Orienteering race (Long) 1:18:16 [5] *** 6.5 km (12:02 / km) +270m 9:58 / km
ahr:144 max:172 spiked:9/11c
Finally, a good run. Long O Champs at Saylor Park, about 30 minutes north of Woodland Park, CO.
I spiked all but two of the controls, and one was about a minute error, searching through big rocks to find the control, and the other was a 30 second error on the GO control. I overran it, and consequently lost the gold medal to Dan Davis. Both of us were pretty close throughout the race. We would usually arrive at the control less than 15 seconds apart, go our separate ways, and meet back up at the next control. At about the 8th or 9th control, I was thinking it probably would end up with a sprint to the finish, and it almost happened. I hit the road to the GO control just as Dan was climbing up to it, probably about 10 meters ahead of him. For some reason I am concentrating on the fact it is just past the bend in the road, and I see a bend ahead of me. However, as I pick up speed, I notice I am going downhill, and it is turning open, and the control was at the top of a hill, just to the right of the road. I look back, and see Dan popping back onto the road after having punched. I was about 20 meters past the control, and although I pushed my heart rate to its maximum, I came in about 12 seconds after he did. Great race. It would have been nice to win the gold, but I was so pleased that I had run a relatively clean race after 3 days of unmitigated disaster that I was elated.
Actual distance ran, 7.95 k, 340 meters climb, and 575 calories burned.