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Ben and Beci Finish the Fargo Marathon

Beci and I completed the Fargo half-marathon on Saturday this week, and actually both of us smoked it! Beci finished in 2:08:15 – which is less than a 10 min/mile pace! I finished in 2:32:45- which is an 11:36 min/mile pace- but considering that I only started running in February, and the most I’ve run since then is 5 miles- I feel pretty good about it! For those of you who don’t know- a half marathon is 13.1 miles, and it was pretty miserable the entire way, but also lots of fun.

One thing about Fargo marathons- it was cold! It was 33 degrees when we got to the race, and it couldn’t have gotten much higher than 45 the entire morning. Luckily I made it in before the rain started- but the poor marathoners got a dose of some cold water from the sky. I never got warm the entire race, even though I was moving (I did the first 7 miles in 70 minutes!) but I spilt a lot of water on myself since I took the water at pace, and that probably didn’t help much.

I can’t speak for Beci- but I think racing in that kind of environment is a lot of fun. There was a ton going on- Elvis impersonators, bands, lots of cheering crowds. It made it more fun than just boring running. The course wasn’t great since it was a loop- I actaully was passed by the first two marathoners that placed (they ran the marathon in about 2:20), but it was still a good environment to run in. I had a great time!

So now, I am just soaked in Ben Gay and waiting to recover!

Ben Marathon Finish

Beci Marathon Finish

Some of you may know this, but I am in preparations to run the Fargo half marathon in May. I figure that I need to do something to prove to myself that my back can get better- and I figured a half marathon was a much better idea than a whole one! So I have strapped on my running shoes and gone out to the (indoor) track at the campus gym and have been running laps for the past three weeks. In the end, its either going to kill me or make me stronger, and I figured either of those options would be better for my back than nothing! Training has been going well so far, but I haven’t been running too far, or too fast for that matter, and I have been in a lot of pain while running, so I decided it was time to buy a new pair of shoes, and in the process I discovered an amazing new toy!

When I started looking for running shoes I thought my main concern would be things like comfort, stability, shoe size, running appropriateness, etc. How little did I realize that the main motivating factor would be technology! After comparing several brands- Adidas, Under Armour, New Balance, and Nike, I realized that they all had pretty much the same thing going, and I could get whatever I needed. The deciding factor was Nike’s relationship with Apple. Nike and Apple have teamed up to create Nike + runs, a gadget that I would highly recommend to any serious runner.

So here is how it works. You put a little chip into your left shoe, under the insole. The chip is activated when you step on it, so you can only wear these shoes for running- don’t take them out to the mall or battery life will plummet. Next, you plug in a tiny data chip into your iPod- don’t worry it looks exactly like the charger and isn’t too big, it fits in most arm bands. Once plugged in, the iPod (if you have the right version of the iPod software, which you should if you bought your iPod in the past two years) you have access to Nike runs on your iPod.

Nike Runs basically plays a music track of your choice while you are running. But on top of the music track a little voice lets you know how far you have gone, what your pace and time is, and even gives you little coaching tips. You can do distance, time, or pace workouts and customize each one so the little voice tells you what you want to hear. In addition you can select a “Power Song” that when you need a little boost, you hit the button and the power song immediately comes on to pump you up!

The chip in your shoe tracks distance and time (and therefore also pace) very accurately. In fact, with no configuration at all, it was only a half lap off of 2 miles (my first run with it). If you know a distance, you can then configure it so you don’t have to run that extra half lap.

But that’s not the end- plug the iPod into your computer, and it uploads the data to Nikeruns.com. And here is where things really get interesting. At Nike Runs you can compete against your friends (around the world), you can track your workouts, you can create customized workout plans that download to your iPod, you can set goals and milestones and have them tracked- all without having to input any data, it all comes from the iPod. Also, Apple and Nike have commissioned original music tracks specifically devoted to running so that you have the right music to keep you on tempo or pace. They even have celebrity coaches that help you learn to run better, faster, or stronger.

The experience was easy- easy setup, easy tracking, easy use. And the design and interface are beautiful. Combine that with the precision, and I think I have myself a very handy tool that might get me 13.1 miles yet! I highly recommend this to anyone that is planning on getting new shoes soon.