Conquering #WhiteOak Again, for the First Time

Conquering #WhiteOak Again, for the First Time

This morning at Devil’s Turn, possibly due to some kind of clerical error, YHC Q-ed his first running workout.  15 other PAX arrived to see what would go wrong.  The preblast promised new hills.  Hills were delivered, courtesy of the #WhiteOak neighborhood.  Whether or not they were new is a matter of experience.  As it turns out, #WhiteOak is a very patriotic community.  Full-sized american flags were planted at many houses, helping to usher in Memorial Day weekend.  The hills helped usher in BRR training season and the humidity helped usher in the sweaty messes that we all became and i’m definitely over-using the word usher.

The Thang

• Mosey South on Rea Rd., then right on Callender Ct.  (Stuart’s Isle section of Piper Glen).
• Quick right onto golf course path.  Follow path West.  When it starts to curve around to the East take stairs on right that lead down towards the woods.
• Go to the right a short distance to the corner, then go left through the woods to Elm Ln.  Go right on Elm Ln.
• Left on Creek Bend Dr. and enthusiastically participate in dynamic stretching (high knees, but kickers, shuffle, karaoke).  Stop when street ends at Ridgemore Dr. for main event instruction.

Hill Repeat Course:

• Per the map, drawn in chalk at our feet, the course is made up of 3 streets that form a “Z” shape.  The launch point (where we are standing) is in the middle of the Z.
• From launch point, head South on Ridgemore Dr., then left on Hickory Forest Dr. and take to end.  Turn around and return to launch point.
• Continue North on Ridgemore Dr. past launch point.  Turn left on Mock Orange Dr. and take to end.  Turn around and return to launch point.
• That is 1 full lap (1.5 mi).  Run hard and shoot for 3 laps.
• Meet at launch point (Ridgemore Dr. and Creek Bend Dr.) no later than 9:03.
• Proceed back to Greenway parking lot as a group using the golf course route in reverse (1.3 mi).

Route

Mole Skinny

• YHC has wanted to run the #WhiteOak hills w/ F3 ever since coming across them at mile 9 of the Charlotte 10-miler (a simply cruel joke) earlier this year.  The problem has always been getting there. From DT, Elm is the most direct approach, however, it inexplicably has no sidewalk and is poorly lit.  After being inspired by Hairball and Bunker to find new routes for DT, YHC put on his thinking cap and found the shortcut through the golf course, which limits distance on Elm to less than one tenth of a mile.
• As it turns out, Frasier led the DT PAX through #WhiteOak in January of 2014 using Elm to get there.  So -1 for YHC on the originality scale, but maybe +1 for using the golf course route.
• Those that completed 3 course laps notched 7.0 total miles and 564 feet of elevation change.  There were several beasts that achieved this feat, but YHC will not name names for fear of leaving someone out.
• Honey Bee led the charge with a blistering pace that would be considered fast for someone running on flat ground.
• Mr. Brady, Bunker, Stone Cold and Long Haul were not far behind, putting in amazing performances of their own.  Don’t look now but Bunker is getting faster by the day.
• This really was a great performance by all.  It was a grind for sure and the humidity didn’t help.  The 3rd climb up Ridgemore was rather soul crushing, and reminded YHC very much of how it felt when running it during the Charlotte 10-miler.
• Thanks for bearing with me during the convoluted route to the main event, which involved a golf course, trail running, hang-gliding and a short trip on a jet ski.  No, it was a wave runner.  YHC thinks this is a solid option for DT hills, when looking for a less convenient option than Piper Glen and #theLC.
• Thank you to HB and Bunker for the opportunity to lead.
• And finally, Cheese Curd insisted that I relay to F3 Nation that he definitely did not have a code brown this morning.  Mission accomplished.  Great running with you this morning, CC.

Announcements

• Memorial Day convergence at Day Zero – Saturday 5/28 @ 7AM
• F3 Dads – starts Saturday 5/28 @ 9AM at “Bull Ring” in SOB Land and 6/4 @ 9AM at Beatty Park (preblast)
• Tough Mudder – 11/5 at Mount Pleasant, NC (about 45 min from CLT).  See Bunker for details and to join the F3 team he has put together