O-Ringen etapp 1

I shall begin my blog with this year's O-Ringen, which turned out to be a big disappointment for me.

O- Ringen etapp 1 - Boxholmsetappen

S-1: Around the big clearing, no doubt about it. Followed the path just to the end of it and caught the knoll on the other side. As the map was hard to read due to the unusual paper, tried to take it slow and careful. Ran to the next knoll, and after that it didn't make any sense. I was probably not where I was supposed to be. Ran straight to the power lines to find out my exact location. After that it was straight to the control. Dammit! I was confident to take the first one clean and firm but turned out to be quite a bad start.
1-2: Straight across the power line, up the hill a bit until I came to the road. Straight on, over the higher area. After descending, I found myself in a bit of a soggy area. For a second I thought I had already run over the next hill, but didn't stop and followed my planned route. No difficulties with the control.
2-3: Headed for the big field. Ran on the ridge of the hill till the treeless knoll.
3-4: Took a bearing to the first, lower ridge, until I came to the small cliff and turned to the next hill. When approaching the middle clear knoll on this hill, I saw a control and checked it out just in case I had run too far. It wasn't mine. Then I ran a bit off course and corrected my direction right after that. Some seconds lost.
4-5: Wanted to run across the power lines but the vegetation seemed to be a bit too dense. I saw a path going in from the left. Here the speed was obviously too high and the map reading very poor. After I had climbed the first hill, I was really confused. After wandering around I finally understood my exact position and took the control with slight difficulties. This one cost me a lot of time. At that point, it occurred to me that I was looking for objects rather too soon - I wasn't really used to the 1:15 000 scale.
5-6: Down to the road, set the pace higher and ran through the passage. Followed the knolls, saw another control, the rock, then ran a bit too low and corrected my heading. I didn't understand anything out of the yellow areas before the control.
6-7: A lot of problems with the map. Since the map wasn't in a plastic, it was soaked. I stopped to unfold the map and then refold again. Only then I could choose a route for the next leg. Followed the power line and turned in after the green area. Caught the path, and the smaller power line. Followed the next path around the higher area.
7-8: Slowed down a bit. Passed all the necessary knolls, at least I thought I did. When coming to the expected hill, there was no cliff or control. What now!? Run a bit on the other side of the hill, when spotted a path on my left hand. Got on it to locate myself. Headed towards the control cautiously. Followed the power line and the stone wall, which I hadn't noticed earlier. When I got to the control, I was quite surprised how much the hill was set lower on the slope than it should be.
8-9: Straight down, through the passage. Up the hill and came to the left side of a high cliff. Since there didn't seem to be any other cliff on the map, that had to be the one! But unfortunately there was no flag. So I was really puzzled where I was. After taking a very close look on the map, I saw the other cliff on the side of the control-loop, which I had previously thought to be the "stony ground" symbol. To the right cliff!
9-10: Ran to the huge boulders, and followed a beaten track around the knoll with the cliff.
10-11: Here I set the speed on "high" again. Tried to run between the cut- and the green area, which came off quite well. Down to the path and past the two higher areas, to the clear area.
11-12: To the road. Footpaths and hills.
12-F: Just run.

Splits
1. Erik Folkesson Blom 37:18
8. Lauri Sild 40:52 +3:34
Surprised by the place but not surprised by the loss.