Running Watchpocalypse on the Bethpage trail

Somewhere on that path sits half a Garmin.

Today's run (Bethpage bike trail): 5 miles (estimate)
Yesterday's run (track): 3.5 miles

On November 18, 2008, I published my first post on Emerging Runner. Today, almost eight years later, I'm publishing post number 2,100. I've covered many subjects over that time, and my tag cloud on the left lists well over a thousand of them. This blog has definitely accomplished my initial objective, serving as my training journal and an outlet for communicating with the running community. Writing 2,100 posts took a lot of time and effort, but it's been worth every minute. If it wasn't for this blog I wouldn't have met my Runsketeer buddies who I both adore and admire. Don't tell them though. It would only go to their heads.

Running is a simple thing, but it has its nuance. One aspect that fascinates and frustrates me in equal measure is the technology we use to gather running data. I've been through three Garmins over the past eight years and most of that experience has been good. My original Garmin, an FR 50, served me well until I accidentally destroyed it while replacing its battery. I replaced it with an FR 60 that improved on the 50 and has a far better battery replacement system.

About a year after buying the FR 60, I broke down and bought my first GPS watch, a Forerunner 210. It was big step up from the 60. I liked it a lot, despite occasional issues capturing a signal and the need to replace the data cradle after a while. Recently, the loop that secures the strap broke so I took the intact loop off my retired FR 60 to replace it. Soon after that, the FR 210's strap broke off making the watch unwearable. I returned the loop to the FR 60 and resumed wearing that watch on my wrist as a stopwatch while I secured the FR 210 to my SPIbelt using a keyring loop. That worked fine until today.

Yesterday's run - the FR 210's last map

Yesterday, I went to the local track to get in 14 laps before the sun came up. I had to be somewhere at 8:00 AM, so that was the best way to get in my miles. I ran well and have really taken to the NB Zante 2's that did great on the track. It was a typical track experience with the usual personas walking, running, sprinting and one guy who was throwing a medicine ball around.

This morning I headed to the Bethpage bike trail. My plan was to run about five miles, which I think I did. I'm not sure, because the god of watches decided to mess with both my Garmins today. My run started fine and I was in a great mood. The clouds hid the sun, but not the humidity. I made my way south from Haypath Rd and ran through Bethpage Park almost to the Parkview Court crossing. There were lots of walkers and it looked like a large group had come out together because many were wearing tees that said, "Move It." Early in my run, when I was halfway up a short steep section of the path, a runner coming north shouted, "I hear that hill is pretty steep today." I laughed because it was true.

I ran well despite the humidity and was about a half a mile to endpoint when I reached down to my side to look at the FR 210 and see how much distance I'd covered. There was nothing to grab and I discovered that my Garmin had fallen off the SPIbelt. It was probably sitting on the side of the path somewhere. I doubled back about a quarter mile, but was unable to find it. I was upset, but I've been planning to replace it since using it that way was fairly awkward.

Without a GPS map of my run, I figured I'd look at Gmaps when I got home and use the time from my FR 60 to calculate my pace. Annoyed, I ran the final half mile and about a hundred feet from the finish, my FR60 started to beep and the display blinked, "Scale Not Found" and then "Scanning." I couldn't turn off the message or get back to the timer (or turn that off for that matter). The watch would not respond to the buttons when I pressed them.

So in the space of five minutes, I went from having two functional running watches to none. When I got home I removed and replaced the FR 60's battery. That got it working, but I lost all the data from today's run. Before I could declare even partial victory, the watch started flashing "Scale Not Found" again.

It's time for a new watch, so my search begins in earnest. I doubt I'll have a replacement in time for next weekend. Until then, I'll rely on Gmaps and my $15 stop watch to capture my distance and pace. That should give me something to write for my 2,101st post.

Running cadence, there's an app for that

Metronome apps

Today's run (street): 3.4 miles

Yesterday I wrote that I wanted to increase my run cadence, but wasn't sure how to approach it. I got a comment from fellow running blogger, The Petite Pacer, who suggested I try a metronome phone app. That was a great idea and I downloaded a couple of free ones, Metronome Beats and Mobile Metronome. After researching how to use a metronome for cadence, I was good to go.

