Like many people, I am already fed up with the Federal election. The two major parties seem to run negative campaigns against each other, but then promise to outspend each other to buy our votes. I am fed up with it, and I suspect many other people are too.

While some people simply will not vote, other people still want to take up their democratic right to vote. Many people also believe that voting for an independent candidate in the House of Representatives is a wasted vote. This is not the case if you are thoughtful about your preferences by making sure that Labor and Liberal are in the order of preference, even if they are last and second last. I am not going to explain preferential voting here, but see the Australian Electoral Commission web site for an explanation of the preferential voting system.

Why not make a silent protest about the major parties in the next election by voting for an independent candidate but making sure that your preferences count?

Post the following to your blog or Facebook status.

– start post –

Sick of the two major political parties in Australia? Vote independent in the coming Federal election as your silent protest against the major parties. Make sure your House of Representatives vote counts by using your last two preferences on the ballot form in the order you prefer Labor/Liberal. http://www.aec.gov.au/Voting/counting/hor_count.htm for an explanation of the preferential voting system. Post this to your Facebook status.

– end post –

Traditional swagmen in the late 1800s or early 1900s used to carry a piece of canvas and a blanket to sleep in. The swagman would fold the canvas in half and lie between the layers with the blanket to keep him (swagmen were always men) warm and dry at night. During the day the swagman would roll it up with his clothes and other worldly possessions, tie it up with a loop for a handle, and carry the bedroll on his shoulder as he walked outback Australia in search of work.

Making your own traditional swag or bedroll in the style of an original swagman is easy. Today we do not have to carry a swag long distances so we can add in a few extra creature comforts, but why spend $400 or more on a top-of-the-line mass-produced swag when with a little ingenuity you can be sleeping just as comfortably in the traditional style.

What you will need:

• generous sized piece of canvas
• foam or self-inflating mattress
• doona or blanket
• pillow
• rope.

I developed my swag when my wife was sick in the middle of winter. Who wants to lie in bed next to a coughing, spluttering partner? Not me. And being the generous soul that I am, I vacated the bed rather than telling her to sleep in the living room. We do not have a spare bed, so I pulled out some of our camping gear and made myself comfortable.

First I laid my old 8’ x 10‘ canvas tarp on the floor. I then placed one of our self-inflating mats on half the tarp.  I folded an old Queen-sized doona length-ways in half and laid it on the mattress and threw on a pillow. Finally, I folded the other half of the tarp over the top. I find this swag set up toasty warm and very comfortable. I use a rope to keep it rolled up when I am not sleeping in it.

Traditional swag

Any appropriately sized piece of waterproof canvas will do, but do not use a poly tarp as they do not breathe like canvas. I purchased my canvas tarp from Deals Direct a few years ago. I recently tested a similar tarp by leaving it in the rain overnight with some towels stuffed in the middle. The towels did not get wet at all — I was amazed at how waterproof it was! Similar tarps are now being sold on eBay. You may also be able to get a cheap high quality canvas off-cut from a local canvas goods manufacturer or repairer.

Make sure that your canvas is a generous size – you want it to go under you, over you, and cover your feet and your head. If camping outdoors, ideally you should also have some overhang along the side to cover your boots and clothes to keep them dry. I have used an 8′ x 10′ tarp that I had lying around, but this really is the minimum if you are sleeping outdoors. If I was to buy one, I would be looking for a 9′ x 12′ canvas tarp.

I first used a DMH 4WD Off Road self-inflating mattress from our camping kit. This 195 cm x 80 cm x 10 cm thick self-inflating mattress is very comfortable but rolls up very bulky. I have also used a BCF 5 cm foam mat. It is less comfortable, but rolls up better. There are numerous other options from cheap thin closed-cell hiking mats to open-cell mattresses that can be rolled up. Again, be a bit creative – a trip to a rubber or mattress outlet may turn up something cheap and comfortable. Apart from comfort, the main thing to look for is the mattress’ insulating properties. Cold ground can soak up a lot of your body heat, so make sure your mattress provides a barrier between you and the ground. The thin closed-cell hiking mats generally provide excellent insulation, and they can be used under an open-cell mattress keeping you both warm and comfortable.

