Training Log Archive: Nadim

From Westbard Ave. to Ridgefield Rd., to Brookside Dr., to Woodlawn Ave., to Kennedy Dr., to Bradley Blvd., to Wilson Ln., to Aberdeen Rd., to Aberdeen Pl./Garfield St., to Northfield Rd. After breakfast with MCRRC, we went over to pickup Samantha's cake and I ran back. It was only around 50 F but the headwinds were strong. That and the generally uphill route kept me cool and feeling slow for most of the run.

From Northfield Rd., to Arlington Rd. in downtown Bethesda, near Elm St. Max and I rode to go buy him some new basketball shoes. It was dark and somewhat cool. We took our time going about it and walked to a second store.

From Northfield Rd., to the Bethesda Metro Station.

From the Bethesda Metro Station to Northfield Rd. I had planned on running but it didn't work into the schedule.

From Northfield Rd., to the Bethesda Metro Station.

From the Bethesda Metro Station to Northfield Rd.

From Carderock Park, C&O Canal Towpath north toward Great Falls to Mile Marker 13, then back. It was around 63 F, sunny and breezy. It felt good. I could feel the headwind going out along the Widewater just before the turnaround. I kept focusing on my stride coming back--it's not so strong due to lack of training but I kept up a good pace. I took mile splits but the markers along here are so far off that they aren't worth reporting.

From Northfield Rd., to the Bethesda Metro Station.

From the Bethesda Metro Station to Northfield Rd. I had left my laptop at home so I went back to work from there.

From Northfield Rd. to Norfolk Ave., and Del Ray Ave. for lunch, then back.

QOC: Hemlock Overlook, Clifton, VA. I was hoping for a less hilly course but that's always difficult to achieve in this park. The course was rated at only 260m but I'd bet it was much more than that.

S-1 - I took the safe route on trails around the lake, rather than test the vegetation right off. Once across and into the fields, I cut right then attacked from the road bend. I got a little bit to the left but stopped and looked right soon enough to still call this a spike. I was glad that the forest where the control was, was pretty open rather than the green that it was mapped to be.

1-2 - I dog-legged back to the field and cut right; something that I'd do again a lot on this course. I had wanted to avoid the thicker forest on the straighter path along the edge of the field. I passed the trail to the lake, then took the next one from the field corner. I took the lower one to the big reentrant, then down to the creek, crossing it quickly. I followed the bottom of the hill around. It was out of the way and there was a ride/intermittent trail along the bottom but it was rocky and often too thick to run much. I figured in my shape, I needed to reduce the hill climbing so this route was probably best for me.

2-3 - I dog legged back along the bottom of the hillside, and crossed the stream to spike it.

3-4 - I went fairly straight, using the clearing at the top of the first hill, going across the east side of the big reentrants but still dropping through them, then climbing almost to the top of the hill above the control. It was a long way down, longer than expected.

4-5 - I dog legged back up the hill, then cut across to near the start of the course. I took the road past where we often start events, then cut in at the road intersection. I must have been running on a poor bearing because things didn't match up for a short while. Once to the ride, I was okay again but I started reading the wrong leg line, just like last week. I started heading toward #10 but caught my error before crossing the creek. I came up over the hill from the stream intersection north of the control, and hit the reentrant well. Time lost - 30 seconds.

5-6 - Once again, I started reading the wrong leg and began running toward #14. I might otherwise have done more contouring around. I realized my error on the next hill top but had gotten far enough east that when I crossed the next stream, I entered a reentrant on the other side that was east of the control. Of course at the top of that I didn't see the control so I ran west to it. Time Lost - 90 seconds.

6-7 - I ran a little south of the leg line, crossed the creek and got onto the trail. I cut off one broad corner and had trouble finding the trail again in the fallen leaves but I kept running and attacked from the reentrant bottom, south of the control. Like other races, my heel/arch problem started hurting on this leg.

7-8 - I had just about caught someone at #7. He was probably on another course and was mostly walking. I tried to keep running but I think my bearing was off to the left. At the top, I cut right and could see the big broad reentrant on my right but somehow I ended up one or 2 reentrants over to the left. I paused a while and cut right more, along the steeper parts of the hillside, passing some cliffs on the way to the control and I also saw the guy who'd been walking come-in a little behind me. Time Lost 1:15.

8-9 - I felt that I wasn't navigating very well so far so I needed to take more trails. The trail had less climb but was longer. The fallen leaves were making parts of the main trail hard to read so at one point, I missed a bend. It was okay since I missed it right where the ride started (even though the mapping didn't show this intersection). I followed the ride to south of the control, and attacked from the hillside of the broad reentrant to spike it.

9-10 - I ran straight, using the right side of the big reentrant until the stream intersection NW of the control. I crossed the intersection and noted that I'd stepped in some smelly marshy water. I'd been closing in on a woman who I'd seen headed this way before I'd attacked #9 but on the attack up the hill toward #10, she zipped ahead, not wanting me to pass her.

10-11 - The woman whom I'd caught dropped early. I went south and followed the spur to the next stream intersection. I stayed low until I could follow reentrants up and attack from the top of one. My bearing was perfect and I spiked the control.

11-12 - I went straight at it, and confirmed my position by seeing the big spur to the west. Though I spiked it, I was hesitant nearing the control.

12-13 - Going straight, it seemed like a really big hill after crossing the creek. I checked my progress at a ditch on the climb and spiked it.

13-14 - I went north of the line a little to reduce climb but in retrospect going south of the line would have been better. I spiked it coming through the green, and trusting my bearing rather than following the first long ditch I came across.

14-15 - I went through the green to the ride, then used it a short way before going in again. I wanted to pass under #3 but I ended up passing north of it. I also passed north of #10. I knew I was off by then but not exactly where until I neared a stream intersection and smelled marshy water--I knew from the smell (first time ever) that I was just north of #10, since I'd been there earlier. I'd seen Tom Nolan approaching #14 just as I was leaving it and at one point I looked over and saw him nearby again--he was headed to a different control but I still presume I lost a good bit of time. I ran hillsides from there and spiked the control. I did see Victoria Campbell coming from an unexpected direction and probably going to #9, though at the time, I figured she was going to #15 too. Time Lost 90 seconds.

15-16 - Leaving #15 I automatically headed up the hill. I had thought I was in a different part of the park, north of #15. Realizing this, I turned back. It seemed better to drop back to the trail though in retrospect, I would have been fine going straight. Time Lost 30 seconds.

#16-F - I went a bit left of the line. I had expected needing to cut through here before starting and had been looking for easy ways through. Unfortunately I didn't see the best one till after the race.

Overall, this felt like a better run than last week. I continued to get stronger and my errors lost me less time, despite making more of them. I enjoyed the course except for the early northern part where it's so green and hilly.

Blue - Splits