One week, three ideas and lots of shoes

Good golly I'm getting really excited to be going away for a week. Mpumulanga. Forests. Lakes. Rivers. *iiinnnhhhaaallleee* I can smell those pine trees already.

The week away starts... now! (well, on Friday night)
My week away kicks off this weekend with a British Orienteering Federation Level 2 Instructor's course. We've got two trainers out here who are going to be teaching the course and I have no doubt that I'll learn a whole lot from them. It is also an excellent opportunity to bounce my 'O in a Box' Level 2 school O programme off them as they have done a lot of school-level coaching. It will be nice to get their nod of approval and comments for improvement before I finalise the activities and games.

Then, I'll be staying in the area until Friday next week because I've got a couple ideas - three to be exact - that I really, really need to get out of my system.

Idea #1
Over the years I've had many ideas for runs - ultradistance and 'normal' distance; I can think of four immediately that I just have not got around to putting together (two scouted and planned but not implemented). One of these has been sitting in my head for eight years and I now think that after so many years of contemplating this event that the area I have in mind will work and the format concept I've been mulling over is just about right too. What I don't know is whether the event will be practical and feasible, whether it will fit in the area available, whether the logistics can work and whether I'll get permission. By Friday I hope to have these answers.

Idea #2
18-months ago I put together a plan for a running retreat. I sat on it, weekends passed and that year - and the next - ran away. I've got a very specific plan in mind for this - and it will be a most wonderful running experience. Again, I need to scout routes, test options and determine whether what I have in mind will work - and if I can get permission.

Ideal #3
And the third concept is a navigation retreat. Over the past decade I've taught countless navigation courses and hundreds of people. From regular adult adventure racers to school teams and hiking club members. The course has evolved as races and maps have changed and last year I cut it down from a one-day course to a mid-week, one-evening theory session with a practical session at an orienteering event the next weekend. Something has been missing.

On the orienteering side, my favourite task at events is teaching newcomers about orienteering. I also thoroughly enjoy doing 'walkie-talkies' out on the course with inexperienced orienteers and watching their eyes light up as they 'get it'. I've been involved with the schools league over the years - more intensely this year - and recently in teaching teachers how to teach basic orienteering elements.

On both the AR and O side I see navigation treated too much as a last-minute discipline. People think about brushing up on their navigation skills a week before an event (do you start training for a half marathon the week before?) - you can't believe the number of emails I receive in this regard. And then they go into the race, waste a ton of time making mistakes, finish the race and then they don't think about navigation again until the week before the next event.

After years of adventure racing I think that too many navigators still have not developed crucial skills and nor is map reading second nature.

Even at orienteering events people just go from one event to the next learning as they go but taking months and years to really improve. I really think that with a weekend of focused attention on navigation that the participants' skills and confidence will shoot up.

This navigation retreat includes a bunch of games and activities that are fun and at the same time they teach, train and aim to perfect a multitude of skills.

I love (running) shoes!
Thanks to Go Multi magazine and Salomon SA I've got a pair to Salomon XR Mission door-to-trail shoes to play in for a product review. I've worn them a bit around the place (social use) but not yet on trails or road. This week all I'm going to have are trails. Probably plenty of mud too, especially if it rains.

I always take my faithful Adidas Response TRs (currently on TR18 version; second pair of the same shoe) with me where ever I travel. About two months ago I got lucky. I couldn't find my shoes and was in desperate need of a new pair as I'd left my old ones in Ireland after the 24hr Rogaine; they'd been near the end of their life going into the race. I phoned the Adidas store at Campus Square and they had my size in stock. I drove over the next day and to my delight the shoes were on sale as the TR18 was getting to end-of-range and the new model was due to come in. I bought two pairs for about R600 each. I'm on the one (blue/yellow) pair at the moment and I'm saving the crazy orange for later. I've really liked this model - one of their best, for me.

