Training Log Archive: bl

US champs long. Was the very last starter along with Barb Bryant (Isabel, too) and Mike ? . Was ready to go! but alas, the right lens of my glasses decided it was time to jump ship - not a minute into the run. Most disconcerting. Wasn't the situation where it could be popped back in as the screw had backed out & frame was unstable on that side. So, in an instant, went from highly motivated to approaching that of the three blind mice syndrome. Found the lens, stuffed it in pants pocket & cont'd with mixed feelings. Decided I 'd best do the whole course, call it a workout. After some minutes, I adjusted reasonably well, could generally see what needed to be seen but the blurriness remained distracting. Also, noted the potential scratchiness of the forest in a way I had not w/ 2 lenses. Timidly crossed streams so ass (sic) to not get feet wet....

Not enamored with the amount of path running demanded of such a place, 2/3rds path running? That said, it was an excellent opportunity to orient map just so - so when one got to a complex intersection, little time was spent figuring which way to turn. Excellently mapped detail. Vladimir Zherdev & Alexey Zuev (Bear Brook) are good mappers to hire. At one point in time, they were both going to map BB.

Great 3 days of O in any event. Tremendous amount of work w/ 3 different maps, S/Fs etc. Interesting but tiring metro Boston commuting from southern NH...easier each day, however.

C • TBMS 3

Green-X Long - Splits

USOC middle distance at Lynn Woods. B
minus run.

Hard time finding start triangle. Hard to see course initially due to dk background.

1 0k - conservative...alot of bldrs! thick veg just after tore at glasses, loosening croakie, distractingly so, for some time

2 NW to path fine, reloc on path, left by 2 bldrs at high pt - thought I went st to cp, saw rock face, maybe 2 but no control (between). tp came along (2' later start) & Greg Balter. After some fumbling we got it - was it in right place?

tp in sight 3, 4, 5, 6 - then again just after 7. Sensed he was confused enroute 8 , went on as I knew where I was. Alot of trouble on this for quite a few. Jeff Schapiro 24', Ernst 9', BP ?14"

9 a bit sloppy and lost cp descriptions so had to unfold map several times thereafter

10 was fine until I ran by cp, distracted by photographer - ran by it for maybe 50 m which was near-infuriating - about easiest cp

11 sloppy, got most of way but was not focusing - then tp & scott turner came along, still going so I went that way & then could see we had more to go. tp 1" ahead. got cut up by wait-a-minutes at that pt - a lot of blood that I knew would be embarrassing > some what distracted again.

12 tp & i are on trail E-W to N of pt - I go in first, thinking hi pt AP but don't follow the plan. tp is lower. eventually we are both at the high pt & then head right direction, he punches a second ahead. I'm thinking I need to go to path & go right, later note left - maybe 50m behind tp. Don't see him at 13, head st for 14, am most of way there, tp crosses fm right to left. I'm thinking he has punched so stupidly look right but, in fact, he is on his way to cp he has spotted. lose nearly a minute on this cp - Ernst 55" , I was 2:10. Grr!
Run in & run off to wash blood away.

2nd M60 to Jeff Saeger. Nice map but too much green. Not the open, white woods I was expecting.

First M21 runner, visitor from Sweden (just happened to arrive simultaneously)


What's he thinking?


Anxious moment?


A few more seconds


Not much blue, some pm shafts of sun


QR

Green-X Middle - Splits

Event: US S/M/L Champs 2011 & WRE
 

Warm up

Sprint - would give it a B. Not careful enough enough of the time. Nicely mapped area but allowed myself to get out of touch a bit too much. On #2, had trouble with bldg vs wall vs what I thought was parking as well as open concrete walking surface. Lost a bunch on #7 but was cheered by Ernst's tale of woe on trivial #8! Did a 180 departing #10, good for maybe 80m round trip. Dangerously close to going to #17, skipping 16...phew!! Nice day even if so long in car for 23' - wonderful weather. Fun to talk with usual and unusual folk. Judy Karpinski told me tales of woe as a social worker in the locality. Columbia St. was a world very different from anything in NH north of Manchester. Was about 2hr 10' home for 68mi. Bit irritable by time was ready to turn in drive. A lone car coming the opposite way (now dark) - could have gone in w/o waiting but courtesy said let it pass. It slowed & stopped - whoa, Bob, don't be irritable! The driver (a lady) asked if I needed something. I said I needed to turn left into my drive lickety split. . We had a chuckle over that as she apologized. Sometimes we do indeed have positive interactions, we homo sapiens. No bad aches/pains/stiffnesses. Hamstring held up. If all is intact after this weekend, then time to profess "injury-free". Easy to see all the effort put into meet preparations. Wanted to take a walk about in FP - lots of stuff of interest (eg, whatever cp #2 represented), much going into neglect - but felt the need to move on.

Finish view

Had in mind naming as many as possible but the list went on with zoom

Green Sprint - Splits

Today's activity.

a product of discussion at our Bow Open Spaces meeting a month ago. Trying to get townspeople (kids/parents) into our/their forest(s).

Slough & back, gray, rain due. Back hoe running the 18' I was there, no one in sight.

Winant Hill before rain - started just as I was finishing. Not there since
green leaves of summer. Nice colors. Hot uphill - took off T-neck which
made for a 10% energy improvement tho legs dull from yesterday.

BB Brown Saturday. About a B; have to QR later. New legs, some different views of map. Occ too small a boulder mapped - did not have cp descriptions. #2 called for circle cutting. #6...that small bldr? #7...2 bldrs should be on small knoll? #12 - did not find, not sure how high, indistinct marsh boundary to say the least. Fun time!
QR

Getting to/finding start. had never been & some of map was missing > some deducing. Hayes Field empty - last there, there was sun & people. MTBers when I returned.

Bear Brook Brown (Sun) - Splits

AM DP in jogging mode. Bright & brisk. 2 days rest. Hamstring making noises after Friday 50/50s.

South, Iron Works, Clinton, Langley into woods. One lap on CHS track at 7:34 pace. 790 mi on Locos but pliable soles are kind to left achilles.

Honest yard work, gym equivalent. Consolidating logs from all over the place. Can't bear to see fire wood go wasting - go out of the way in gathering. 2 deer ticks tickling for my efforts. Couldn't kill one of the hardy souls by squeezing. Wrap them up in handy waste paper - too many trips to the toilet otherwise (on some days).