I have used a queen-sized doona in my swag that I had spare lying around the house. Use a removable doona cover so that it can be easily washed. I lie in between the two halves of the doona to help insulate me from the cold ground below as well as the air above. It provides a bit of extra cushioning, and means that I am sleeping on a cotton cover, not directly on the top of the mattress. You could also use a blanket, or even just a sheet if it is really hot. I also use a full-size pillow in my swag.

I have used my swag indoors in an unheated room down to about three or four degrees Celsius and been toasty warm (the rest of my family were sleeping in their bedrooms with heaters running). This was much more pleasant than crawling into bed with a sick wife! In fact, my swag is so comfortable I find myself looking for a reason to sleep in it! I roll out the swag under a huge window in our house and it is very pleasant looking out at the night sky. I can imagine doing this in the outback with a million stars shining down on me!

If using this traditional style of swag outside, set it up with the opening of the folded canvas/doona away from the prevailing weather. This will keep any cold draughts from coming in through the folded material. Also be conscious of not setting up anywhere rain water will pool on the ground or where water will channel if it rains.

When it is really cold, pull the canvas over your head and shape a little air passage downwind. This will help keep your head warm and recirculate the warmth of your breath, but still allow some ventilation to minimise condensation.

When it is warm, tie off the centre of the top flap at both ends to a couple of trees. This will lift the top flap off you to provide ventilation, but still provide protection from any passing storms.

When you are not sleeping in it, roll it up so no bugs get in it. Fold the bottom flap over the top to make an envelope. Start rolling from the top (where your head was) of the swag. If you are using a self-inflating mattress, make sure the valves are at the foot end!

The following photo is of my home made swag with a 50 mm thick BCF foam mattress, thick woollen doona and full sized pillow wrapped up in it!

Home made swag rolled up

I have used a single length of rope to tie up the swag. I have tied a couple of overhand loops about a foot apart in the middle of the rope — the length of rope in between these knots becomes the handle. I then tied each end of the rope around the swag with a half hitch. This keeps the swag rolled up nice and tight, but also gives me a handle to carry the swag. A close up of the right hand knot in the above photo is shown below.

Knots used to tie up home made swag

Consider getting a couple of the cheap blue tarps. Use one as a ground sheet. If the weather is really miserable, the other one can be set up in a lean-to style with the swag underneath for a bit of extra protection. Or just get one large blue poly tarp – use half as a ground sheet with the swag on it and tie the other half up in a lean-to style above the swag.

The biggest drawback of this style of swag is that they do not have any insect screens. Numerous swags on the market do not have insect screens, so don’t let this put you off. Obviously do not camp on ant mounds, but mozzies may still find their way into your swag or if you are really unlucky a snake seeking a little warmth overnight. Of course, if you roll your swag out next to a crocodile infested creek, you deserve to become an overnight snack!

I am in the market for a canvas tourer tent. These tents are fast to set up and can be considered the original quick pitch tent. They are also heavy and bulky, but this is not a problem if you are touring in a car.

Having made the decision to buy a canvas tourer tent, I decided to conduct a comparison of the main features of the various extended tents on the market (much of the basic information will also apply to the standard single pole tents). I have generated the linked table below from readily available information on the internet — most has been compiled from the supplier web sites, but some has come from retail web site descriptions.

Canvas tourer tent comparison table (pdf; opens in new window)

The comparison table includes all brands that I could find, including:

• Darche
• DMH Outdoors
• Outdoor Connection
• Oztrail
• Primus Australia (including Kookaburra)
• Southern Cross Canvas
• Sunny Outdoor Sales (listed on eBay).

The information, as far as I am aware, is correct as at July 2010. There are a number of blanks on the table where I have not been able to easily find information on the internet. For the tents I was interested in, I e-mailed the suppliers to find out any information that was not readily available. Prices are the lowest I have been able to find on the internet, but do not include freight. The prices are sometimes lower than recommended retail prices.

