Training Log Archive: Vector

Flew from Texas to Canada to Mexico back to Texas all in 1 day! 3 countries in 1 day, and not the small kind!

Elliptical

Amateur radio / "HAM" Technician license test. Aced it, 100%. Just took my geekiness to a whole new level! Should get my callsign by the end of next week.

Kayaking and island landings w/ son.

Landed on a couple islands. Found a pre-schooler's balloon launch project. Preschooler from Bangor, MI launched a ballon w/ his class yesterday for their last day of school and attached a post card asking whoever finds it to mail it back so they can see how far it went. I found it in the east-middle area of Winnewana Lake tangled on stick. Not bad, 102 miles. Almost crossed the whole state!

C • if you could traverse the &... 2

Conditioning/weights

Conditioning/weights

Event: SMOC Training Camp
 

Elliptical

Elliptical

Elliptical.

Initial meeting at Chelsea Amateur Radio Club to start getting people informed about ARDF / Radio-O. Will make formal presentation and show and tell next month if not flying that day. It's great timing because the club just started building their own antennas and is talking about next steps! Lucky for them there are several mapped venues already surrounding them. I should be able to do an introductory session with them by his summer, and then get things going with other clubs and hosting a radio-O event next spring.

C • can non radio people try it to? 5

Event: SMOC Peach Mountain + April Fools O
 

Conducted Scout training for rank advancement tasks as well as orienteering merit badge requirements. A lot more chilly than expected. Got all rank advancement tasks complete and about 60% of the orienteering merit badge.

Sounds like most everyone had a great time and did well for their 1st hack at it. ~20 people that were totally new to orienteering came, had fun, and exercised their bodies and spatial part of the brain, so can only call that a success.

This format of morning training followed by afternoon race was a trial balloon. I think it worked well enough to keep doing it. Both the Birch Run troop and the Chelsea Pack are planning on making return visits to SMOC events in the future. Very proud of the scouts from Chelsea Ward Troop who went out as a team of 2 and killed it on Yellow after #2.

All around pretty happy with how this went, so I plan to keep at it.

Peach Mountain Red. I screwed up #3 quite a bit. Also a few bobbles along the way but good groove for most of it.

Saw this type of bird (Scarlet Tanager) a few times today both on the course and picking up controls. One of the coolest birds I've seen and this picture (from the web) doesn't do its super bright red color justice:

C • A black-winged red bird? 11

Control pickup. Especially at #70.

Red - Splits

More field checking, trail mapping, etc at Winnewana NW. Found several rock piles this time.

Came home after my Troop committee meeting and basically became a non-stop orienteering call center for 3 hours for scouts/scout leaders/parents that want to come on Saturday answering questions, providing details, etc. Looks like about 11 scouts, 3 cub scouts, and some adult leaders coming from 3 different troops and 1 pack. The local cub scout pack already put this on their calendar for next year and they want to send the whole pack next time, not just 1 den like this time.

In other news every orienteering merit badge counselor I've reached out to except one had no idea SMOC is a thing!!

C • Thanks for your work!! 2

Field checking Winnewana NW. Found some more trails. Couldn't find one of the mapped trails. Feeling a little overwhelmed by this one but it will be totally awesome when its ready for competition!

Given the vegetation I'd say this is definitely a later winter/early spring venue, or late fall... but the problem with late fall is the hunting season of course.

Had another thought about this venue... Winnewana could be a perfect Paddle-O amphibious assault-style orienteering venue! There are several islands, lots of peninsulas, and if you cross the lake to the south you enter the Waterloo HQ map!

Went out on the Peach Mountain Yellow to pick out measurable height and width objects for the scouts to measure during their Yellow course on Sat.

Accomplished in about an hour at a very leisurely, slow pace walking never running.

One of the best Yellows I've seen. Multiple times where competitors will almost forced to consider leaving the trail and if they do so successfully can be rewarded for doing so in some spots...but of course will lose time if their effort fails. Controls are all visible from the trail if the orienteer is actually paying close attention, but easily missed if your head isn't in the game. And the scenery and varied vegetation and exposure to map symbols are outstanding! Loved it so much I told Becca she absolutely has to give it a run on Sat.

C • that's great! 1

Night run