I’m always up for a challenge. (That’s “always” as in “sometimes, and only on my terms”).

Gordon’s recently suggested one that I’d normally take to like a carrion crow to an eyeball and is a pretty straightforward “how many miles can you run in a month?” Admittedly, I haven’t run in 3 months and have a half marathon in 2 weeks and am feeling a little past my best before date but this is the sort of challenge that normally would get me motivated to get back into running. The last one I did was organised by my old gym and was a “how many calories can you burn in a month”.

The “stipulation” of sorts that Gordon has, well, stipulated, is that it’s for Nike+ users. Now on the face of it, Nike+ is exactly the sort of gadget I could go for as it measures distance, average speed, temperature, rooute and other non-essential information. I already tend to use a Polar HRM system (which reminds me, I need a new strap for my receiver/watch) but so far the problem that I have with the Nike+ is that it requires an iPod Nano. Or just an iPod or something.

The Nike+ site actually recommends using a particular set of shoes too - marketing bumpf which led me to believe it was a totally exploitative way of getting people to buy their shoes but both Gordon and Richard have informed me that this isn’t the case. So no biggy there. But it still seems to need an iPod. Which I don’t have and don’t currently need and, well, there’s this other factor: I no longer listen to music while I run.

I have spent years pissing around with playlists and tracks and all sorts trying to sort out music to run by for training or for races. However, late last year I had a bit of an epiphany. I went for a two hour run and had kitted up as normal with music, shades, camelbak (it being July) and HRM and set out. After about 25 minutes, my MP3 player ran out of juice. Pissed off, I contemplated going back to get a new battery but realised I’d never finish the run or complete the route I’d planned. So I ran without music, concerned that I’d find the remaining 1.5 hours tedious at best.

It wasn’t. At all. Apart from the fact that I chose a very scenic and challenging off road route, I felt more comfortable running than I had done with music. Everything felt better: my stride, my attention, my ability. What really surprised me was that the run seemed to be over before I knew it.

So with this revelation, I decided not to run with music anymore.

That’s not to say that I wouldn’t be interested in finding out more about the Nike+ system, particularly how tough it is and whether the foot based sensor would survive the rough and extremely muddy terrain I normally tackle. I know that a GPS system would probably give higher accuracy out of the box and less need for calibration than the Nike+ works (how does it work anyway? If it’s stride length then surely it’s not going to be less accurate for off road runs where stride pattern can vary quite a lot?). Perhaps I should investigate the Garmin Forerunner range.

On the other hand, I’m getting to enjoy the minimalist approach to running and not going with any gadgetry whatsoever.