Let me get one thing clear straight up: I am a lazy runner. I began running again about 25 kg more than my weight when I last ran as a teenager. Minimising the effort required to lug around the extra flab was essential to get me running. This is my experience.

Mizuno running shoes

I began my journey by trying to find hints that would minimise the effort required to run. In the process, I discovered that improving my form could also help eliminate my shin splints. I started by attempting a running form which I later discovered was very similar to the Chi Running and Pose Running techniques. My breakthrough really came when I started running with a metronome clipped to my shorts.

Many running books and online forums advocate a running cadence (number of times one leg strikes the ground each minute) of 90. But how to achieve that magic number? Too many, myself included, plod along at a less than optimal running cadence. Apparently 90 steps per minute gives the optimum air time versus foot in contact with the ground time.

The first thing that I did was bought a $10 clip-on metronome off eBay. These things are not water proof so do not try running in the rain or dumping a cup of cold water over your head to cool down. And if you are feeling self-conscious about running along beeping, either get yourself earphones or just pretend it is your heart rate monitor beeping away like you see on hospital TV shows.

Metronome

Next I needed to work out my current cadence. I simply looked on my Garmin FR60 watch with heart rate monitor and foot pod. If you do not have a watch that also gives you cadence, run for a minute counting the steps for one leg. I started out running with a natural cadence at around 80. I call this a double step cadence because each cadence is a one step on both the left and right legs, which is actually two steps one on each leg.

I set the metronome to my natural cadence of 80 and ran in time with my right leg. Having the focus all on one leg all the time led me to feel unbalanced after a while. I liked to alternate between counting with my left leg, and later counting with my right leg to keep some sort of balance to my running – I found it hard to alternate because I would prefer counting using my right leg and could not easily swap over to my left.

I found that the natural tendency was to run in time with every time I slammed my foot down onto the pavement, but this could lead to a very heavy running style. Instead, I ran in time with my foot lifts — and I do mean foot lift rather than foot push off. I aimed to lift my foot into the air allowing my body to glide along level; rather than pushing off strongly and bouncing into the air. Pushing off, I was consuming extra energy to lift my overweight body into the air every time I took a step! Why bother when I didn’t have to?

What worked best for me though, was what I call a triple step cadence. Once I had done a few runs and got comfortable running with one leg (a left and right leg double step) in time with the metronome, I tried setting the metronome to two thirds my natural cadence. In my case, this was 53.3 (80*2/3), which I found comfortable to round up to 54. Now I tried running with three foot lifts (both legs) per beep – the foot lifts naturally fell on an alternate foot every time. I practiced this while walking or moving my hands in time to counting 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3 – a bit like a waltz really. Using a triple step to every beat gave me a nice, balanced rhythm to my run. After several runs, I was able to let my mind drift off onto other topics and naturally kept in time with the metronome beat.

Finally, it was time to lift my cadence. What I did was to run the first half (after warming up of course) of my 10 km run comfortably at my natural triple step cadence of 54 (= 81 double steps per minute). On the second half of my run, I would lift my cadence by one beat per minute to 55 (= 82.5). This is not so great a leap that I could not run in time with it. Once, 55 became comfortable, I would then start my run at 55, and run the second half at 56. This is slowly lifting my cadence to the optimal 90 steps per minute (or 60 beats using a triple step).

As I ran with a faster cadence, I naturally needed to modify my gait to work at the faster rate. I also ran with the same cadence up hill and down – if I needed to speed up or slow down, I changed my stride length instead.

As I lifted my cadence I let the natural laws of physics do the work for me – I simply lifted my foot higher as I picked it up, but not changing the motion of my knee. The natural pendulum effect of shortening the distance between my hip and foot allowed my cadence to lift with minimal extra effort. When my foot landed, I would allow it to fall naturally under my body (not striding out the front) without worrying about whether I was landing on my heel, mid-foot or forefoot. Finally, standing tall with a gentle lean from my ankles I let gravity pull me along, making all the above seem easy.

