Training Log Archive: Nadim

Lake Needwood, MD. I got a late start and couldn't stay long to do much field checking today. I actually spent 2/3's of the time checking and fixing what I'd gotten drafted since my last outing. I fixed a lot and hope it will make for a much better map. Of the new areas that I went over, I continued finding more rock low but I also found a line of some going up a hillside. There were various rootstocks and dot knolls on the hillside too.

From Northfield Rd., to Montgomery Ave. with Max in his trailer via the Georgetown Branch Trail tunnel, then to the Bethsda Metro Station, back to Northfield Rd., then back to the Bethesda Metro Station. I was tired enough from being up late last night and riding all they way in the last two days that I thought a shorter ride would be better. More rain is predicted too. With the switch-up, I got to the metro station the first time only to realize that I left my lock at home (I use another that I keep at work when I ride all the way in) so I had to go back.

From the Bethesda Metro Station, to Montgomery Ave. to pickup Max's trailer then to Northfield Rd. via the Air Rights Building tunnel.

From Northfield Rd. to Montgomery Ave. with Max in his trailer, then to C St., SW, Washington, D.C. via the Capital Crescent Trail and Ohio Dr. I rode a bit faster than the day before for most of the ride and felt like I was taking it easy in some places but I strained more toward the end. There were a few places with congestion and the winds were again from the SE--headwinds.

From C St . SW, Washington, D.C. to Montgomery Ave., then to Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD. Well after lunch I was tracking the progress of a storm on the National Weather Service's radar map to know what to expect on my ride home. It wasn't that big and was over Wheeling, VW when I first saw it. From the animation, I could tell it was going to hit Washington, D.C. and I even got the timing pretty close--I figured it be finishing-up as it was time for me to go home. I hung around waiting for it to die-downabout as long as I could without getting my bike locked-in a courtyard, then started out in a steady but thankfully warm rain. At the first opportunity to see the western sky, I could see a clear end of the clouds--unusual since most thunderstorms arrive suddenly then end gradually. I got wet but the top half of me was about as dry as usual after passing through Georgetown. I kept a fair but easier pace yet I still started tiring out and slowed. I got rather hungry and somewhat hypo-glycemic. My cycle computer had segments of tracking washed out so the time is an estimate.

From Northfield Rd. to Montgomery Ave. with Max in his trailer, then to C St., SW, Washington, D.C. via the Capital Crescent Trail and Ohio Dr. The big difference in today's ride was nothing visible in the stats but it made a big difference to me in how enjoyable the ride was--I rode the entire way without any chain skipping for the first time in over 6 months. After having changed-out the rear cassette last year and the front chain rings last week, changing the chain was the thing that did it! Shifting was nice and quiet and I didn't have to constantly rebuild speed. There was some traffic along the way. As luck would have it, no other cyclists passed me but it was slower riding in DC--especially crossing under the bridges near the Lincoln Memorial. Technically the trail is closed there but they haven't started any construction work yet and going around would have taken me through more traffic. There were some winds fromt the SE and it was in the mid 70s F right from the begining.

I noted some achilles tendon pain on my right leg this morning before and after the ride. I felt it again as I was getting ready to ride home. I had done some quick stretching during the day here and there.

From C St . SW, Washington, D.C. to Montgomery Ave., then to Northfield Rd., Bethesda, MD. It was nice getting out of work and riding home. I had a tailwind till around the water treatment plant, then it was neutral. I spun well most of the time. Leaving Georgetown, two apparantly older guys passed me. I let them go but caught one anyway just keeping my pace. I was 39:45 at Montgomery Ave.

From Northfield Rd., to Montgomery Ave. with Max in his trailer via the Georgetown Branch Trail tunnel, then to the Bethsda Metro Station. It felt much hotter and stickier than the ~74 F it was supposed to have been. I had anticipated rain (50% chance). The weekend had also been so busy too that I didn't change my bike chain and I decided not to try to ride all the way in to work. My hands felt rather tingly and tired at work.

From the Bethesda Metro Station, to Montgomery Ave. I expected to only pickup Max's trailer but as I turned into the parking lot, I saw Max and Peggy. As usual, Max asked to or more or less told us that he wanted to go with me. We loaded-up, then went to Northfield Rd. via the Air Rights Building tunnel. It was in the upper 80s or low 90s F and humid. I spun my way along but there was a lot of traffic on Bethesda Ave.

From Northfield Rd. backroads to River Rd., Capital Crescent Trail (CCT) to the Little Falls Trail near Dalecarlia, Falls Rd. to River Rd. to the CCT, to Glenbrook Rd. to Park St. to Custer Rd. to Moreland Ln. to McKinley St. to the other side of Old Georgetown Rd. to Moreland Rd. to Northfield Rd. We went for a family ride with lunch at McDonalds (Max's choice) and after looping further, Max (on his Trail-A-Bike) stopped off at one his friends houses before I went home. It was around 90F and humid.

Lake Needwood Park, Montgomery County, MD. I got out early enough to take advantage of the cool air before it got hot. However, I was out long enough for the heat to catch up with me when I tried to map some sunny areas. It was mostly nice and quiet wherever I was in the woods. I was able to get within a foot or 2 of a baby deer all nestled into the the base of a rootstock. I walked-up on a box turtle without it retreating into its shell. I also spied what appeared to be a wild turkey hunkered down by a stream and it never took off. I was rather quiet myself because I wasn't moving much. I kept coming across point features--they don't call it Rock Creek for nothing--and it took a lot of time to align them. I didn't really get onto 2 other big hills that I'd hoped to knock off today. However, I still have hopes for those parts going fast since above the creeks, the hillsides tend to be broad with few reentrants and point features--just really nice open woods.

Black Hills Regional Park, Montgomery Co., MD. An impromptu training event was put together on an unfinished new map and done as a cell-phone-o. Peggy and I partnered while Max played with other kids whose parents were running too. There was quite a chatter going on at the start/finish area where people were directing their runners. When I ran, I had the advantage of having directed Peggy before my own run. I already had a memory of the map, and a feel for what some symbols would look like as I got to them. For added incentive, partner times were added together to compare against other pairs. Some control features were not set with a bag but instead used some permanant controls which were just a wooden post. The bags helped. Peggy and I generally directed each other along safe routes and it overall it worked! Even when we tried harder routes, we had success. There was one 400m leg that I went on bearing, kind of following a hillside toward a ridge. David Onkst was with me on that leg. I unfortunately lost him by getting to a control that Peggy never found--one of the wooden posts. This one was just planted in a broad reentrant, off a trail. Most control legs went smoothly and the harder part to sort out was when the director and runner had different ideas about where they were. Peggy and I worked through one of these as she was bringing me to the finish. On the run I used speaker phone mode when my arm got tired of holding the handset next to my ear. Ear buds might have worked too but could have gotten tangled in branches. It was fun!

I was as bit surprised that my left calf didn't hurt. I've had times when they healed fast before but this one felt so similar to what my right calf had done in March, that I'm not sure if I'm all healed on it or not. I still do sometimes still feel some pain in my right calf which I suspect is inflmation along the achilles tendon. It's when I rub the right calf that I feel it. I wore some trail shoes for the cell phone-o and maybe they were soft enough.