Training Log Archive: lackoflukeIn the 7 days ending Apr 23, 2006:
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Sunday Apr 23, 2006 #
Event: Graythwaite Regional Event
Orienteering race 1:19:30 [3] *** 6.92 km (11:29 / km) +410m 8:52 / km
spiked:16/21c shoes: New Balance RX Terrain
I'd run at Graythwaite in JK 2004 and was looking forward to returning. I'd quite enjoyed it and the forest was runnable pretty much all over. It was pretty much the same today. As an additional bonus, the weather was gloriously sunny. I didn't really have that much in the way of sunblock, fortunately I didn't seem to get sunburnt!
The course started to the east of the road running through the area, which was the nicest. There was a reasonable amount of contour detail, and the forest was fantastically runnable, uniformly white and with very little if anything on the forest floor. If there's anything negative I can say about this part of the course, it's that the controls were perhaps a little on the easy side. Control 1 was a TD3 control - I should know, I had a control here on an Orange course (JK 2004 Relays) - and there were plenty of uncrossable fences and one unmistakable mast to use as navigation features.
It wasn't quite as nice over the road. There is the famous 'Graythwaite green', a large splodge of impenetrable green forest, but that was only on the edge of the map and there were no legs through it. Due to forestry work (I assume), there are now areas of brashings where trees have been felled. Although control #11 was not in the brashings, I ended up foolishly picking my way through them. From 13 to 14 I could probably have avoided going through the green. It would have been worth trying to find the corridors of white that were mapped. I also had to cut across some brashings on the way to number 19, but they didn't seem too bad.
Overall, I was pleased with how I got on. I wasn't feeling my best physically, that may have had something to do with having run the previous day and not having trained too much the preceding weeks, but I never really lost contact with the map, except perhaps on the way to number 10. I was coping reasonably well with the contour detail, and in the end I finished 4th out of 15 with 3 mispunchers.
The course started to the east of the road running through the area, which was the nicest. There was a reasonable amount of contour detail, and the forest was fantastically runnable, uniformly white and with very little if anything on the forest floor. If there's anything negative I can say about this part of the course, it's that the controls were perhaps a little on the easy side. Control 1 was a TD3 control - I should know, I had a control here on an Orange course (JK 2004 Relays) - and there were plenty of uncrossable fences and one unmistakable mast to use as navigation features.
It wasn't quite as nice over the road. There is the famous 'Graythwaite green', a large splodge of impenetrable green forest, but that was only on the edge of the map and there were no legs through it. Due to forestry work (I assume), there are now areas of brashings where trees have been felled. Although control #11 was not in the brashings, I ended up foolishly picking my way through them. From 13 to 14 I could probably have avoided going through the green. It would have been worth trying to find the corridors of white that were mapped. I also had to cut across some brashings on the way to number 19, but they didn't seem too bad.
Overall, I was pleased with how I got on. I wasn't feeling my best physically, that may have had something to do with having run the previous day and not having trained too much the preceding weeks, but I never really lost contact with the map, except perhaps on the way to number 10. I was coping reasonably well with the contour detail, and in the end I finished 4th out of 15 with 3 mispunchers.
Saturday Apr 22, 2006 #
Orienteering race 37:19 [3] *** 3.91 km (9:33 / km) +200m 7:36 / km
spiked:11/16c shoes: New Balance RX Terrain
Chasing Sprint - Prologue.
This was my first run for a while in a forest with a decent amount of contour detail over the whole forest. I started off perhaps a bit cautiously, taking a path most of the way to the first control, but in general got on okay. I was also a bit hesitant going into the green section of the map for the second control - you really could only walk in it!
Overall, I was happy with my run since I didn't make any particularly big mistakes, but despite that SGB still beat me by 42 seconds! We had fairly similar splits pretty much all the way round the course.
This was my first run for a while in a forest with a decent amount of contour detail over the whole forest. I started off perhaps a bit cautiously, taking a path most of the way to the first control, but in general got on okay. I was also a bit hesitant going into the green section of the map for the second control - you really could only walk in it!
Overall, I was happy with my run since I didn't make any particularly big mistakes, but despite that SGB still beat me by 42 seconds! We had fairly similar splits pretty much all the way round the course.
Orienteering race 46:51 [3] *** 3.37 km (13:54 / km) +180m 10:58 / km
spiked:7/12c shoes: New Balance RX Terrain
Chasing Sprint - Chase.
As mentioned in the Prologue, SGB finished 42 seconds ahead of me, so he headed off 42 seconds before me in the chase. I also headed off 5 seconds behind some other guy who I managed to beat to the first 2 controls.
However, I lost this other guy at number 3. I was trying, perhaps a bit too hard, not to let him past, but screwed up and he must have passed me again at number 3. Since it was a chasing start, it was more of a race than usual, you really are racing the other people out there. Perhaps I was trying too hard to not let him past and not trying hard enough to read the map.
