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Garmin Forerunner 50

I got a Garmin Forerunner 50 for Father's Day. It's pretty slick. It's a watch that monitors heart rate and running speed. It can display heart rate, pace, speed, cadence, time, split time, or a two-level countdown timer. After the workout it gives time, calories (based on the weight I enter), average speed, average cadence, total steps taken, etc.

The Kit

  • watch
  • heart rate strap
  • foot pod
  • I will be getting the speed/cadence option for my bike
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    Positive

  • all the components link up quickly and easily
  • heart rate is as accurate as the Polar HRM I used before this one
  • the watch stores every pretty much automatically
  • accelerometer-based foot pod is very accurate - 95-99% for me without calibration
  • web software makes cool charts for each workout
  • all parts use standard CR-2023 lithium cell

    Negative

  • data seems to be deleted from the watch without verifying that it made it to the web site, so I lost a couple of workouts
  • Garmin stuff is not very water resistant
  • no way (apparently) to edit the raw data before it gets uploaded, so spurious data can junk up the graphs (ex: a workout had one heart rate data point at 240, so the graph compressed the range)
  • foot pod snaps around laces with a strong double-snap but it's not meant to move to a new pair of shoes very often

    Link:
    http://www8.garmin.com/buzz/fr50/
    http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-010-00679-25-Forerunner-50-Monitor/dp/B000U...

    • Oklahoma Joe smoker moves on to new home

    I've wanted a "real" smoker for several years, so when I found a genuine Oklahoma Joe smoker for sale a couple of years ago I jumped on it. But I only used it once, we don't eat a lot of meat, I'm trying to simplify, and I needed the money to buy triathlon gear. So I took some pictures with the idea of putting it on craigslist. I was talking about this at work and within ten minutes word spread and someone bought it. I will miss having it but I'll probably get more meat from it now that it's with a friend.

    These have a great reputation because they are so well built. This one is made from 1/4-inch thick pipe, so it won't lose heat to the wind. That's vital out here on the open prairie. It's a 16-inch, meaning it's made from a 16-inch diameter pipe. The firebox is 16 inches long, and the main cooking area is 32 inches long, giving 512 square inches of cook area on the stock expanded steel racks. Everything seals pretty well, and it has a mason jar lid tacked onto the bottom, so you can screw on a jar to catch your grease and drippings. It also has a propane connection for starting, if you're into that sort of thing.

    This smoker is heavy. Four feet of 16" x 1/4" pipe weights 168 pounds! Add the ends, legs, and shelves and it's over 200 pounds.

    More pictures here: http://sharpcraft.com/gallery/v/garden/smoker/

    You can still buy one of these new. After going through a few owners they are for sale here as the "classic 16" backyard smoker": http://www.horizonbbqsmokersstore.com/servlet/the-373/16%22-Classic-Back...

    Adidas Cardrona update (heel-strikers beware)

    Update to this http://sharpcraft.com/content/node/87 post on my new Adidas ClimaCool Cardrona shoes.

    I was experimenting with Clif Bars (good) and PowerBars (evil) in between swimming & running so stomach cramps turned my two-mile run into a 45-minute 1/2-mile run & 1.5 mile walk/run/roll-in-a-ball extravaganza. Then a few hours later I did a 20-minute family walk with my beautiful bride and wonderful daughter. That's enough to get an initial report.

  • Hot Spots: I have a few hot spots - one on top of each foot where the laces may have been too tight, two on left toes, one on a right toe.
  • Arches: My arches have a little ache. I don't think I need planter fasciitis so I'm going to look at the arch supports and compare them to my other shoes.
  • Midfoot Striking: I didn't have any problem with the shoes trying to change how my feet hit the ground, so that's good.
  • Heel: The heel feels like it grabs the ground like a magnet - solid enough that I would be worried about twisting a knee if I was a heel-striker. It might have too much traction for some uses.

    I'm used to just putting on the shoes and that's it - running shoes don't normally need a break-in, do they?. So we'll see how it goes with the hot spots. I used to have a pair of Asolo trail shoes. They felt like boards on my feet for a year or so. Then whatever caused my problem finally wore out and they were great after that, until the eyes pulled out and the leather wore through on the toes.

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