Love-love-love! The shoe that I've been most in love with for some months is the Asics Gel Fuji Racer (read this really cool review - I'm in agreement). As the winning women's team at last year's Kinetic Adventure sprint series, we all won a pair of these when they came out (thank you Steve). I've actually been running them on road 95% of the time and I'm absolutely loving them! Minimalist, tactile and light, it's like a racing flat with lugs. Oddly, I haven't worn it much on trails - but I'll rectify that this week.

I've felt really bad about wearing my Asics on road when they're really made for trail so I bit the bullet yesterday and bought my very first pair of Inov-8 shoes. This was also prompted because on Tuesday evening I ran in my old Adidas Supernova road shoes and after running in the Asics for so long I felt seriously weighed down and I just couldn't feel the ground to the extent that I've gotten used to.

I've been curious about the Inov-8s. I first checked online to see what model I would be looking for, according to my requirements. Then I rocked up at Troisport in Sunninghill armed with a list. It is the first time that I've been there and I'd definitely go there again. They score points for friendly and informative service.

I settled on the Inov-8 Road-X 255. I had my eye on trying the 238 too, which I did. I found the fit to be a bit of a toe squeezer and I didn't like either the foot-in-feel nor how it felt under my foot. The 255 and I were born to be together. I've had one run in them - last night - and we felt right at home with each other.

I'm going to take them along, even though there will be little tar around, just so that we can look at each other.

I've phased off the Newtons, which I ran quite a bit on road and trail, especially in boggy Ireland. As a transition shoe - from chunky to minimalist - I think they're great and also if you're looking to change your form from a heel striker to a midfoot striker. I've always been a mid- forefoot striker anyway so they make me feel like they're pushing my foot too far forward and I've gotten so addicted to the minimalist Asics. These guys will stay at home.

AND, equally exciting is that I got a new bike a few weeks ago. As I was in the worst phase of my cough-and-cold I couldn't ride it (I could barely walking up a flight of stairs without doubling over!). I've reverted back to a hard tail (just like my old 'n faithful Giant Yukon) and this new puppy is a 29er. I'm going to ride a lot this week.

With all of my shoes and maps and toys it's going to look like I'm packing to go away for a month!

Shadowing a nine-year old orienteer; she'll beat you

It has taken me a while to get to writing this post...

Two weeks...errr... three weeks ago we had SA Orienteering Champs. This was a three-day event with middle distance on Saturday, Long on Sunday and relay on Monday.

On Saturday afternoon I shadowed a friend's son on the M12 course, which was about 2.5km. I'm not sure how old Liam is - maybe 7 or 8? It was really interesting to watch such a young orienteer in action. 'Shadows' are not allowed to assist; we're just there to keep an eye on the young ones and to make sure that they're ok and safe.

What I learned from this is that young ones, like adults new to orienteering, tend to rely too much on what they see around them. They aim to leave the previous control in the right direction to the next and seem to 'hope' to catch sight of a control or another orienteer. Too much of a visual reliance. This young chap isn't very competitively focused so as we walked he kicked pine cones like they were tin cans and walked without urgency. He sometimes used his compass to re-orientate his map but even when I tentatively prompted, "Use your compass", he tended to rely more on what he saw around him - yet not necessarily to use his surroundings to orientate his map. He made it successfully around the course and was pleased to have found all of his controls.

It was interesting to see the learning and navigational processes magnified. I've never worked with young ones or have seen them in action, so this was really interesting. I think it is also good for these young orienteers to have someone other than a parent out there with them. They're more reliant on a parent, who they're used to, and the would probably give up on solving navigational problems a lot sooner, looking to their parent to assist. But with a stranger, they'll try harder to figure it out. I've most definitely volunteered to shadow again.

Then, for the Sunday, my good friend Tania asked if I would shadow her nine-year old daughter. Tania would be out on her course for a while. I jumped at the opportunity.

Both of Tania's daughter have been orienteering since they could open their eyes. Tania plays orienteering-skill games with them at home and they've done a lot of drills and map reading exercises.

