Training Log Archive: Nadim

From Northfield Rd., to Bradley Blvd., to Seven Locks Rd., to Democracy Blvd., to Falls Rd., to Tuckerman Ln. to Old Georgetown Rd., to Huntington Pkwy. to Custer Rd., to Northfield Rd. Starting out it was about 90 F, and I was still feeling jet-lagged. Both my right knee and right calf were hurting. I have no idea why my calf was hurting but it got better and wasn't hurting in the last half of the ride. My knee was hurting less by the end. It was easier finishing up since the winds were favorable. I was about a minute slower than the last time I did this.

Nashville, TN. Since our transfer flight got cancelled, our stopover in Nashville was made long enough for us to have a leisurely walk in the city. We started by looping the State Capital Building and passing by the State Library, and the State Supreme Court. We got on Rep. John Lewis Way to get to Broadway, then walked to the river and back up Broadway to the Walk of Fame Park. The city was vibrant and even raucous for a Wednesday. Our Lift driver later told us that the city was trying to become a place that never sleeps. He said they were just about successful except for about 2 wee hours. Though smaller, the bar area on Broadway was about as loud or louder as a mid-week Time Square in New York. Max thought the bars or musicians were competing with each other by trying to be the loudest. Lots of young people, and many older, were walking around. What werre perhaps bachelor and bachelorette parties were either being driven around on trucks and tractor pulled trailers, or propelling themselves on big multi-party cycles (about 10 people using pedal power to drive a single vehicle). They were all hooting and hollering fun. Peggy wondered what it'd be like on a weekend. Lots of buildings in the area were relatively new but they were intermixed with older ones. I particularly liked the wall murals all over the place. It got cooler in the evening. I thought I was seeing lots of bats flying high--thousands and thousands of them. When we got closer we could see they were birds--probably swallows. Unfortunately, one of them dive bombed my arm. We got back to the airport and reached home after 2am.

Marin Headlands. Conzelman Rd., to Battery Spencer, to overlook the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco, CA. We only had a short while for this because we had to get into the city to catch our boat to Alcatraz. The views were great and it was the first time on our trip that we could actually see the full bridge. Each time earlier, it had been partly obscured in clouds or fog.

From Pier 31 to Pier 33 to catch our boat to Alcatraz Island, walking around to be island and the jailhouse, the walking up to Beach St. And Hyde St. To catch the trolley cars for some rides, then walking back to Pier 31 where we parked. We had a windy but sunny day to see Alcatraz. This adds to our vacation time jail tours in Laramie, WY and Boise, ID. When we were in San Francisco city earlier, the trolley cars were not open to the public (COVID-19 pandemic social distancing reasons) but this time they were running and free! Max and I hung on from the side as we went to and from Chinatown. We rushed back after all of this to make sure we’d be able to get our rental car out of the parking lot before it closed. We drove across the Bay Bridge leaving the city to wind down our vacation.

Alcatraz Island, CA. Peggy, Max, Samantha, and I toured parts of the island that were open, including the prison. The prison brought fame to this place but was only a relatively short, ~30 year period. The army had used this to protect CA during the gold rush, and housed WWII prisoners there. American Indians had briefly taken-back the island in protest in the late 1960s too. The place was windy and somewhat cold. The prison period ended in the early 1960s and it was amazing how dilapidated the buildings had become from the weather.

BAOC Relay. This was in Burton Creek State Park, but it started from North Tahoe High School. Though this event was much delayed, it was still enjoyable. I ran on a fully QOC Male Masters team with Jon Torrance leading off. I took the second leg, and Vitalin Aleksiev finished. There were so many categories to compete in that various groups had to break themselves up to fit in the best races with many considered to run-up. Our team, QOC Over the Hill, won Male Masters. QOC people did well. Max ran with Kevin Fisher and Joseph Barrett to get 4th in the Men Elite division. Sidney Fisher, Diana Aleksieva, and Anna Campbell got first in the Women Elite class. The terrain was tricky, with not a lot to relocate to when one missed. Maps were being printed the morning of the event and one person speculated that the older map had gotten used.

I had chased an RMOC team on my first leg, pulled up short and a little low. I went back to some boulders to relocate, then hit the control well. On my second leg, I spiked it but I just felt slow going up a rather gradual hill. It was advertised as a 5m contour map but intermediate 2.5m contours were show everywhere across the map, making it seem much steeper. Though dashed, it wasn't easy to see that when on the run. On my short 3rd leg, I dropped into the correct stream reentrant (dry) but didn't get out of it quickly enough; I had to come back a short way to a dot knoll. My 4th leg was the worst. I chose to go straight--the road route seemed too far out of the way but in retrospect it wasn't a bad option. I started well crossing the first and second trails where I expected to. I went awry when I interpreted a bit of pine trees as a mapped green area. I adjusted my route based on it like I had in the Long event the day before, and then things didn't make sense. I never should have thought I was at the green area since I hadn't yet crossed the 3rd trail. I walked a bit and wandered a little. Going on to the trail and stream I recovered from what could have been a bigger error, but I easily lost 4-5 minutes. I took the road to #5 and got to the boulder without losing time, but I did check a boulder or 2 just before getting there. The rest was just about running speed. The 6th control was kind of a spectator control just outside the event stadium and the next 2 were at trail intersections. Neither Jon nor Vido had runs that they were proud about either, but we somehow managed to make smaller errors than our competitors.

