Runs on...gadgets?

Wow. It's official. I am a running nerd. A total geek. Okay, some say this is not news. But the realization finally sank in for me when I took a look at myself in the mirror after my last run. This past Saturday, the run was 14 miles. I ran with my standard loaded fuel belt, one of the few belts I've found with a pocket big enough to house my cell phone. In addition to that, I had my iPod (with new headphones!), the Nike+ and remote, AND the Garmin. I think I had enough gadgetry on my person to make 007 himself jealous. Between my various devices, I could nav the route, map the whole city, find the nearest starbucks, quote my pace, check my mileage, answer a phone call, and check email, all while listening to the theme song to my favorite TV show "Chuck" (It's Short Skirt, Long Jacket by Cake, if you were wondering.)  I know. Insane.

Elitest runners out there somewhere are pointing and laughing. Those who run light and hydration-pack-less, barefoot, back to nature and all that, they think I'm a total loser. "No wonder you're so slow," someone said to me once. "You've got like 9 lbs of GEAR." Really, I get that I could probably run without so many gadgets. But if they make it more fun for me, more interesting, more entertaining...if the gadgets help me run, so what?? So I'm a "runnerd." I'm okay with that.

As for the run itself, the 14 miles literally flew by because I was able to keep myself completely entertained. I LOVE the Garmin. Wearing both the Nike+ and the Garmin allowed me to really see the differences in accuracy. The Garmin clocked the run in at 13.96 miles. The Nike+ said 12.76. Along one stretch of the run, the Nike+ said I was running a 12:20 pace at the same time the Garmin said 10:30. Does it really make that much of a difference?? Maybe not, but to someone like me who gets inspired by even tiny improvements in my running, it's nice to be accurate. And it was the Garmin's accuracy that made me realize that at 13.1 miles, I was 3 minutes ahead of my best half marathon race time. THAT was pretty cool.

That's it for today. I have to go charge my gadgets!