Garmin Noob Runs 23 Miles at 56 mph #fail
So I get myself a nice shiny new Garmin Forerunner 405, succumbing finally to Twitter peer pressure (you know who you are, people). It arrived at the office yesterday, so I resisted the urge to play around with it until I got home later that evening.
I read the quick start guide, charged it all up, installed the ANT drivers for the USB stick. So far, everything looking good. I planned an early start this morning for a 10k test run using my new toy.
Picture the scene. I get up this morning. It's dark, cold with slushy ice and snow covering the whole area. I opt for screw-shoes and a cross country route. I stand outside in the bleak, wet darkness. I select "training" and await GPS signal acquisition. Done. Now, press the "start" button. Perfect. And I'm off!
It's all going well, apart from the ground which is very muddy and waterlogged. A few inches deep in freezing cold water in places. But I don't care - I have my new GPS tracking my every move! I glance down to check my progress. Bad idea, as I've run out of contact lenses and it's still dark anyway. I know! the backlight! Problem solved. Well, actually, problem worsened as I manage to press the bezel incorrectly, activating a different menu. Gloves aren't helping either. I'll back up. No, I won't. Wrong button. What bloody menu is this now?
All of this is happening as I'm blundering along in the dark, splashing through mud and slush. Finally, I resolve to stop trying to get the right screen to display and concentrate on finishing the course.
Finally, I arrive back home where I hit the "stop" button. I seem to recall that's what the instructions said. No time to worry about it now. Quick shower, in the car and off to Costco to pick up new contact lenses before arriving at the office, fresh for the day. I can't wait to see my progress when the 405 links up with my laptop.
I arrive at Costco for 9:00am, forgetting that they don't open until 12:00. Right, off to work then.
I settle down at my desk, eager to see the results of this morning's run. It's not auto syncing though. It's supposed to, I thought. What the hell?
Then, I notice the problem. The timer is still running. In my earlier confusion, I think I'd locked the bezel so the "stop" didn't work. I stop the timer. It automatically uploads as designed. The picture tells the harrowing story of my utter incompetence. You can see my run around the Flash, then my car journey to Costco at Haydock and then my journey South, eventually reaching the office.
At one point on my "run", I got up to 56mph.
The lessons my friends.
- Learn to use new equipment before you need it, not at the point you need it.
- Lock the bezel before you set off as wet clothing activates menus at random. Really. Lock the bezel.
Other than that, everything went pretty smoothly.
