Training Log Archive: tdgood

Checking out Green Ridge Forest for possible mapping. It is further away than normal. I made a lidar base map and it was steeper than I thought. I was hoping there was lots of rocky features which would make it worth the long drive. While it wasn't too steep, there were just no features, rock or otherwise. It was mostly mature forest with little vegetation. There was also no parking.

Green B: Carter Caves Kentucky Middle Distance
actual climb 263.

No area to warm up by the start so I just did a lot of jogging in place to get ready.

Fortunately, this time I got a clue sheet that was Black printed and not Gray like yesterday. I saw several others did have a gray ones.
I started on a very narrow trail with several others.

#1: Right out of the start, it was a narrow area of the map. I started on the trail but then left it. I should have stayed on the trail but part of my reasoning is there were to many people in the way on the trail. I cut up early and then cut over to the reentrant where I got back on the trail for a little bit. I though the jutting out cliff would be obvious but it wasn't. Even when I got there it didn't look mapped correctly. It looked more like a break in the cliff then as mapped. Fortunately I saw the control and went to it.

#2: Gimme control. Down the hill. There were a zillion people all heading to this control. I could see them cutting around the green to get there. I had to avoid some people.

#3: looked more open along the stream so took that route.

#4: Stayed low initially. I should have cut up the hill right after the stream crossing but kept going. The bank line got very steep. I finally cut up and had a very tough time getting up. I almost fell/slid back down. After up to the trail ran trail a little bit then cut the corner. I could see Mike Eglinski leaving the area to the next control so back tracked his route. Way too many people in the area. I was little off but didn't lose too much time there.

5) Straight. Saw some of the pits along the way.

6) Up the spur fastest way possible, then over to the control.

7) Straight but i was apparently right of the line. I cut into the green too soon and had to go along it.

8) Straight. Look for reentrant and run down it.

9) Green route. I went straight but then started hitting un-mapped features which through me off. Lost all kinds of time trying to relocate. Went down to the reentrant bottom area and then just sort of kept going. Lots of people all over the green. MAP NEEDS UPDATING. There were more stuff all over the green that was unmapped. Because of the dark Green I didn't see the ditch on the map which would have helped. when I finally got there there was elephant track to/from the control. The feature wasn't any larger than the other rock I had already been at.

10) Up the hill. I drifted left and had to correct when i got to the top. Lost some time correcting.

11) Straight. I got confused when I hit a large unmapped pit before the control. The pit was as large if not larger than the one the control was on. eventually kept going to the control.

12) Stayed low in the reentrant then cut up.

13) At this point I could see the course was over. Everything else was simple orienteering. Up to the trail. I tried to keep running up the hill but Brian Johnston just ran by me on the trail. I caught back up to him on the downhill.

14) I was little high and missed the control. I got into the "stony ground" which actually looked like cliffs that were the same size as the one the control was hung on.

15/16: no issues.

17) Ran hard to the field area and cut in. I was little high. Samantha Walker helped key me into the control.

18) Samantha just ahead of me. I ran hard as I didn't want a slow finish split like yesterday uphill finish. I was gaining on Sam but she was holding her own. She had an SI Air card and I didn't. She didn't pause at the control and I had to stop to punch. I was ready to stop thinking I had just punch the finish but since she kept going I realized I had one more control. Sprinted the last bit to the finish.

OCIN_FP2023_Sunday_Middle_7_GreenB - Splits

Green B Long Distance at Carter Caves Kentucky. Sunny and Warm 60 degrees. Since I hadn't brought water I was glad I was running my age group shorter course.

After sprints I just wanted to have a good run.
There were map issues again. I was burned by the lack of mapped terraces, but not by the poorly mapped green. I totally ignored all green on the map in making route choices and that seemed to pay off as much of the green was non-existant. For the terraces, I kept seeing them and thinking I was near the bottom of the hills but it was just a terrace. So I kept pulling up short.
Climb seemed much worse. I actually climbed 347 according to my watch which isn't too much worse.
ANOTHER QUALITY CONTROL ISSUE: CLUE DESCRIPTION were printed in GRAY instead of BLACK. in the woods where it was darker I was unable to clearly see the descriptions so I just ignored them. Fortunately they weren't critical like in the sprint.

1) Just going straight. I wasn't pace counting so when I hit the first terrace and thought I was near the bottom of the hill so I started looking for the control. There was an obvious ditch next to me but no ditch by the control. It took me quite a while (way longer than it should have) to figure out I wasn't near the bottom of the hill. Once I figured it out I went to the control but I lost at least 20-30 seconds.

2) I though about taking the trail but decided to angle up the hill instead. I got up the steeper areas and ran along. I pulled up a little short but when a a blue runner went by me I kept going. I saw him punch.

3) Easy: down hill fastest way possible and up to control.

4) Contoured around. I did get into some green but just kept going. Not sure where I crossed the trail. I got on a terrance/ride and just ran along until I got the reentrant. There were a lot of people along this route and at the control.

5) Straight. It looked like a lot of people were turning north at the first reentrant but I just kept straight.

6) Easy control. Get up and over the hill. Hit the trail. I ran the trail for a little but cut in at the first turn. I should have gone the trail all the way to the reentant then cut up the reentrant. As I was going through the woods I could see people faster on the trail.

7) Leave 6 I could see the reentrant where 7 was but couldn't see the control. Down the hill, cross stream, cross spur. I was lower in the reentrant than I expected.

