Training Log Archive: PG

Event: Anza Borrego Desert O-Fest 2006
 

Anza Borrego Desert O', blue course. Not too bad, just slow. One small miss early on, plus I couldn't get down some cliffs and had to try the next spur, but generally orienteering was ok. That despite busting my compass in the first 10-15 minutes. At least the sun was out so I could get some help there.

Terrain/course was terrific. Very, very complicated in some places, despite the tremendous visibility. And the challenge changed completely as the terrain varied from steep and lots of cliffs to very suble contours.

Best time was 65 (Eric Bone, Mark Everett, and Andreas Haldi all about that), Clem I think 69. I was 10th out of about 20, perfectly fine, though Spike got me by a couple of minutes despite stopping a couple of times to pull off pieces of cholla cactus. He was just moving faster.

C • 8.9 K? 2

Team fundraiser sprint, set by Vlad. Fun course. Had just about as good a run as was possible, worked hard the whole way, just one mistake maybe 15 seconds. Had some help from others on the course -- Grant Staats started 3 minutes ahead of me, Thorsten Graves 2 minutes, I caught them both by about #6, got ahead by 8. But then I nicked a cholla and a piece of it was hanging onto my left shin. Tried to ignore it, but it started hurting more and more, so I yanked it off (using the map/case for protection), and then just after that ran by a control without seeing it. But then finished strong.

Physically the whole thing felt like a 5K race, but a lot more fun.

Best time was Eric (16:03), then Clem, then Mark; Suzanne was the best woman.

One of the things that I'd known, mostly ignored, and then been reminded of at the Winter Training Camp in Hamilton was that taking in fluids/carbs/electrolytes within 45 minutes of finishing a run gets much more back into your system than if you wait an hour or two.

Tried it today, eating and drinking a lot as soon as I finished. And had surprisingly good energy for the sprint.

Of course I didn't do the same after the sprint, so tomorrow may be a struggle.

Team Fundraiser Sprint - Splits

Blue - Splits

Jogged around the model course at Anza-Borrego. Very gool terrain, not easy. What we get tomorrow will probably be a mix of what we had today (very gentle slopes, very subtle features) and some much steeper/hillier stuff.

Two concerns -- map is hard to read (printing is not sharp), and hitting cactus. There's not that much cactus, but I think it may be easy not to see it when you're reading the map on the run/walk.

Blue course this weekend (why?), looking for a spot in the top 10 or 15.

Oh, and I think today put me over 100 controls for the year. I think I had 98 in Hamilton.

C • Use duct tape 1

A little more time walking around.

In San Diego, leisurely run with Charlie and Rhonda to Old Town and Presidio Park (which looks like it would be a fine place for a sprint). Shorts and a t-shirt, just fine.

C • Sprint training. I guess you'... 5

Nice run with Phil, even though he was showing a bit more energy a few times than I cared for. On Mt. Toby, over to the gate, then down to the river and home, the last couple of miles on the road. Warm day, low 40s, snow was soft but not too deep.

Slow run up to the power line (20:56) and back (17:10). Warm, snow/ice was soft, often sent my feet slipping in unexpected directions. Probably still tired from the trip, although at least I was properly hydrated (which I know I wasn't most of the time up in Hamilton).

To the start.

Final session of the Winter Training Camp, up on the escarpment at Hilton Falls West, adjacent to where the North Americans will be in October. Fine terrain. Routes. I'll post more comments in a while.

Overall the camp was great. I hung in there pretty well physically, did every training session though I cut a couple short. One blister on a little toe Saturday morning, taped it and didn't feel a thing either that afternoon or this morning. I think I mean that quite literally -- my toes would get pretty cold every session and I really wasn't feeling them very much. Legs held up ok, I'd get tired but seemed to be able to keep plugging away.

Really glad I went, and glad I encouraged a few other Americans to go. Too bad there weren't even more.

C • Whats the purple infill on the... 5