In a nutshell:

1. Buy a $10 clip on metronome off eBay.
2. Work out your current natural cadence towards the end of your regular run either from a watch with a foot pod or simply count the number of strides you take in a minute with one leg.
3. Practice a double step cadence — set your metronome to your natural cadence and then run with the lift of one foot in time with the beep (that is two steps counting both feet). Run for a while with one foot in time, then swap feet. Keep the same cadence whether running up hill or down, just change your stride length to speed up or slow down.
4. When you have mastered the double step cadence, change to a triple step cadence – one beep equals three steps with both legs; this will alternate the leg that the beep falls on to give a nice, balanced run.
5. After warming up, run the first part of your run at your natural cadence; run the second part of your run at one beat per minute faster (that is three steps if using triple step cadence).
6. When the second, faster part of your run feels comfortable, run at that cadence for the first part of your run, and again lift the second part of your run by one beat per minute. Repeat until your natural cadence has reached around 90 steps per minute.

As you lift your cadence, you will need to find ways to make it happen. Obey the laws of physics, rather than forcing your muscles to drive your legs faster. Try these ideas as you continually seek efficiency in your running:

1. Lift your foot higher while keeping the arc of your knee the same (the reduced length of the pendulum swinging from your hip will increase your cadence with minimal extra effort.
2. Let your foot land naturally under your body. Do not over stride out in front, and do not worry about whether you have a heel, mid-foot or forefoot landing.
3. Hold your body upright, and then lean gently from your ankles, letting gravity drag you along.

I see many new campers going to their nearest camping store and spending up big. They buy the biggest tents, luxury beds and enough cooking gear for a dinner party for eight. Then they need a trailer to cart all the gear around. They then progress to a caravan — but make it a tandem wheel caravan.

I call this gear camping porn: Its camping gear you lust after; but if you had the opportunity to get it, would you really want it after all?

Three classics spring to mind:

• fifth wheelers — do you really need to drag all that weight around the country side? Why not just stay in an appartment?
• offroad, dual-axel caravans — if you are that serious about 4wd’ing that you need an offroad caravan, are you really going to drag a dual axel caravan down a beach over soft sand or go rock crawling with it?
• massive mega-mart Taj Mahal dome tents — your missus will think it is great, but your weekend will be ruined because it took half a day to set up, and then it will blow down in the first big gust of wind.

Some not so obvious examples are solar panels for your microwave or coffee maker. What’s wrong with a camp fire, or if you really must, a gas stove. Moka coffee pots make an Italian-style cup of coffee — and it will taste even better outdoors.

Do you really need all this camping gear to have a great time, particularly if you are just starting camping? As a fellow camper once noted, why is it that people who have been camping for the last 20 years have the small, cheap dome tent, while the new campers have the largest, most expensive tent possible?

Camping candy, on the other hand, is the really essential gear that has excellent form and function. I would argue that a good quality swag is camping candy — just the basics, but it will keep you toasty warm and dry in the worst weather.

Limit your gear to camping candy and you will have a much better time. There is less to store, transport, set-up and pull down. More time will be spent enjoying the waterfront site that only campers have access to, while people in the megadollar caravans are relegated to the back blocks of the caravan park.

I took the family camping at Borumba Deer Park on the weekend. Following are a few comments on our experience.

Staff: Once we had checked in, we had little to do with the staff. The few times we did encounter them, they were generally pleasant and easy to deal with, except our situation on arrival – see below.

Arrival: I do not know what was going on, but the fellow allocating camp sites was determined to put us next to some single male in a beat up caravan with beer cans in a pile outside. We asked whether several different camp sites were available. With some pushing, we finally agreed to the ‘Nottingham’ camp site. Despite it being the start of school holidays, none of the sites we requested were filled over the weekend so I am not sure what the guy’s problem was. Why couldn’t we camp where we wanted to?

