Tracking my wanderlust need to get out of town once a month

Track my O progress here

Sunday 22 Sep 02 Relay in Vermont

I had planned all year to run the yellow course at the Relay. My recent training had been geared towards running a 5K on 22 Sep. I paid attention to the trails yesterday to see what kind of condition they were, how they were mapped, etc.

But then things changed. We decided that Nancy should run yellow and I should run brown.

I had known that this was a possibility, but I had not actually prepared myself for it. Mentally, it was a tough switch for me. Instead of concentrating on a steady 30 minute jog, I had to worry about not booming and slowing down the team.

I was nervous and started out too hard. Then I made a bad route choice to number two and boomed big time. I lost 10 minutes. Fortunately, the big boom convinced me I needed to slow down and concentrate, and it helped me focus. I did OK on the rest of the course, especially towards the end where it was easy field running. I managed to tag Gene just seconds before the mass start.

I was very disappointed in my run. Everyone else on the team ran cleanly. We dropped several places because of my boom. I need to concentrate better under pressure.

A good note: physically I felt OK, and I recovered quickly from day one.

MT = 587/ 1025



Saturday 21 Sep 02 Day One in Vermont

I wanted to take it easy before the relays, and make no mistakes. I was nervous because I hadn't orienteered in a month, and that time was a disaster. I was a little hesitant at the beginning, going very slowly until the map began to make sense.

The footing was difficult in places; uneven ground covered with ferns. I was scared to place my foot in the wrong place.

After the second control, however, I began to find a groove. I was reading the map, but still moving slowly. I lost concnetration on one control and made a stupid boom; on another control, I had difficulty reading the fine contour detail and wandered a bit looking for the marker.

I felt OK with the orienteering, and was glad I had not pushed too hard physically. I was still tired after 92 minutes on the course, however, and was trying to rest up for my trail running yellow course the next day.

MT = 517/1025


posted by Mary 4:58 PM [edit]