heart rate monitor

First "must have" gadget of the year has appeared on the Garmin website. Well, it may be in the shops by now, but I haven't spotted one yet...

the GPS folks have seriously upgraded the trusty Forerunner series; the latest model, the 406, now looks as though it is wrist watch size, rather than the miniature tv screen I wear on my wrist (to be fair, I still use a vintage version)... plus they have effectively knocked out the competition with the inclusion of an optional foot pod.

I just (like this minute) got a special delivery package from England... it turns out that I won the 50-55 age group in the Hyde Park 10k by nearly two minutes....they've sent me a Nike Triax watch/heart rate monitor.

Third place, nearly three minutes back, was Dave Warren, who was a GB international 800/1500m man in my old club (Epsom and Ewell).... so maybe it wasn't such a crap run after all :)

We love our Garmins, yes we do: there's a Garmin Forerunner fan club among the members on this site, but... lately I've been wondering whether this trusty speed/distance and heart rate monitor is well overdue for an update.

Ran in a special event last night: the First Annual Running of the Lights.

This may be the start of a whole new series. We did a (roughly) 5k course around residential streets -- following a course carefully contrived by Toledo Runner Patty Ross to take us past all the houses with the most exuberant displays of Christmas and Hanukah lights.

OK, you got it, it wasn't a PROPER race or anything, just a souped-up training run. OK, busted, it wasn't even that, just an excuse for a holiday party.

In the interests of still being able to put one foot in front of another at better than walking pace the following morning -- early -- I did keep an eye on what I was eating and drinking. But even so, come 7:45 a.m. I was stumbling up the trail to meet a typically bright and bouncy Patty M for my regular dose of nurturing Thursday morning pain.