Let's just say that I had to run - seriously run - to keep up with young Sarah. A lot more experienced and focused (I'm told that young girls are generally more focused than similar aged boys for this kind of thing), Sarah really is a orienteering whiz - and she is unbelievably fast! I really had to run hard, especially as I was only just starting to get over a bad cough and cold. Most challenging was that I didn't get a moment's respite on the steep hills on the course because she runs up all of them and doesn't let up.

Sarah uses her surroundings to keep her map orientated. I seem to think that she did have a compass too - I can't quite remember (probably because I was huffing, puffing and coughing behind her).

At one point we got to a section where I'd put out the controls the previous afternoon. It's a tricky area with few distinct features and numerous controls for the eight courses. For the first one, she walked along the road and correctly judged the distance to turn off the road. Tania has said to me that Sarah wasn't great at judging distance but I certainly beg to differ - she's pretty good. She immediately spotted the control from the road and went to it.

For the next control I'd gone straight line and I hadn't found the feature when putting out the control. The vegetation represented on the map isn't quite as it appears visually. I'd resorted to going back to the road to take my distance from a vegetation boundary before heading back under the trees. Sarah went back to the road immediately (correct decision) and then she turned off the road at exactly the right place. Initially she didn't walk far enough in to see the control which wasn't visible unless you were directly in front of it. She stood for a while, orientated her map, looked back at the road and then kept walking. Metres later she saw the control. My heart swelled with pride.

The next control had many adults foxed because the terrain is challenging, visibility is low and there were about four controls in a small area. We saw a couple of adults wandering around. Here Sarah went as-the-crow-flies and without using her compass she had a spot-on bearing. She ended up about 15-metres to the right of the control, which she was able to see as she approached. We shot off cross-country again to link up to the road leading to the finish.

I muttered a 'well done' as we were ploughing through the trees and she replied that she hasn't done much of going cross-country before - only like once or twice for short sections. I think her successes here would have boosted her confidence for other events now because she's totally capable of doing so. Goodness, even adults mess up regularly when they go tiger-line.

I was chatting to Tania afterwards, so proud of my young ward. Let's just say that on a W12 course I think Sarah will beat a new adult orienteer. She's a beautiful runner and in a year or so I'll probably be hard pressed to keep up with her. Over the next few years her technical navigation will improve and I have little doubt that as a faster runner she'll beat me on sprint events. I hope to keep her at bay on the longer distance courses at least until she's 16.

Being a shadow lets the parents off the hook and challenges the young orienteer because they know they can't just make big eyes and ask you for help. They also want to show you that they can do it.

If you're a regular and keen orienteer I can really recommend volunteering to be a shadow. I most definitely intend to be. But I'd better put in some speed training to keep up with young Sarah!

The Big Draw - draw a picture in October

Via a tweet from adventurer Alastair Humphreys I've learned about a UK-based campaign called The Big Draw. Their aim is "to raise the profile of drawing as a tool for thought, creativity, social and cultural engagement. The Campaign has created a new regard for the value of drawing to help people see, think, invent and take action".

Another organisation, Cycle Your Heart Out, has joined the Campaign by encouraging cyclists to draw a picture of something along a cycle route.

I'd like to throw this out to you too: to draw something - anything that catches your attention - during October and to email it through to me to put up here.

The easiest is probably to take a photograph of something that you like when you're out on a run or ride and then to draw this later at home. Or, if you're up for it, take some paper and a pencil out with you to draw the scene in situ. It is quite remarkable what you can draw if you focus on it for an hour or so.

A few years ago I decided to scratch and itch that I've had for a long time (and still have) to draw. Just pencil sketching. I went to a local art studio for one class and was put to it drawing my hand. *sigh* I realise that it is the foundation of drawing but it really doesn't move me. Anyway, I completed the task and was pretty impressed with my very first attempt at drawing. I'm not much interested in this kind of shaded drawing as I'm attracted to simple sketching. Anyway, this one lesson demonstrated that I can draw if I put my mind to it.

You can draw too - even if you think you can't.

