It's time to end this unannounced hiatus, from one spring-camp-in-the-south post to another – this time near Murcia and Alicante, Spain.
But first, besides the restart of this site, there have been other "restarts" lately. Like the restart in cross-country skiing for example. Since last winter the conditions for skiing were bad, I didn't spend any time on skis whatsoever, zero kilometers, a big round bagel. So after an almost two year long break, I had a decent amount of easy and longer workouts done on skis. At around the same time the snow arrived, I also had to do a slow restart to running again. Since mid-November I struggled a bit with the so-called Iliotibial Band Friction Syndrome, which caused pain on the outside of the knee and disabled any kind of running from the programme. The main rehabilitation period lasted for about six weeks, when the first weeks I did mainly swimming and strength sessions, after which I could more or less hike in the terrain with and without a map. Slowly, but steadily I could include jogging and eventually normal running on soft ground, then later on paths and roads again. Thankfully after the snow arrived, I could ease the stress on the knees with skiing. Now I've been back on track for some time and have been able to do some solid preparations.
 |
| Shady days |
Another restart, which most probably know already, is my new club Koovee. And speaking of my new club, I'm in Spain with my new mates right now. Orienteering possibilities here offer more than enough for a three week long camp. Of many maps, I've already raided the famous Guardamar dunes and the fantastic Coto de las Maravillas, where the World Cup was held last year and which I chose to be last year's best terrain on World of O's Course of the Year. Some maps already visible on the maps page!
 |
| Timo at Coto de las Maravillas |
And something else, since this season I got a new sponsor and will be using Icebug's great footwear! I've run with Icebug's orienteering shoes before and am very satisfied with their products. What has been new for me, are dubbed running shoes called "Icebug Ardor", which were irreplaceable during the very icy and slippery winter months at home. Thanks to their grip, there was virtually no compromise needed regarding outdoor running! Also, the Icebug team took part in Nike Winter XDream using these shoes and can all agree that it was a good choice!
 |
| Now these boys are going on hiatus instead! |