Borumba Deer Park was not busy, despite it being the June school holidays

Facilities: The toilets and showers were kept very clean – there was a cleaner in there nearly every time we went in. Mind you, when there was any moisture on the ground outside, the toilets got dirt trampled through them every time someone came in. There was a mop left in there and people were encouraged to mop up after themselves. A few people didn’t, but the cleaners took care of that pretty quickly.

If you are camping at the far end of the camp ground (where we were), be aware that it is a fair hike to the toilets. It might be worthwhile bringing your own portable toilet for overnight toilet stops, particularly if you have young kids. There is a dump point for chemical waste behind the amenities block. There is a separate amenities block for the Sherwood Forest camping area.

Generally the camp sites are large – our 20 x 24 tarp fitted on the site. The unpowered sites are the pick though with their bush surrounding – even better if you can get one down near Yabba Creek. The powered caravan sites seem too much like a standard van park for my liking. Watch out for sites with hollows in them, such as “Wood Pile”. They could make camping very damp if it rained.

Our campsite at the Borumba Deer Park

We had no problems with sandflies, midges or flies – mind you, we were camping in the middle of winter.

Attractions: The deer are a little over rated. Of the four days we were there, there was only one organised deer feeding. However, you can feed them bread any time you like. And I never did get to taste one of the critters. The deer are a draw card that are being under utilised in my opinion.

A couple of the deer at the Borumba Deer Park

The creek was very cold in June, and not many people ventured in for a swim. I imagine it would be quite popular in the warmer months.

The playground was very much 70s style and the roundabout did not work. They were in the process of installing some new play equipment, but we could not quite work out what it was going to be.

There was a shared camp kitchen, but we did not use it. Our neighbouring campers did, and seemed to like it.

I loved having a camp fire at every site. Some people had huge mounds of wood, but we kept our fire fairly small.

Local area: The Imbil area has some tourist potential, but is underwhelming. The Imbil markets were tiny by Brisbane standards, but I guess that is to be expected of a country market. The were a couple more stalls to the left of the photo. When the Gympie-Imbil steam train arrives, a few more people filled the markets, but it was hardly a mad rush.

The Imbil country markets were tiny by Brisbane standards

The Gympie-Imbil steam train

Gympie Cooloola Tourism has more information on the area.

We toured a few of the other local camping grounds, and the deer park was certainly the most popular.

Overall: a nice bush camping experience, but the deer as an attraction are somewhat underutilised. Great for a quiet weekend, but do not expect a lot of tourist attractions.

Following is my camping gear checklist. My gear is based around camping at unpowered sites in campgrounds.

For some minimalist campers (such as hikers), this list is way too much. I am camping with young kids and my wife, so need to have a reasonable level of comfort.

On the other hand, many people camp with a lot more than this and may consider my list to be just the basic essentials. For example, my parents have a microwave and air-conditioner in their pop-top camper – and they wonder why the trailer is so heavy!

Of course, personal effects (such as clothes, sunscreen and towel) are in addition to the list.

Tent
tent (inc. poles, fly and guy ropes)
pegs/stakes
mesh tarp (ground sheet)
foam floor tiles (for outside tent door)
tools: mallet

Tarp
tarpaulin
poles (including ridge pole)
pegs/stakes
guy ropes
tools: mallet

Sleeping
self-inflating mats
sleeping bags
pillows
(additional bedding depending on expected temperature)

Eating
bottled drinking water
food
ice box
plates
cutlery
cups (inc. coffee cups, wine glasses)

Cooking
gas stove (inc. hose)
stove stand
gas bottle
matches/lighter
fry pan
saucepan
kettle
moka espresso coffee pot
tongs
knife
cutting board

Clean up
washing-up water (if not available at site)
washing-up bowl
detergent
dish cloth
tea towels
spray and wipe
clothes pegs
dust pan and brush
rubbish bags

Lighting
gas lanterns
gas bottle
telescopic gas pole
matches/lighter
spare mantles
spare lens
torches
spare batteries

Furniture
picnic table with stools
bench
folding chairs

Miscellaneous
spare tarps
spare pegs
spare rope
gas bottle adaptors
pocket knife
general tool kit
shovel
axe

Here are a few links to useful resources for camping in South East Queensland. I have started building this list for myself, so I thought I may as well share them with others on this blog. I will add to this list as time goes on. While the list is South East Queensland centric, many national directories include information on the region’s camping areas, so I have included the national lists as well.  

