Training Log Archive: iansmith

Event: NEOC Sprint Doubleheader
 

NEOC Needham Sprints: Sprint 1 (technical).

NEOC Needham Sprints: Sprint 2. Navigationally simpler than Sprint 1, but the optimal routes often suggested longish detours on trails.

Warm up and cool down.

Sprint 2 - Splits

Sprint 1 - Splits

Checking out possible control locations at Pine Banks. Unfortunately, I arrived late and the sun fell before I completed my examination; I will return later.

A brisk jog from Alewife Station to Menotomy Rocks Park to set the CSU training session. I ran with my backpack, which has always caused a measure of physical discomfort. I walked part of the way to avoid perspiring too much.

Course setting; the course I designed was approximately 4 km in length with 14 controls. Learning from my past course designs (including one at Menotomy Rocks), I tried to set each leg to maximize route choice options, and generally ignored distance considerations. Since the park has so many trails, my general objective was to ensure that the optimal route was not on a trail; climb also allowed some route choices options. The comments I received were generally positive, though I still have much to learn for course design. The biggest limitation of my design was the clutter on the map due to the many criss-crossings.

I didn't get a chance to run the course because I was babysitting everyone's stuff. I also just barely finished setting all the controls at exactly 6 PM. Alex Jospe showed up first, followed by Keith Durand, Clem McGrath, and Wendy Johnecheck.

Orienteering is a very social sport - perhaps because it is so antisocial in its execution. I always feel encouraged and uplifted when I interact with my comrades and peers in the orienteering community.

I also must remember to specify exactly where the start is in my meet announcements rather than presuming everyone knows how to get to Menotomy Rocks. Clem demonstrated his tremendous skill in arriving at the start without any information except that the park was Menotomy Rocks.

C • Skill? 3

Resting my legs after a brutal weekend of climb. Unfortunately, at the end of the long course, on my way to the finish from the last control, I was tripped up by a barbed wire fence and smashed my knee against something unyielding. I don't believe the injury is more serious than a significant bruise, but I will apply precautionary RICE.

The Blue Long race at the QOC "Ran-It Granite" A-meet in Patapsco Valley State Park, Granite MD. Conditions were misty and overcast, with a temperature of about 10 C throughout my run.

First the good: I intended to run a clean, conservative race with a target pace of 10 minutes/km. I generally succeeded at that, with two major errors totalling about 8-10 minutes. I planned ahead on my legs well and reviewed my route choice options; with the exception of one of my error controls, I was pleased in retrospect with my routes. My overall pace was 10.8 minutes per kilometer; this was my best A-meet Long result to date.

Criticism: I have been running more frequently over the past three months than I had for any consistent period in 2008, despite the breaks I took from training. This meet, with its many hills, has made it painfully clear that my fitness level is inadequate for the challenges I am undertaking. Given that I had relatively clean runs both days, my limitation is how fast and hard I can push for 90 minutes. Based on that, I have decided to train for the May half Marathon in downtown Boston.

Blue Day 2 - Splits