I decided to use Mobile Metronome first, and set the BPM at 85, which is undoubtedly higher than my current SPM. Back when I used a foot pod, my cadence typically averaged 80 SPM on the road and 83 SPM on the treadmill. I wanted to set an aspirational cadence, rather than start with the ideal of 90/180 SPM. I was curious whether I'd be able to sync my steps with the metronome's rhythm.

I always run with my phone and I keep it in a SPIbelt on my waist. Even after setting both the phone and application volumes to their maximum, the sound of the beat was faint. Under normal conditions I could hear it, but the occasional sounds of helicopters, lawnmowers and passing school buses would drown it out. The challenge of matching stride with beat was a little tough. I decided to let it happen naturally by focusing on the beeps.

I'm not sure that I achieved my targeted cadence today, since I have no way to capture the metric. I felt like I was on top of the beat, but it's hard to really know. My overall pace, a pedestrian 9:37, doesn't indicate fast turnover. Tomorrow I'm going to try the Beats app that provides the option of beat pairs that could help me sync both steps. The app also offers more ways to shape the sound, so I'm hoping it will be easier to hear, even with lots of background noise.

10K training run on the old Bethpage route

I'm going to stick with the SPIbelt

Yesterday's run (treadmill): 35 minutes
Today's run (Bethpage State Park): 6.2 miles

It's been a busy weekend but I did get in a few runs. Yesterday morning I had to get blood drawn as part of my annual checkup, so I elected to do a moderate length run on the treadmill. I've learned from past experience that losing blood, even small amounts like this, can effect your stamina. I didn't suffer fatigue at any point in the run but I capped my time at 35 minutes. I needed to reserve some energy for the day ahead.
 
The Emerging Runner family headed into the city to see my dad, along with my aunt and uncle who are visiting from France. Later, we were excited to meet up for dinner with Adventure Girl, who was in town this weekend for a friend's wedding. They are all great people and we had a great time with everyone. I was glad that I didn't push myself too hard in the morning, because I was exhausted by the time we arrived back home.

I headed over to Bethpage State Park this morning to get in some extra miles and to take on a few challenging hills. I love the new trail extension to the north but I had not run it in the southern direction in a long time. I headed down the bike trail feeling energized by the crisp fall air, but I was regretting my decision to take the RooSport to carry my phone instead of my SPIbelt.

The RooSport hangs over the top of your running shorts and stays secure with magnets that connect the inside and outside flaps. I had some issues the last time I ran with it, but I thought it was related to the shorts I was wearing. I had on different shorts today but, from the start, I felt like the pouch was slipping. I feared that it might disconnect and fall off, so I took it off and ran with it in my hand.

Other than that, my run went very well. I covered the first three miles barely breaking a sweat. My heart rate was only 84% of max despite the hilly route. On my way back I boosted my glycogen with half a GU Roctane that I had diluted 4:1 with water in my gel flask. The helped take the edge of the first of two challenging hills that need to be managed on the way back.

There were less runners and running groups today than I expected to see. Friends TC and FS, who are running the ING NYC marathon in a couple of weeks, are doing their 10+ mile workouts this weekend.. I thought I'd see more marathoners doing the same but it was mostly cyclists, including a woman who was riding a tall unicycle.

After last week's 14 mile total (due to running the 5K race and two less training workouts), I wanted to get back up to 20 miles this week. I think I might have made it but I'll have to check Daily Mile. I have a month to train for my next race, the Long Beach 10K Turkey trot. Today's 10K base run was a great start to that training.

Running with the RooSport

Today's run (street) 2.5 miles

TGIF. I have no right to say that because my work week started yesterday, but I'm saying it anyway. It's been a tough week with the kids returning to school and lots of other stuff going on. I skipped yesterday's run because it didn't work with my schedule but I got back to it this morning.

Instead of using my SPIbelt, I tried the RooSport for the first time. RooSport claims that its product provides better moisture protection than SPIbelt and I was curious to see if that proved true. I had concern that the RooSport would feel awkward tucked into my running shorts, especially with a phone inside it, but it was surprisingly comfortable. I really didn't notice it was there.

I went for my run and quickly forgot I had the RooSport but later I thought to check it out of concern that it fell off. That was my own paranoia. The RooSport attached securely to my shorts using a strong magnet and it would not come loose on its own.

I ended up having a decent run and probably could have pushed a little harder than I did. Still, I beat my normal time on this route by almost 30 seconds. I checked my phone after I finished to see if it was wet from sweat. It did seem much drier than when inside the SPIbelt, but it wasn't completely dry. It was a good experience and I plan to use it on my longer runs this weekend.

