Training Log Archive: Sandy

I ended up 26 out of 66 in W55L. My placings were 22, 18, 33, 19, 26 and 32. The only day with big errors was the third day - lots of little things some of the other days and many route choices that were not the best on most of the days.

Another new type of terrain: open moorland covered with heather and some wet, grassy, boggy parts. The first 8 controls were fun orienteering up on top of the hill (mountain?) where there was lots of rock and contour detail and you just had to keep track of which hill or reentrant you were in. But it was incredibly physical since the heather was anywhere from knee to waist high for me so running was next to impossible. Then there was a looooong downhill leg - straight down 25 contour lines to one control and then 20 more to the next and then in to the finish. And my knees just gave out after about the first 50 meters of drop. I fell once and really wrenched my right knee and then stepped funny wrenching my left knee and it was pitiful how slowly I had to walk while everyone else went whizzing by. So while I really didn't have any errors (perhaps a couple of less than ideal route choices but never any concern about knowing where I was and where I was going) I ended up with almost my worst placing (32 out of 66). And while I now look back and think of the course as fun, I was not a happy camper coming down that hill and into the finish.

Event: Scottish Six Days Tay 2009