Here is the Billygoat '08 map, and here are my routes.

Not much logging lately. Pulled a hamstring at the last race and have been quite discouraged, but it is the Billygoat, so we have to say something.

I had a decent race, 14th place. Hammy seemed to feel ok by about #7 or so. Hate to know what it is going to feel like tomorrow.

Ran with the Saeger sisters about 70% of the race, and with Joe B for alot of it also. Not typical for me as I am usually alone in these things after a couple of controls. Running with Joe was great as he had skipped early, so it was sort if like a free ride that I didn't have to worry about that place.

I found the orienteering fairly easy, tho that did not stop me from booming a couple of controls, parallel error on #5 after coming thru some hideous unmapped laurel, and blowing #16 high. Lot of that going around.

As for race tactics, there were 4-7 places waiting to be had, sitting like ducks on a pond, but I let it slip away.

The first opportunity was the boom on #16, where the pack ahead, including the Saegers, Ted Good, and several people I didn't know boomed way high. Had Joe and I spiked, and not boomed high, we would not of led the pack in when we saw it. And then they were all faster.

The second, and more egregious mistake was not taking the best skip. I decided that skipping #18 was the best (and in post analysis, I still feel it is the best), but the pack pressed on to it, and I, like a lemming, went along. Had I gone with the courage of my convictions and executed the skip cleanly, I would most likely have captured all those places. As it stood, even tho I was to #19 first or second by virtue of being clean and not needing to follow, I was dusted on the ensuing trail run back. Oh well. My bad. Somehow being in the safety of the pack seemed better than going for it, but it was stupid, as I was going to lose most of those places to the pack anyway at the end, and I knew it.

Still, a very fine race organized by HVO.