WUOC 2012 Here We Come!

Despite this being a late post (silly exams!), I am very excited to say I have been selected on to the USA 2012 WUOC team! The World University Orienteering Championships are being held in Alicante, Spain from the 30th of June to the 7th of July. That gives me 8 weeks and 3 days to finish preparing.



A bit about Alicante from research online: 

 Alicante is located on the East coast of Spain.
It has a very mountainous landscape in the north and west regions, however the south is fairly flat, with the Segura River flowing eastwards through the area.

It can get as hot as 40C (or 104F) in August, so glad we are racing earlier in the summer, as July is only 30C (86F). a bit cooler!

Alicante is the 8th largest city in Spain, and quite a large tourist destination.

 

Now a bit about WUOC its self:

 The scheduled of Events is as follows:

The Long area is new and is said to be very uneven rocky ground, speed, and semi-open pine forest. It looks to possibly be a new sprint area as well. It is said to be an urban area with a network of city roads and paved bicycle paths. There are however maps of the middle and relay areas. It is called Santa Pola and many copies of them can be found on World of O. They all look to be quite green, very steep, and detailed. Concentration, planing, and fitness are going to be key!

The actual course distances that are published now are:

 I am still refining my goals for the event. The focus however is going to be on process. Process, Process, PROCESS! I have been learning a lot training in Scotland. I have learned from racing on new terrain and speaking to the top athletes that having a plan, sticking to the plan, and just focusing on the process is the key to success. I'm still working on making sure I do that and breaking my habit of thinking about the outcome. I want to thank Colm personally for putting up with me and helping me as I learn this. 

So the next 8weeks will be spent perfecting a process that works for me and just boosting my general fitness.

I'm going to use this opportunity to ask some help from my supporters. In order for me to go to the World University Orienteering Championships I have to pay the $750 entry and accommodation fee, plus airfare. Being a student studying chemical engineering at Heriot-Watt University I have been extremely busy studying and training. I would be very grateful to anyone who donated even $1 to my chipin to support my efforts. In return I promise to keep my blog up to date as quickly. Thank you for any support!