I’ve been riding the express Excuse Train, actually, maybe upgrade to the Excuse Jet Liner First class, not running one centimeter since last week’s 12 mile long run.

I could hold out no longer, and avoided the Big Train today given it is cold outside (32°F), late (4:30pm) and it was snowing. But I got done my usual neighborhood loop, for another reason… You see, I have been a bit lazy and for all my training up yp a week ago I admit being a

cc licensed flickr photo shared by Dyanna……

I’ve suspected my Nike+iPod was giving me more distance than I actually ran, and thus my paces were not as good as I thought. This was obvious when my runs with Team D of 5 and 12 miles came out as 5.7 and 13.7, so my actual distances were 87% of what the Nike+ was reporting.

I’ve known I needed to calibrate it, but kept thinking I needed to go to a track or something more accurate than what my car odometer might measure. But then, I did the revolutionary thing… I read the instructions. The manual says I can calibrate after finishing a run- right there ion page 13 it says:

To calibrate using your latest completed workout:
* iPod nano: Choose End Workout, then choose Calibrate. Set the correct distance you walked or ran, and press the Center button.

So I set my route using the tool on MapMyRun.com, which gave the route 3.33 miles (that matches well since the Nike+ reports it as 3.76 miles, so again, actual distance is 87-88% of actual).

I did the run, knowing I really wanted to finish it to get this calibration right…. and stop running a lie. It was not that bad running out there, except for knowing I was slowpoking it, but with the new running top, knit hat, gloves, new running pants, I was plenty warm.

I did the loop, pressed End Workout…. and then never saw any option to Calibrate as the instructions above said. To be sure, I did two more tries, turning on the Nike+, walking in a few circles, repeating the instructions…. and again never got the Calibrate option.

Only one expletive came out of my mouth…. oops, I am ying again, a few ripe words did get said in the direction of Beaverton, Oregon.

Choose End Workout, then choose Calibrate. Set the correct distance you walked or ran, and press the Center button.

So for now on I am using map tools to get the right distance; I did adjust my spreadsheet of running logs to reduce all previous runs to 87% of their Nike+ reported values.

But now I know the reason why I cant calibrate.

The printed directions are wrong. The directions I found online are slightly different. Rather than

Choose End Workout, then choose Calibrate. Set the correct distance you walked or ran, and press the Center button.

the ones online read:

1. Press the Center button, and choose End Workout.
2. At the Workout Summary screen, press and hold the Center button.
3. Choose Calibrate.
4. Select the actual distance you walked or ran, and press the Center button.

“Press and Hold” is rather different then “choose”.

I’m being rather picky, but the printed instructions are wrong. Waaaaaa.

No more running lies.

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