8) I was pretty tired by now. I saw the long run around the spur but decided I was too tired to run hard to make it worth it. Instead I just went straight, up and over again. It was tough getting up the hill and I was breathing really hard. At the top I hit the trail. I should have run the trail further but instead started in a straight line to the control. That is when I saw I had several reentrants to cross to then stayed high paralleling the trail. Finally ran down the side of the final reentrant curving around to the control. I again hit a large terrace area so though I was near the bottom of the hill but was in fact much higher. There were all sorts of root stock depressions so I was going around checking them all in case the control was hidden in one of them. A younng kid then came through and I saw him go over the terrace showing me it wasn't the bottom. Darn it. Then I went to the control. I lost at least 1-2 minutes on this control.

9) Up the hill to the gravel road. The choice was to avoid the climb and run through the start, or cut down the side trail and climb at the end. I was so tired getting up the hill to the road that I wasn't sure I would be able to get up the hill just before #9. I took the longer flat route. I tried to run hard. It was initially slow but I got more strength back as I went along. I could see the control easily from the high side and there were a lot of people there.

10) Straight. Everyone going the same direction.
11) Straight. I saw the campground option but decided I was recovered enough to go straight up and over.
12) Straight. As I got close I couldn't tell where the control would be situated. There were people in the amphitheater so I ran around it which was longer.
Finish) THIS WAS STUPID AND UTTERLY UNNEEDED. There was absolutely no reason to add 20m climb. Just finish at the amphitheater then make people walk up the hill to down load. Failure on the part of the course setter and course consultant.

OCIN_FP2023_Saturday_Long_7 Green B - Splits

Event: Flying Pig XXV - 2023 OUSA Nationals
 

Morehead state college. U.S. Champs Sprint.
I was looking forward to a good run. I actually had a shot to win it as some of my normal competitors have moved to an older age group. While I haven't done any speed work I am healthy and in ok shape.
Drove up from Keg's house that morning but got there in plenty of time to warm up. The weather was rainy but it looked like it had stopped so I was in good shape. I had one of the last starts. Then things started going bad.

1st: Starter messed up my start up. I was 3:49 and he skipped my callup and started calling up all the people in the minute after me. Fortunately someone else realized this so he corrected. This didn't bother me so I was still ok.

2nd: it started raining at this point. Unfortunately I wear glasses and rain is bad news.

3rd: I got the clue descriptions and they were tiny. (after the fact I measured and they are the minimum legal size although at the time I would swear they were not). As soon as I started running, I couldn't read the clue descriptions. I could barely see the codes. I could see the first digit but not the rest. In terms of the descriptions all I could see was a generality, like it is a linear feature. I couldn't read the details so I just had to ignore the clues and run to the center of the circle. Since sprints are all about clue descriptions this wasn't good.

4th: I was ok to the first control then my glasses got wet and I couldn't see much of anything.

5th: Since I was a last starter some of the areas were very muddy and slippery. There was at least one control dogleg where the entire area was muddy. The muddy areas definitely slowed me down.

1: I could still see and got off to a good start.
2: Went right around buildings. No problems but I lost time trying to get through the mud to the control.
3: I was a little hesitant trying to read the details. Since I didn't know what side of the tree the control was one I had a slow approach since I ran up the stair.
4; There was someone just in front of me. He cut in after the first wall and I stupidly followed. Ran around the correct wall but was slow.
5: I started off ok and decided on the left route but it turns out I was actually running to 6, not 5. Fortunately I discovered this before I made it longer. Slower weaving up the steps.
6: Running around the wall it was muddy so I was slower. Clean.
7: First of the map issues.

MAP1: Whoever did the map unfortunately fell inot the trap of trying for absolute accuracy over readability. I don't believe the map meets the standards for stair sizes and appropriate gaps. The area at 7 is supposed to be steps but is appears to be a series of walls coming out from the building. Several other people were also confused on this.

Since I couldn't see the clue descriptions I was just running to the circle center and looking around. I didn't have to look to long before I found it.

#8: There are a bunch of stone walls in the circle. I couldn't tell what the control was supposed to be hung on. My route was off as I missed up the steps going up.
9: Took the right route.
#10: I took route up the steps but apparently the road was a faster run.
#11: THIS CONTROL SUCKED and shouldn't have been used without fixing the map and clue description. I could see the choice of the top vs bottom on this control. I stopped, wiped up my glasses and very carefully read the clue description. It said inside corner of the canopy the only inside corner was the loading dock so that is where I went to. I checked the loading dock and there was no control. I was pissed as I ran back around to the upper area.
MAP 2: The loading dock wasn't even mapped. It should have been mapped as a dual level area but wasn't. The canopy it was actually hung on wasn't big enough to be seen and should have been fixed on the map. It turns out that what the clue description was saying is it was hung under the canopy corner. In order to use this control, they needed to fix the loading dock, Increase the size of the canopy to a size that can be seen, and fix the control description to something more appropriate. I lost at least a minute on this control through no fault of my own.

I tried to keep running but was very frustrated at this point.
12: North route looks to have been faster but I went the south route.
13: no issues
14: no issues
15: no issues
16: no issues
17: The control was hung on at edge of the stream that had a steep drop. You can't see the stream through the green so I didn't even know it was there until I had to cross it.
Finish: Area was muddy.


Overall, I never felt I got up to speed until the end. I wasn't the least bit tired when I finish, just pissed at the mapper (map issues) course setter (for the clue descriptions), and disappointed that I had to run in the rain while others didn't.

C • problems and kudos 1

OCIN_FP2023_Friday_Sprint_6 Green A 7 Green B - Splits

Rt 175 + 2 park loops (grass). Tired to keep a good pace. Last mile tried to pick it up in practice for the

Dist Pace
1.00 8:23
0.05 8:37
0.29 8:07
1.00 8:42
0.24 8:51
1.00 8:42
0.54 8:46
1.00 7:33
0.07 8:36