Training Log Archive: furlong47

Event: DVOA Rutgers Ecological Preserve
 

DVOA Rutgers - Green

Bummer of a day, as I had my first DNF (or technically MP I guess) in a while and it was a pretty bad mistake. Things were going well up until that point too. This place is kind of scrubby and it's easy to get into thorns/downfall/random nastiness. Anyway, I was headed from 10 to 11. 11 is on the very edge of the mapped area. Below it there is a big blank white area where the map has not been updated and thus was just removed. I must have gotten pulled to the left as I was weaving through the scrubby stuff. I hit the small trail, actually thought I was too far right for some reason, went left a very short distance and headed off on my bearing along what looked like an elephant track. Confirmation bias....

I figured that the stream on either side would funnel me down to their junction and I could attack from there. But since I was apparently outside the streams, that didn't happen. I encountered two boys (scouts?) at one point, after I had gone a decent distance, who said something weird about being barked at by a dog at a house near the control (which is not really super close to any houses). At this point I thought maybe I was in the rough open which looking at the map now makes zero sense.

I was weaving through some green when I started getting the feeling of having gone too far and also started to feel a bit panicky. Nothing had been recognizable for a while. I looked up and saw a house through the trees. Getting closer I realized they were very large buildings, which should not have been the case. I pushed through a bunch of thorns and came out in the parking lot of a retirement complex. Okay, now I had no clue where I was. I had passed through a large unmapped area of forest and was now in a large unmapped area of buildings and roads, but with no ability to use them to relocate.

Since the road was to the SW here, I ended up walking through the retirement complex in that general direction until I came out the main gate. At this point I was pretty sure I was on River Rd. but not certain because there were no signs. I started walking to the corner (now walking on a trail next to soccer fields, off the map entirely next to the road) and some stupid trucker honked at me. As I approached the intersection I could see it was Cedar Lane and now could at last establish my location. I took trails back up and ducked in to get 12 which was visible from the trail. Considered backtracking to 11 here but it still didn't look very pleasant and I was spooked after that experience. I did go on to get the rest of the controls, so finished with a MP for number 11 and a major unnecessary detour. And a lot of mud. So much mud.

Green - Splits

Including first time in the ab room, which is what I need, also what is probably going to kill me.

Just a little bit.
My back is still kind of hurting. I spent 30 minutes in the massage chair and came home and slapped a Thermacare on it.

My lower back hurts today, so something lower impact

Lesson on Shorty

I remember hating this thing from before, so I'm not sure why I tried it again. I just find it very physically tough, compared to a regular elliptical or even running. As you can see, it was hard for me to get any distance. But on the other hand, it may actually be the closest gym resemblance to climbing hills in orienteering.

Longer but slower -

half a mile walking at 4.0, then running at 5.5
repeat
half a mile walking at 3.5, then running at 5.0
repeat
55:00 for 4 miles
walking last 5 minutes at 3.0