Ready to run with a RooSport

Front view of RooSport, ID pocket on other side

Today's run (treadmill): 30 minutes

It's been a long time since I've done a post on Runner's Tech Review but that will soon change. This morning I received a product called the RooSport, a pocket that attaches magnetically to running shorts or pants. The idea is similar to the SPIbelt but the RooSport does not attach around your waist while you run.

I've been a fan of the SPIbelt for years and I use it every time I run. I'm curious to see how the RooSport feels compared to the SPIbelt, especially when loaded up with a smartphone and other small items. I'm also wondering how comfortable I'll be wearing the RoosSport on the inside of my shorts. This is the method recommended and demonstrated by Brenda Brundage, who created the product.

We've had a lot of rain over the last two days and that kept me inside for today's run. I considered wearing it on the treadmill, but I wanted my first experience with the RooSport to happen on an outdoor run. I ran for about 30 minutes this morning, fast enough to get my heart rate to the edge of the anaerobic zone. If the weather cooperates tomorrow, I'll use the RoosSport outside on my run. I'll share that experience and will post the full review in a few weeks on Runner's Tech Review.

Involuntary phone slaughter

How not to clean your phone

Today's run (street): 5.25 miles

I thought my story for today's run would be how I covered 5.25 miles at a pace that handily beat my expectations. But it turned out that the real surprise was discovering I was still wearing my SPIbelt when I jumped into the pool following that run. I had carefully removed my Garmin and Road ID before hitting the water, but I'd forgotten about the SPIbelt and the contents within.

SPIbelt - definitely not waterproof

The great thing about the SPIbelt is that you literally forget that you have it on. I've discovered a number of times that I was still wearing it, even after returning my other running gear to storage. While in the pool, I'd re-checked the pockets of my running pants, thinking I might have forgotten to remove something. It occurred to me (too late) that I was still wearing my SPIbelt that contained my LG VX8300 "running" phone.

I noticed that my phone was vibrating in the SPIbelt pouch when I brought it to the surface. I'm not sure why it was vibrating, but I knew it wasn't good. I tossed the belt and phone on the deck and finished my swim.

I've kept that phone for almost eight years, using it primarily as a backup to my smartphone. It's been great to carry on runs because it's compact and light. I hope Verizon offers a similar model because I don't think this phone is coming back.

Hours after I pulled it out of the water, the phone is still not working. I'll give it a day to dry out and I'll try it again to see if it comes back to life. In the meantime, I'm happy that I was able to get out for a decent run on such a hot and humid morning. It may have cost me my phone, but perhaps it's time for a change. I did learn an important lesson that I won't soon forget: Look before you leap!

Six miles in the morning, party in the afternoon

I heard from Fred Haslett, the president of the LIRRC, the running club that organizes many races on Long Island. Fred said that they had sent out email and set up a hot-line as well as putting information on their website to tell participants how to deal with the triathlon that interfered with access to the 4 mile race on September 13. I guess once I participate in an LIRRC race I'll get put on that email list and get a heads up on conditions. I appreciated Fred's comment and I look forward to participating in their run series.

Last week I received my SpiBelt (SPI = small personal items), a runner's version of a fanny pack. It's a nice design, basically a zippered compartment made of stretchy material that can hold money, keys, ID, or even a cell phone. The SPIbelt is built to hug the runners body at the belt line and does not interfere with running motion or balance. I took it with me during a six mile run yesterday and included some cash and my identification card. I completely forgot about the SPIbelt while I was on my run. That's certainly the idea. I was thinking that I may put some GU in it for a boost during the second leg of my relay at the upcoming Cape Cod Marathon. I'll be covering my experience with the SPIbelt in greater depth on Runner's Tech Review after the marathon.

After yesterday's long run we headed to out to Adventure Girl's housewarming party in New Haven and had a great time. With the kids, we arrived early and left early but by the time we left the place was filled with Yale grad students, good friends and family (some four legged). Quite a few runners in that group. The great food and home-made desserts will hopefully power me through my runs today. My plan is to try a two-fer again, but not too long in terms of distances. I'm feeling a little sore after yesterday's run so a little stretching is probably advised before I head out for today's workout. Only 21 days to the marathon relay...