We spurned the OMM this year where, if the event reporting is to be believed, they had a very stormy and wet night but clear skies for much of the competition. Instead, we stayed at home and, on Sunday, went to BADO’s event at Blackwood where it rained continously the whole time we were there! This was only the second time we’ve used split starts, the first being the last day of the Scottish Six Days, and it’s been wet both times. Still, I just about managed to amuse Emma in the back of the car whilst Christine was out on the blue course.
I went out on the Brown. Blackwood is just the sort of area I like running in – fast and fairly flat. Things started out well enough with only a minor wobble at number 10 where I headed towards the much more obvious overgrown open areas further south. Signs of brain failure started to become evident at 12 where I somehow thought I could just keep running in the direction of the path that left 11 only to have to do a right angle bend at the last minute to correct.
It was at 14 where things really fell apart though. According to my GPS I must have run within about 2 metres of the control but it was a minute later when I eventually returned from a tour round the surrounding greenery. As with many of the other sites, it seemed the control hanger had forgotten their mallet and by late in the competition the stake was almost horizontal with the ground.
Things improved a bit after that although 17 and 18 could have been another version of Snooker-O as I bounced off the surrounding cushions in to the controls. This was probably the general theme for my race: sloppy compass work which, although not losing much time at each control, added up over the whole course.
The result? Fifth place and a good eight and half minutes down on OUOC’s latest import, Rune Monrad from Denmark.
Things started well for me, hitting the first 4 very cleanly, then got a bit lost in the undergrowth at 5, too close to the fence at 6, nasty fall en-route to 8 and way overshot 10 (along with a few others). Happy with some of the longer cross country routes and the 2 min mistake on the last control didnt cost me any places.
Oh and I thought the area was so nice, Id leave my car there for 3 days after requiring a locksmith to rescue me yesterday!
Track at: http://tinyurl.com/37y3k7
Had a bit of a rubbish run at Hawley today though, a bit overconfident after running there recently (and they reused a number of control sites) and felt very sluggish after a dodgy baguette from the canteen!
And at what point did you either realise you’d lost the keys or locked them in the car?!
Surely you can’t be talking about the IBM canteen there?!
Only at the end of the course…..;-(
Looking forward to this weekends runs, though hopefully wont take 4hrs like Charlie did 40yrs ago on Course A on Sat. I need to back in Soton at 3 for the football!
Don’t think we’re going to make it out on Saturday as we have visitors and will be out all of Sunday helping. Have fun (but don’t lose your keys!).