Camp site at Borumba Deer Park

Camping area directories  

Queensland  

• Caravaning Queensland - commercial caravan parks
• National Parks, Marine Parks and Forests – Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management

National/interstate  

• Big 4 Holiday Park finder
• Family Parks finder
• New South Wales Caravan & Camping directory
• Top Tourist Parks

Regional tourism information  

• Queensland Holidays destinations (Tourism Queensland official web site clickable map of destinations) 
• Gympie Cooloola Tourism (including Tin Can Bay, Rainbow Beach, Mary Valley, Kilkivan and Goomeri)
• South Burnett Visitor Information Centres (including Blackbutt, Kingaroy, Murgon, Nanango, and Wondai)
• Stradbroke Island
• Stradbroke Getaways
• Travel Action Bruce Highway and Byways (coastal Queensland)
• Travel Action Matilda Country (outback Queensland)

Tent site at Noosa River Caravan Park

• Australia’s Camping Quartermaster
• Down Under Camping
• eBay (camping, hiking)
• Enoggera Camping
• Great Escape Camping
• Tent World

Gear brands

• AOS Swags & Bags
• Australian Country Outfitters (Burke & Wills, Bushskins)
• Black Wolf (try a different browser if the site doesn’t load properly in Internet Explorer)
• Coleman
• Darche Outdoor Gear
• DMH Outdoors
• Hillbilly
• Jolly Swagman (Down Under Swags, Jolly Swags, True Blue Swags)
• Mr Swagman
• Onland Australia
• Outdoor Connection (even though a large camping products company, their web site is largely incomplete, so don’t bother clicking)
• OZtrail
• OzTent (Jet Tent)
• Primus
• Roman
• Saul Swags
• Southern Cross Canvas

If any of these links no longer work, or if you know of a camping resource that should be added to this list, please let me know.

Many first time campers seem to baulk at setting up a tarpaulin over their camp site because they think that it is too complicated. All those poles, ropes and pegs. And no instructions either!

I was in that category … until I tried it. Even my wife agreed that putting up a 12’ x 16’ tarp was easier than erecting our similarly sized 10-person Jackaroo dome tent.

Following are a couple of photos from setting up a tarp in our front yard for the first time.

Gear for setting up a tarpaulin

My gear. The long bag has the poles; small bag, the tent pegs and mallet; bucket, the guy ropes; and of course there is the silver tarp.

Tarpaulin laid out with pegs, poles and guy ropes ready for raising

There are two schools of thought to erecting a tarp: 1) centre poles and ridge pole first, or 2) corner poles first. I prefer the second method.

First lay out the tarp flat on the ground. Then place at each position a guy rope, peg and pole. Hammer in the peg at each location about one metre out from the edge of the tarp. Then put a pole up in each corner – place the spigot through the eye in the tarp and loop the guy rope over the top. If you angle the poles towards the centre of the tarp it is quite surprising how easily the poles will stand, even without the other poles in position and the guy ropes loose. Once you have the corner poles up, erect your centre poles and ridge pole. Raise all poles to the desired height, tighten up the guy ropes and you are done! Easy!

Tarpaulin erected

I did this 12′ x 16′ tarp on my own in about 30 minutes. This was my first time I had erected a tarp, and I stopped to talk with our neighbour for a few minutes as well. I think I can probably get the set up time down to 10 minutes. The part that takes the most time is hammering the pegs (stakes) into the ground before erecting the tarp.

A few tips:

• Use double guy ropes in each corner and the poles at the end of the ridge pole (I have not used a double at the ridge pole ends in the above photos)
• Make sure your guy ropes have springs – it allows the tarp to move when hit by wind gusts
• Use guy ropes with wooden tensioners – it makes it so much easier to quickly adjust the tension in the ropes
• Do a lark’s head knot over the top of the poles – easy and quick, but keeps the guy ropes in position better
• Purchase a good quality tarp with D-rings instead of eyelets – it will last longer
• Practice at home before you try it at a camp ground!