Little Truckee Summit, CA. From the parking area off Rte. 89, Max and I walked Holcombs Rd. to what is called Rte. 11. That's where the US Orienteering Long Championship was to start.

Walking a little further along Rte. 11 to the start of the US Orienteering Long Championship.

BAOC US Orienteering Long Championship on the Sagehen map, Little Truckee Summit. I had troubles today.

S-1 - Starting out, I did okay getting up the big hill and veering left to where the running/walking was easier (to some mapped rocky ground at the crest of a change in contour). I adjusted my bearing from there and spiked it.

1-2 - For this long leg, my plan was to use the contours more than the mapped rides. I stayed in the reentrant, then along the hillside to my left, at the edge of trees and field. I was hard to figure out what was what in the greener areas and areas mapped as marsh. However, I felt that I was right of the line as I crossed the marsh and began climbing. Contours were supporting that, but there wasn't a lot to go on. I adjusted left, no seeing any boulders. I didn't try to locate the mapped trail just north of the control. Greg Alswede passed me but I kept my route. Figuring from the change in slope angle, that I'd gone far enough, I cut left some more. Not seeing anything for a while, I figured it best to suck it up and relocate. My GPS track shows that I was probably 10m from the control when I decided to relocate. I chose the change in contour west of the control. Practice doing field checking gave me good confidence so I turned around and attacked. I was successful and happy about that! I'd probably lost about 3 minutes.

2-3 - I tried to run straight but the vegetation pushed me right. I adjusted and spiked the control!

3-4 - I hadn't considered using the road since it seemed to far away, and I had to climb anyway. I again used contours more than any of the mapped rides. Getting to the south (right) side of the hilltop, I located a cliff and thought it was the mapped blob. I came to the north of the control, dropped down, went north from below, then climbed back up. Next I went hunting slopes further south. I probably came thought the mapped green but it was low vegetation (Manzenita or Juniper?). I couldn't see any cliffs. The rock that the control was on was small compared to other mapped rock I'd seen. I thought it was placed incorrectly. Later people who'd come from the road and below told me that the mapped cliffs were visible and that the control was placed correctly. My GPS track shows I'd lost 4:30 minutes.

4-5 - I contoured out of #4 to get across the reentrant. I thought this would have put me significantly to the left (west) of the control. Walking up the steep slope but not quite to the top, I even thought I might have been rounding the NW side of the hilltop. After crossing the trail, I cut to the right and descended. I saw nothing below me but the weather station, and that wasn't mapped. The contours there told me I needed to go left some more. After committing to doing that, I saw the stony ground. It seemed I had to go a long way. I estimate that I lost 2-3 minutes.

5-6 - I ran straight. Though I knew I was going a little to the right to reduce climb, the contour wasn't making a lot of sense as I got to the saddle climbing for what seemed like a long time. From there I tried to set a bearing but ended up a little high. Recognizing the change in contour, I dropped toward and around the green to hit the control well. If I lost any time it was about 10-15 seconds.

6-7 - I went straight. At the road crossing, my exact position was inconclusive. At the hilltop, I found myself on the right side, when I should have been on the left. It seemed odd since I felt I was following the bearing well, with not a lot of obstacles to pull me off. I adjusted to the left and that turned out to be wrong (had I gone on my bearing I would have spiked the control, and it makes me think there was some distortion in the LiDAR here, since it was a flattish knoll). There weren't any catching features nearby. Another runner was to my right but I think my presence pulled him off his line, to mine. I tried to use the slope and tree line to determine how far to go. I did a big loop, walking much of the time. Finally climbing back, a woman asked me if I was hunting for the same control. I said I was. Shortly afterward, I spotted it. My GPS track shows that I lost 5:45 minutes.

7-8 - I took off after this but drifted left. The woman who was behind me at #7 had gotten to the control a bit ahead of me.

8-9 - I was being careful with setting my bearing. This was a short leg and I didn't catch the woman who'd gotten to #8 ahead of me.

9-10 - I didn't use the road initially. The woman who was ahead of me did. I got the the road just behind her, then sprinted ahead to punch #10 first.

10-F - I pushed the last half of this and felt pretty good after coming down the hill from #7.

As I count it, I lost 14-15 minutes. I had trouble inside the circle and outside of it. I didn't expect to place 2nd in my age group but others had worse problems. Still others hadn't competed. I would have liked to do this over, using some different routes. My GPS track indicates 7.065 Km and 465m climb! I'd come downhill on some descents, especially near the end, that my foot was hurting. My Integrator shoes, both of them, had actually broken apart at the heal. I'd never seen this happen before. I had to throw them away :(

Little Truckee Summit, CA. Walking back from the US Championships event center on Rte 11., to the parking area on Rte. 89. Max had gone ahead without me knowing it. I caught and passed Peggy and Samantha.

C6 - Splits