A quote on the website from Gerard Scafe (Patron of the Campaign and most famous for his animation for Pink Floyd, political cartoon work, and more recently, Walt Disney’s Hercules) reads, "At 8 or 9 years old we become self-conscious and give up, which is sad as drawing is very therapeutic. Just start by picking up a pen and making a pattern".

He's so right! There's a spot of creativity hiding out in even the most 'un-creative' person (we usually judge ourselves to be un-creative!). And with drawing there's no right or wrong. It's just a picture - your interpretation thereof. Sure, with practice your ability to more accurately depict an object will improve, but you've got to start somewhere.

My challenge to you is to put pen to paper at some stage between now and 31 October and to draw something that catches your eye. You can keep it simple in just pen or pencil or throw in some colour. Although there are drawing programs on tablets and computer, rather keep to paper for this challenge.

Once you're done (any time in the month), email your drawing to me - lisa@ar.co.za. I've set up a page on www.AR.co.za to post your images.

How does The Big Draw determine whether their Campaign has been successful? When the words 'I can't draw' are dropped from our vocabulary.

Plannin' and runnin'

Although the FEAT event is past there are still odds and ends to wrap up (video editing, media). Nonetheless the weight that I've had on my mind for the past three months has eased up so it gives me space to again focus on my school orienteering projects, clients and ideas for stuff.

I'm looking into the final Metrogaine for the year in late November - date and venue still to be decided - and I've got loads of ideas for FEAT that need to be set in progress now, for next year.

After returning from Ireland my running hasn't been in top form. First I was drained and tired when I got back from Ireland at the end of June. I took it easy and was feeling way better a few weeks later when I ran the Ngoje 45km trail run.

My running and sense of well being improved and then I was slammed by a very nasty cough and cold in early September, just as I had to jump into organising SA Orienteering Champs. I finally resorted to medical intervention with the three-day event looming. Being on the organising team I was needed out in the forests putting out controls and assisting with on-the-groun, active stuff. When the event came around I was doing much better with a dash of running here and there. The bonus of the weekend was that I did get to spend many, many hours on my feet over the three days.

It was another week before I could run without coughing afterwards. And by then we were already at this past week and FEAT - I only ran on Monday and Tuesday; Wednesday was considerably more pressured.

My legs have felt great on runs but I've taken it easy on my lungs, letting them recover from the illness. I haven't done much this weekend but this evening I went out for a fabulous run. Today was an absolute stinker* (hitting upwards of 34C!) so I waited until after sunset and came home in the dark. The temperature was perfect, legs felt strong and lungs stood up to the challenge.

* Those of you in colder places probably don't have this expression. A very hot day would be termed 'stinking hot' - probably in reference to sweat; and so the colloquialism is 'stinker' to describe how hot a day is.

I have been itching to run, run, run for weeks. Sure, I've been out for gentle jaunts and walks, but it isn't the same. I've been going to circus school for 2.5 months now and it is quite extraordinary how much stronger I am in arms and shoulders and lower abdominal strength - but it isn't the same as running, and feeling good while running, which I've sorely missed.

As a past winner, I've been invited to run the 4th edition of the Namib Desert Challenge at the end of March next year. I ran the inaugural edition in 2009 (that long ago already!) and thoroughly enjoyed the race, course, environment and friendliness of the organising team. So, preparation starts now! I'll use the next month as a foundation and to let my respiratory system get totally back on track; and then the hard work begins.

This next weekend I'm on a training course. We've got some accomplished trainers out from the British Orienteering Federation and they'll be taking us through their Level 2 Instructor's course. I think this is going to add substantially to the projects that I'm planning and designing for our school programmes. It will also be good to bounce my ideas off them as they really have been-there and done-that.

I've decided to stay on for the week after the course to play in the forests. There are three things (active things; fun-fun-fun) that I've had cooking in my mind for ages; the one is an idea I've been sitting on for eight years! I really need to get it out of my system and investigate whether it is feasible - or not. I'm really looking forward to having five days on my feet and bike to plan and play.

No dull moments around here!