Orienteering (Foot) 1:15:29 [4] *** 5.42 mi (13:56 / mi) +222m 12:21 / mi
spiked:10/16c slept:8.0 weight:192lbs
QOC: Wheaton Regional Park. For the early controls on the Red course, I felt slow. The last 3rd of the race I felt that I was moving better. Having done the remapping of Wheaton and some minor expansions I knew the map too well. It felt like I wasn't navigating so well, as much as just knowing where to go. Wheaton tends to be green too and that tends to disrupt my navigation more. Michael Dickey had also done a good job setting the course in this small place where practically all legs have been set before. There were 210 entrants registered and we started at Pine Lake.
S-1 - I went down the left fork of the trails and cut in before the first reentrant. Stopping in that reentrant, I felt silly and went on straight to spike it. I probably lost 10 seconds due to not reading the map well enough.
1-2 - I took the trail and used it to climb slightly above the control. I didn't see the small rocks and that worried me. Michael had warned me that there was a need to update the map where a tree had fallen. I didn't realize it was on this leg, near this control. I went to the wrong side of the fallen tree, and climbed up to the old rootstock after getting around the newer fallen tree.
2-3 - I used trail heading south and eastward. I approached the control from the paved trail bend to the north. There was an intermittent trail or a deer trail leading very close to the control in the gully. I was slow on the climb.
3-4. Someone had been making new trails going in the direction of the next control--perhaps mountain bikers, which is unusual and not permitted in this park. I ignored them and ran SW to the paved trail near the school. Using dirt rails to get near the ice rink, I ran in-between the ball fields to just east of the control. It was less hilly that way, and I got to use more trails, than the route that uses the paved trails more.
4-5 - I chose to run around on the paved trail and attacked from the north. This may have been a little slower but took less energy.
5-6 - I used the road and parking lots, the came across fields to the fenced nursery area for Brookside Gardens. I attacked from a bend in the fence, down a reentrant. I'd been tailing another guy and gaining ground. He headed into what i'd mapped dark green as I got to the rootstock.
6-7 - I wasn't reading the map as much as I should have. I headed off somewhat straight expecting to hit the intermittent trail, but I was above it. I did read enough to know how many ditches to cross and saw the control from afar.
7-8 - I headed to the dirt road, then across the fields to the playground. Lots of kids were there and I ran with my arm to my mouth and nose. running along the edge of the forest, I decided to plunge in just before the field corner. That was a bad choice that cost me 10-15 seconds in going through and around some thorns.
8-9 - I got down to the train tracks and cut right to get around the green forest with the stream. Entering the forest again, I went right across the small mapped marsh and could see the control ahead.
9-10 - I didn't want to go up and punch through the green. I tried to pickup the old intermittent trail that is disappearing. At first I was surprised to see that it was looking well used. That ended quickly after reaching the ridge top. After passing a side reentrant, I misread the center of the broken control and went to the bottom of the gully first. I lost about 10-15 seconds.
10-11 - I picked up the paved trail, then left it crossing the stream to get closer to the fieldhouse. I'd seen Ken Walker Jr. do this when I'd arrived. The map showed it to be green in this area and I could tell that the park service had cut back the growth (it'll probably grow back soon enough). I was able to spike the control on the shallow ditch, but I hadn't seen it from across the larger reentrant until I was right on it, due to it being behind a fallen tree.
11-12 - I ran straight across 2 trails and emerged on the 3rd a little south of the dirt road intersection that I'd wanted. Taking that to the maintenance yard parking lot corner, I went right back into the forest. My aim was bad. I ended up well above the gully, where I paused before going down to it.
12-13 - I felt like I was dog-legging it a bit as I ran up over the hill to the north. I saw Max heading to the control I'd just been to. He later told me he had been tailing me for a few controls. I got slowed in the green and unnecessary hill climbing and later once across the maintenance road, I hesitated deciding which trail would be faster. Max came up behind me as I took off. I chose a more direct route with less trail which crossed open forest. There I could run like I used to, going downhill. I kept running crossing trails and the stream to get to the gully system cleanly. However, I hadn't read the map well enough--the broken circle confused me on the run. Even though I looked in multiple directions in this familiar place, I somehow didn't see the control on my left, and I passed it to the next gully intersection below. As I came back, I saw Max coming in and he punched just before me. With all the baubles I think I lost 20 seconds on my route.
An even better route I figured out after the race, would have been to go out the east and to have used the road.
13-14 - I cut right of going straight to avoid some of the greenery. Max had gotten caught-up in it and I passed him before the creek crossing. I went straight and was just a little to the right as I saw others leaving the control.
14-15 - I went straight on this climbing leg. There was new deadfall just before the mapped old deadfall that the control was on. I led Max around it on the right side and spiked the control.
15-16 - Max said goodbye and I wasn't sure if that meant he had a different control or not. I went due west, crossed the creek on the bridge, and cut uphill at the next intersection. I decided to use trails to the south after this, but in hindsight, straight might have been better. I attacked from a trail bend while running fast and didn't pause to set a bearing. I saw a control ahead in a reentrant or ditch and the magnet pulled me in even though I knew the dot knoll that the control was on. I got near the trail to the north, the cut south. I probably lost close to a minute.
16-F - Continuing my bad decisions, I was worried about crossing the green on the route to the paved trail (right side of the dog park). I ran up the reentrant, then walked up the hill through some light and dark green. This cost me a minute, and I found that Max had finished before me :( - at least he was running the Green course.
Somehow I won the Red course by just a little bit. More competitors were on Blue and Green.