support sessions etc with counsellors. I am not sure that there was any benefit from this, in this instance, as I think most people felt worse afterwards than they did originally.

C • hi 1

Nothing - went out to dinner. Unfortunately my trip home through the Domain Tunnel at 1030pm was interrupted with my phones going beserk - a young fellow at work had been killed in a motrcycle accident. Not good!

Alas - yet another walk around Blackburn - as it was a hot evening and I didn't get home in time to go to Street-O.

Today's highlight - having my firefighter medical (I only want to sit on a chair in the middle of Melbourne). The doctor (who goes all over Victoria) pronouncing me fitter than most people he sees - a sad indictment on the overall fitness of DSE firefighters!

Interesting comment for the day - the front page of the Age where, in reference to the latest institutional murders, there was a comment to the effect of "A number of inmates have had a history of fatal incidents"!

Score event at Bungil (Bugal State Forest), scene of the previous night's activities. It was a hot day, but not as hot as last Sunday, so people were allowed to start early. I planned to leave at the official start time of 1030, but the starter forgot to me and sent me off at 1033 (without fixing the start time).

I planned to do a few checkpoints close to the start - but even messed one of these up - by following a faulty bearing in a relatively flat area. 90 minutes wasn't really long enough as I couldn't run fast in the heat - but rather did a slow jog. I had planned to follow a tourist route - and visit the scene of a major navigational error I made on this map during the last event here. The checkpoints were in almost the same position and this time I was clean.

Afterwards there were the Vic Orienteering Awards and it was disappointing that only about 20 people were there. I was duly awarded the (joint) W45-54 OY award. The prize for the best organised course went to the Oz Long Champs at Warby, mainly (can you believe this?) because of the loos!!!!! (which Jim claimed credit for).

Speaking of loos, I watched Kenny on TV last night (yes - I know, I should've been at the night event). It was enough to put you off the Melbourne Cup forever (not that I would want to go). However I noted a reference to local Mansfield contractor Henry the Third, who was an occasional visitor to Lima. One day, when he had dropped around for business, I mentioned in conversation that I "worked" for NE Water (really I was on the Board). Next day I had been given permission to go to a DSE prescribed burn, but only on condition that I act as a crew member all day. So there I was, bending over the Toyota bonnet in green overalls and holding a dipstick and air filter (reality? - no clue!!!) when up drove Henry. The indignant driver leapt out and exclaimed "You dont work for NE Water at all- you're really on the DSE crew!!". I couldn't be bothered to explain. A friend suggested that the next day I should visit the local hospital, of which I was then Vice President - wearing a nurse's outfit - just in case Henry dropped in there for some line of business.

C • W45 2

I would like to have done more today but had to settle for a walk around Blackburn lake and creeklands area. Because it was a hot day and everything was really green, the bush was giving off eucalyptus gases (I think this was the reason) and smelt really nice. Not being a detail person, I have resorted to an estimate of the distance. I am not going to Night-O champs tonight (wish I was) but am looking forward to the score event tomorrow.

Alas - still nothing. Had to work late.

Nothing. Went to my god daughter Tara's 3rd birthday party.

Street O at Forest Hill. A fairly flat course which meant that I could run all the way (well, almost - I confess to one lttle walk in the middle). It was a drizzly night so bespectacled people like me were motivated to finish as fast as possible. Although my hamstring was a little tight - overall it has improved hugely and I think (hope) that my rather long period of injury might be over.

A colleague saw the results of the weekend's MTBO in the Border Morning Mail and was quite shocked that it showed our age. He asked me what W50 represented. What could I say? "That is for women aged between 35 and 50."

C • W50 2

Swim at Benalla pool. It was a fairly cool morning so I chickened-out on the inaugral spring swim in the lake. The pool was virtually empty apart from 2 children who inisisted on swimming crosswise - meeting me several times on the journey, in an otherwise empty pool.

It was too hot to run so I walked around the Benalla Lake environs instead. After dipping my hand in, it appears that the lake could now be warm enough to swim in. Normally I leave it too late (Nov) to get in - thinking it will be cold - only to discover I could have got in weeks before. At the other end of the season I brave the water right to the very end (April). This is with the exception of last year when it was full of invasive weed - but it has been drained since then. Open water swimming up and down the middle of the lake is one of life's pleasures!

The instant family departed in the morning. However I received several lots of O visitors returning to Melbourne - at least having a house in the county lends itself to a faily social time on weekends such as this.

Another B for this weekend - a BLOODY HOT DAY (car indicated 41 degrees on the way home)!! This was the AWOC Club Champs at Cyanide just out of Chiltern. The event was preceded by an MTBO score event, which I didn't go to, but everyone else did. The area looked really pretty with white trees, green grass and masses of wildflowers. The terrain was intricate spur/gully but with granite rocks on the hills AND mining detail.
The first surprise for the day was the map - just contours and the odd feature, but no vegetation - basically a topographic map - which made route choice difficult, because you would aim for an area that looked like it should be a clear run - only to find it was thick and unrunnable.
I made an error on the first checkpoint (on the wrong spur) but corrected easily. I then made some poor route choices due to laziness - trying to avoid going up the hills and taking the road route - which probably not a time saver as I am not a fast runner. The checkpoints in the rocks were OK. Then - at the furthest end of the course - the heat hit me - HOLEY-MOLEY it was hot!!!! No wind, just a searing temperature. All running stopped and I walked slowly on the 2 longest legs (up and down about 10 spurs). Flatter routes were available but were longer and, at a walking pace - were not likely to be quicker. Anyway, towards home with a couple of Ks to go, a bit of light cloud cover came in and I starter jogging again. My this time I had blisters and just about heat stroke.
Afterwards we all went back to Chiltern and I had lemonade and a large ice cream for lunch! Then back home with instant family - the Panters (minus their usual organiser)!!