Ås by Night & Fog Cup #5 (2014-01-28)

Up to 50 cm powder snow made for a very streneous race!

The first control was simply to get us into the map, it was visible from the starting line.

I hesitated a bit on the field towards #2 since the bug path was invisible under the snow.

Took the safe option around to #3.

Towards #4 I started out in the wrong direction, lost at least half a minute.

I had perfect control when passing the path and underneath the cliff before #5 but then I misunderstood the map and went up above the control. Lost about 2 min here.

OK to 6

Midway to 7 I made a parallel mistake, started running along the wrong path but realized it when I passed the stream and turned back. Another minute lost.

OK to 8, 9 & 10. At this control I met a competitor who had lost his light, so I invited him to follow me to the last controls.

Halfway to 10 (by the little cliff) I ran up on a small very open knoll and was certain that this had to be the slightly larger yellow knoll to the left, then when I ran along the stream I though I was left of the line. On this control I was definitely helped by the large post holes left by other runners, they led me to the control in an unexpected direction!

Nice to #12, when the compass course led me directly to the cliff I was very happy, but slightly worried after climbing around it, since the control was slightly misplaced, i.e. a bit too far to the north.

At this point it was very easy to decide upon the path route to the last control: I had intended to cut across the corner in the light green, since this kind of forest had the least amount of snow, but in the 8 years since the map was published this had been logged so I had to run around.

When sliding down to the control flag I hit some branches, after punching I realized that the right eye glass in my O spectacles was missing! I started digging for it and after half a minute or so they guy who had joined me found it. :-)