Training Log Archive: Bomb

Stage 4. another long - similar terrain to stage 3, but set with heaps of long legs and lots of track running... which then launched into bingo controls in the limestone. managed to lose heaps of time on 1 with a control in the bottom of a deep pit, in an area of limestone pavement covered in fallen timber. I wasn't sure enough going into this area and any extra distance to relocate or check where you are costs way too much time. the next section was quite good, and even got a couple of legs of running in the forest instead of tracks, then screwed up big time on a complex track intersection which launched me down the wrong slope and into the wrong forest block. got a decent distance away from where I should have been before things stopped matching, and then took a while to get back to the right area. very stupid. another big time loss here, for about 15mins altogether, and lost the over all by 4. annoying, but it meant that I didn't win the massive coffee machine, which would have been a cool, but inconvenient prize.

made it back from the event to geneva in time to make my flight, although the drive back across the mountains was a bit faster than I'd planned to need to do.

pretty good week, and some good intense navigation, but not as much running orienteering as I would have liked... now for scotland.

C • Jura 2

Stage 3 "middle" on Le Mont Noir. More in the forest and scrappier tougher terrain, with some small areas of really nice running forest. a couple of time losses - wussed out on the most direct route over a hill because all I could see at the start was fallen trees and rubbish, but I should have toughened up and gone through cos round was too far. miss-interpreted some areas around new forestry later on as well. the map seemed very simplified and I found I was very hesitant with planning legs. Bit down on time today - local girl Lea Vercellotti ran 48.

Stage 2 in Mouthe. Hot day and figured I was in for a long race. there was also no water on courses which was going to make it a bit tougher. the distance seemed a bit long for the expected winning time, and it proved to be. the course was set as a very long middle style - there were a lot of tracks, but not too much opportunity to run on them. the forest was tough but really nice and the limestone detail was interesting but a bit inconsistently mapped. I ended up running a fair bit with a few of the M35s who were on my course, but they were really no help. they were a bit faster running, but pretty useless at finding the controls.
I got quite tired at the end, and the heat and dehydration started to hurt in the last part of the course. won the stage though, and the day prize was some local sausage, which sorted dinner.

run to the start, and token warm down. very hot by the time I finished and no shade anywhere.

Event: 4 JOURS DE FRANCE O DOUBS (French 4 Days)
 

French 4 days Stage 1 sprint in a little village - La Riviere Drugeon. Map also included the surrounding fields. nice sprint, with plenty of big route choices as the river through town had limited crossings. clean run - main time loss was on a wall where the control description was incorrect so ran to where the description said the control was rather than the actual control location. 2nd - 30 secs behind.

Sprint course in the neighbouring town - Bouverans, which didn't count towards the overall. fairly boring for the first half - mainly through fields, then got better as we came back through town. this sprint went into quite a few of the winter barns, with cows in. made for some interesting route choices, and plenty of interesting smells! 2 small misses - didn't see a crossing point on a fence which would have shortened a leg by quite a bit, then over-ran an intersection and ran around an extra building.

warm up for the first race, and the run to and from bouverans.

walk with dad on Tennyson down and out to the needles... not that we could see them. total white out and howling gale. pub lunch after was good.