Twilight 10: School Reunion

Report by the Cyborg

The ANU was a very appropriate setting for the first of the Twilight Series for 2011 - after all, it felt very much like the first day back at school. Like any first day back at school, it provided an excellent opportunity for several of the TriHards to catch up! The Cap’n, Junior, Mr GPS and myself represented the TriHards, with all of us apart from Junior undertaking the Orange 2 challenge on the day (Junior, naturally, did the more difficult Orange 1 course).

This course is a far cry from the more recent grass-seed infested bush courses of Mt Taylor, Black Mountain and Farrer Ridge; though we still had what is fast becoming ubiquitous rain! Fortunately, it was on and off and only slight showers (though, the ground was very wet).

Naturally, with so many TriHards attending, there was going to be a high level of competition! So I set off with my trusty map to run through the manicured lawns of the ANU, around their buildings in search of checkpoints. And I’m pleased to say that with the exception of one checkpoint, I had a very smooth and easy run; not getting lost once. However, with short distances between checkpoints, and a variety of buildings to act as landmarks, this isn’t a huge claim.

I am in the habit of verifying the checkpoint number at a checkpoint, to ensure I am at the right one. I’ve done this all along, but it was particularly reinforced to me in the third event at Mt Ainslie north, when I found myself at checkpoint eight instead of six. So, when I arrived at checkpoint seven at the ANU looking for card 70, I was very disconcerted to see the card read 59. I was almost certain I was in the correct location, but a lingering doubt bothered me. Fortunately, there was a runner from the Orange 1 course there as well, I double-checked my location with him, and it turns out I was right. All the same, I did a quick hunt around, just to make sure they hadn’t buried the checkpoint somewhere, and there was no sign.

From there it was easy going to checkpoint eight, and the finish in 29-odd minutes. Mr GPS and the Cap’n showed up shortly after me, with times of 23 minutes (It’s worth noting here that the Cap’n had been put into the wrong class-Men’s Open- for this event, if he had’ve been classed correctly as a master, he would have taken first place with a lead of almost a minute!)

Needless to say, I was stunned with the difference. Six minutes may not seem like much, but over such a short course, it is. I spent quite some time, and discussion with Mr GPS to determine where this six minutes came from. I had wasted a little time on checkpoint seven, but certainly not six minutes! Then Mr GPS showed me some courses I could have taken which may have been better.

The largest difference (apart from hugging the river going for checkpoint two) we noted was that I ran back and around (the blue line in the above picture) from checkpoint five to checkpoint six, whereas Mr GPS took the red line. I just stayed away due to the out of bounds areas, instead of thinking to skirt them.

Lessons Learned

• Examine the map at the start and plan a good route.
• Be prepared to change your plan, adjust your route, depending on the course.
• Small changes to a route can make a huge difference in overall time.