Number 5 was my worst mistake of the weekend. Up until that point I hadn't seen a single wrong control, something that was particularly helpful since the control stakes didn't have numbers on the sides, just a sticky label on top of the SI box. I was on the correct spur, but too high, which I should have realised, but instead I chose to relocate, and found a path. However, I wandered up and down the path trying to relocate myself on it but to no avail. It was all the more frustrating as it was the same path I had walked up to the start of the Prologue. Eventually I realised the path was on the side of the map I had folded away. I then realised where I was, ran back to the spur, found the wrong control again and then headed down the spur, finding my control.
#8 was the next problem I had. Although it's only a short leg, it's in the 'walk' forest, so it takes you longer to get places in it. After finding 7, I headed up the spur, and eventually found a rough-open-topped hill. One of these is marked on the map beyond #8, but I didn't realise that I was on another one, which happened to be within the control circle! So, I headed back and ended up finding #7 again. I then decided to follow a nearby wall through the green, found the hill again and then kept going. The control was visible from the wall.
I lost time on the way to number 10 since I took a silly route out of number 9, desperate to get out of the green. I almost had to double back on myself as I got out of the green and back into the runnable stuff.
Overall, a disappointing run. I shouldn't have lost the time I did at number 5, if only I'd run down the spur I would have done a lot better.
As mentioned in the Prologue, SGB finished 42 seconds ahead of me, so he headed off 42 seconds before me in the chase. I also headed off 5 seconds behind some other guy who I managed to beat to the first 2 controls.
However, I lost this other guy at number 3. I was trying, perhaps a bit too hard, not to let him past, but screwed up and he must have passed me again at number 3. Since it was a chasing start, it was more of a race than usual, you really are racing the other people out there. Perhaps I was trying too hard to not let him past and not trying hard enough to read the map.
Number 5 was my worst mistake of the weekend. Up until that point I hadn't seen a single wrong control, something that was particularly helpful since the control stakes didn't have numbers on the sides, just a sticky label on top of the SI box. I was on the correct spur, but too high, which I should have realised, but instead I chose to relocate, and found a path. However, I wandered up and down the path trying to relocate myself on it but to no avail. It was all the more frustrating as it was the same path I had walked up to the start of the Prologue. Eventually I realised the path was on the side of the map I had folded away. I then realised where I was, ran back to the spur, found the wrong control again and then headed down the spur, finding my control.
#8 was the next problem I had. Although it's only a short leg, it's in the 'walk' forest, so it takes you longer to get places in it. After finding 7, I headed up the spur, and eventually found a rough-open-topped hill. One of these is marked on the map beyond #8, but I didn't realise that I was on another one, which happened to be within the control circle! So, I headed back and ended up finding #7 again. I then decided to follow a nearby wall through the green, found the hill again and then kept going. The control was visible from the wall.
I lost time on the way to number 10 since I took a silly route out of number 9, desperate to get out of the green. I almost had to double back on myself as I got out of the green and back into the runnable stuff.
Overall, a disappointing run. I shouldn't have lost the time I did at number 5, if only I'd run down the spur I would have done a lot better.
Thursday Apr 20, 2006 #
Running 33:44 [3] 7.5 km (4:30 / km) +110m 4:11 / km
Training run up to the mobile phone mast. I was still feeling the after-effects of Tuesday's circuits session. I had the stamina but not the power, so I was running slower than usual. Still, I guess it's better to have stamina than speed for a weekend's worth of technical orienteering in the Lake District.
Tuesday Apr 18, 2006 #
Circuits 1:00:00 [5]
As previously hinted, this was indeed a circuit without equipment. Last time I described it as an 'orgy of pain', and this time it really was painful! The closest thing to exercise I did since last week's session was walking around Foreland Point looking for a geocache, so it probably wasn't unexpected.
When there is a circuit without equipment, the instructor usually varies the exercises done, this circuit reminded me of similar sessions about this time last year. In particular, it's been quite a while since we've done The Plank for a minute three times. Diamond pressups followed the third Plank, I remember being almost completely unable to lift myself off the floor!
Anyway, Brookes exam season is approaching, which invariably means more sessions like this. The sports hall is used for exams and there's no room for the equipment if 60% of the hall is taken up with tables. Hopefully I should definitely be able to get on better with one of these circuits next time than I did this time.
When there is a circuit without equipment, the instructor usually varies the exercises done, this circuit reminded me of similar sessions about this time last year. In particular, it's been quite a while since we've done The Plank for a minute three times. Diamond pressups followed the third Plank, I remember being almost completely unable to lift myself off the floor!
Anyway, Brookes exam season is approaching, which invariably means more sessions like this. The sports hall is used for exams and there's no room for the equipment if 60% of the hall is taken up with tables. Hopefully I should definitely be able to get on better with one of these circuits next time than I did this time.