Update: I set up my FBT (f’n big tarp) on our last camping trip. This was the first time I had set it up because at 20′ x 24′ it does not fit in our yard! The big tarp was actually easier and quicker to set up than our dome tent. We got some wind on the final night and the big tarp did not move. The tent, on the other hand, flapped in the breeze. Note in the following photo the dip in the middle of the left side of the tarp — I did this to shape the tarp and funnel any rain so there were no areas water could pool.

Camp site at Borumba Deer Park

You want to monitor heart rate and pace, but can not afford (or do not want) a GPS enabled watch. The Garmin FR60 HRM and foot pod bundle is the answer.

Let’s face it, I know where I am running so do not need a GPS, but it is much more difficult to calculate distance and pace on the fly, so in my opinion, the FR60 bundle is ideal. I picked up my Garmin FR60 bundle from InTraining yesterday and went for my first run this morning. These are my initial impressions.

The FR60 was easy to set up from the quick start manual. But if you want to explore some of the more advanced settings, you will need to view the full owner’s manual online, or be a techno geek willing to explore the settings to see what they do.

I originally thought that foot pods were like pedometers – you measure your stride length, it works out the number of steps you have taken and multiplies it by your stride length to produce a wild guesstimate of distance travelled. How wrong could I be.

Foot pods contain accelerometers that measure the motion of your foot, and from that do a series of complicated calculations to work out distance (kilometres or miles)  travelled in real time. They can adjust to changes in cadence and pace on the fly. Very smart.

Straight out of the box on my initial (slow) run I achieved 96.8% accuracy over the first 2.5 kilometres as measured against mapmyrun.com and my car odometer. According to Garmin, uncalibrated the foot pod should be 95% accurate, but if I calibrate it – which I probably won’t bother to do – I should get within 98% accuracy.

Interestingly, when I ran backwards (I had to try!), the foot pod continued to calculate my speed regardless of the direction I was facing – much as a GPS watch would. Smart stuff.

The FR60 foot pod is small by comparison with Suunto and Polar foot pods, but slightly bigger than the Nike Sportsband pod. The FR60 foot pod weighs 10 grams and was not noticeable when clipped to my shoe laces. In fact, while I could detect a slight bulge on the top of my shoe when I really concentrated on it, the reality was that the heart rate monitor and watch were more intrusive – and how long have people been wearing watches for!?!

I also like the Garmin watch form factor. There are men’s and ladies’ styles in two different colours and they look like a normal sports digital watch. Just make sure you pick up the right one – the men’s and ladies’ boxes are almost identical and I originally walked out of the shop with the ladies version!

I know that if I can go easy at the beginning of a race, I can pick up the pace in the second half and run a negative split and a good time. But it is all too easy to get caught up in the race start enthusiasm and blow up by the second half; alternatively, it is easy to run too slow at the beginning and leave too much in the tank. I am sure the FR60 will help me keep the ideal pace.

I love being able to see in real time my heart rate and pace. I can see whether I am running too fast or too slow, and even run against a virtual partner. (I wish I could slip stream behind them as well, but that is expecting a bit too much!) The watch can keep me at the right pace for both my training and race efforts.

After setting up and syncing the watch with my computer, all I need do is bring the watch within range and my latest training runs are automatically uploaded to Garmin Connect where I can keep track of my running progress. It is a shame though that the web site has gaping holes where the map data would be for the Garmin GPS enabled products.

Having all this techno wizardry at my disposal, I just had to try for a PB resting heart rate. When I woke up this morning I put on the heart rate monitor. After dozing back off to sleep I managed a PB of 45 beats per minute – not too bad for an overweight, middle-age guy, but not as good as my high school days of around 35 bpm.

At $299, the Garmin FR60 bundle is about the price of a top shelf pair of running shoes, but it should last a lot longer and, in my opinion, is money well spent.