Along the canals of East London

Pretty charts that Garmin generates from the GPS tracks that it has collected on my Forerunner 405 during my run earlier today. You can also view it directly on the web.

Running with iphone

A GPS app called Trailguru recently caught my eye as I have been searching around for a useful tool to help me to map my runs. One of the nice features of the tool is its simplicity and ease of use. On first install on the iphone, you will be requested to register a new account on trailguru.com, which will serve as the repository to hold your GPS tracks. Registration takes less than a minute and I even did it on the phone directly. Initial FAQ readings all seem very positive and I set out to do a test run today by jogging back from office to home.


To start the track, you can just press "Start" which will then ask if you want to allow the phone to use your current location, or choose to manually turn on your "Location Services" under settings before starting the trace. This seems to work better for me as I was always able to get a GPS lock on immediately after. The application is clever enough to guess if you are continuously moving or have come to a stop based on the GPS location. Uploading the results to the website is a breeze as you are displayed with a screen to select the activity that you have just completed, choose if you want to share with other users, and post your track online immediately. You will then receive an email indicating your track upload with a link to view it online on a Gmap.

As expected, I was getting mixed results even though the screen was showing me the lat/lon coordinates, which might be down to the buildings around my office as I headed down to the river. It has clearly got the first stretch quite accurately (although it missed the stretch from my office down to the river bank), but completely missed the 2nd part of the route opposite Westminster to Pimlico. It was the best demo test but it did show enough potential for me to give it another go later this week. I think the fact that it even shows you the elevation and accumulated distance simply makes this app a potential killer, and not forgeting that you can actually view traces shared by other users around your route. As you can see, it is not only for runners like me, but you can even use it for hiking, trekking, cycling etc...and best of all, the app is FREE! Give it a go yourself and let me know how it went for you.

Nike+ Human Race - complete shambles

Got a text on my phone when I reached back from the run - "You raced the world. You beat the clock - well run. Your official time: 00:42:38. Your pace: 04:16/KM. Check out nikeplus.com tomorrow for global race results."

It looks impressive with the use of technology but I really consider this to be my worst race that I have ever run in my life! Let's try to list them down and you judge for yourself:

1. Run route was only released 2 weeks before the event; prior to that, most of the runners have no clue of the route, let alone that it will be run in the evening; we were only notified upon collection of the running T.
2. The instructions stated that all runners are required to be inside Wembley stadium by 6pm, but there was no indication that the run would only start at 7.45pm. During the hour and half, there was no notice of that actual start time, and runners were all jogging around the limited area inside the stadium and trying to warm themselves up before the start.
3. Why was there a concert performance by Pendulum (who???), Moby and other DJs for and hour and half when most of the runners just want to start running? Personally, I am a fan of Moby, but completely did not see the point of the performances especially when it was raining and cold; we just wanted to RUN!!!
4. I spoke to a few runners and we were all completely clueless about the point of the elaborate stage and the artistes performance. This was meant to raise funds for 3 global charities, wouldn't it be more fruitful to give these additional money to them?
5. The route was a the worst I have encountered; sharp turns, no lighting, few road marshals. I know the weather was out of control, but surely a better route should have been chosen for an event of such scale? I was in the first wave that started at 7.45pm and I could hardly see many sections of the road as the lighting was extremely poor as it was through a industry area. I really sympathise with the runners starting in wave 4 and hope no accidents happen along the way.
6. Again on the route: why was such a remote area of London chosen which resulted in the supporters unable to give the support like any other big races. It was that bad that I will not walk there alone at night!

My rants were not helped by the fact that I performed badly in the run, not helped by 5 diarrhea trips to the toilet in the day. Only felt better after a dosage of medicine which left my legs slightly wobbly due to the loss of water and salt. The lack of information of the start time also resulted in the runners not sure if they should go to the washroom or not especially since they have got a good place near the starting line like myself. I ended up making a pit stop to the toilet at the 5km mark and struggled to maintain the pace through the route.

In the end, all of us were cold and wet from the rain slashing down on us along the route, and the organisation definitely left a very bitter after taste to the event. The entire setup just seem to be a publicity stunt for Nike, rather than doing what they are preaching. I will not be surprise if there are no aftermath from the public tomorrow...