Dear Garmin Forerunner 301,

Dear Garmin Forerunner 301,

For the past 2 1/2 years I have had a love - hate relationship with you. When I first opened you up on that cold Christmas morning, I was so excited I could hardly stand it! I quickly tore open the packaging and began setting up my new running watch. Now I was a real runner. I could just imagine myself winning a race - a marathon perhaps? (ha! I'm not Kenyan - but you get the idea of the level of excitement!) Now I would know my distance, pace, calories burned, elevation, heart rate...everything...all the time. I practically sped out the door before all the presents were opened and the wrapping paper cleaned up!

Little did I know that our relationship would be so tumultuous. From the beginning you frustrated me. I would be running and you would just stop - out of nowhere - I kept running, but you didn't. You would shave miles off of my total distance OR add to it during the runs. All of which confused my total pace. If it is cloudy, you don't work; if it is windy you don't work; if the temperature is over 80 or below 60, you don't work. If it is humid you don't work; if the leaves are falling off the trees... You get the picture. My favorite letdown of yours is how my pace changes from a 4 minute mile to a 20 minute mile with in seconds...Neither of which is anywhere NEAR true. Imagine the irritation of the pesky little beep that again you can't acquire satellite and are shutting down - for the 10th time during a run.

Knowing Garmin to be such a REPUTABLE company that creates ingenious inventions...and HECK! is even right down the street from my school and HECK! even supports my school... I thought a simple phone call would do the trick. SO I called Garmin and was informed I lived near too many trees and should buy a more expensive watch. (REALLY?! Thats how you support your merchandise?) I called other times to be told random stuff - I would have to pay for them to fix you. No thanks - you sold me a bad watch for the beginning. Bottom line - you are a bad watch. Horrible. Awful. Disappointment extradorinaire. Others claim to have such good luck with you. But me - not so much.

So why do I take you with me on my runs? Why do I torture myself? Why do I let myself be disappointed when after a 22 mile run, you tell me I only ran 15? Good question. I am done. No more.

Nevertheless... I am a real runner, with OR without you.

Goodbye Garmin. Hello iphone. Yes, the iphone can really do ALL things. All I have to do is enable the map my run app on my iphone and it does all that you NEVER did and more. Plus it is voice activated. And I can listen to my music at the same time. I could even make a phone call if I wanted to (which I would NEVER do - I make fun of people who talk on the phone while exercising. but it would be there for emergency purposes.) So there. Farewell lousy friend. You have been replaced. Our love affair is over.

Thank you Apple for once again making my life so much easier.

Yours Truly,

Bethany, a former Garmin owner