Spastic Runner? (Run 18)

In my desire to acquire more and more running toys and products, I ordered a pair of Nike Air Structure Triax running shoes online, so that I could use the Nike+ technology. Nike+ is the fusion of iPod and Nike that tracks pace, mileage, time, etc. of your runs. It works through two sensors--one in your shoe and one attached to your iPod Nano. Your iPod Nano, when using the shoe sensor, gives a visual read out of time, pace, and distance, and you get verbal feedback periodically as well. You can upload all your run data onto nikeplus.com. There are a few other things it can do, but that's the gist of it.

Prior to the purchase of the Triax shoes, I was logging my routes after I ran on either runnersworld.com or mapmyrun.com, so I could check distance (and therefore, pace). You can track your route on an actual map of where you are running, but of course, it's not exact. I wanted more info, but was not yet ready to drop $300+ on a Garmin GPS-type watch that does all these things. So having a Nano and knowing I would need new shoes before the race in October, I ordered the new shoes and the Nike+ kit ($29). Unfortunately, the new shoes didn't feel right just walking in my living room, so I didn't even try to run with them.

I headed to Runner's Soul yesterday to get a second pair of shoes, figuring I would either just continue with the close approximation of pace or I would buy a pouch that apparently let's you use the Nike+ sensor without Nikes. As instructed, I brought my Sauconys in so that the fitter/sales rep could see my wear patterns and make sure that I had the right shoe. Noting that the wear pattern was quite even, he brought out several different models for me to try. I asked him about why he selected the shoes he did, and I then learned that I wear a "stability" shoe that borders closer to "motion-control." Basically, my arches aren't very high, and I tend to roll my ankles in when my feet strike the ground while running and walking. Bottom line--I run spasticly without the help of the "motion-control"-type "stability" shoe to keep my alignment right and fix my heel-strike. Of course, the sales rep at Runner's Soul did not tell me that I run like a spaz. He just said that these were the shoes that would fit.

Well, turns out, the shoes I liked best were a different pair of Nikes--the Air Zoom Equalon 2--which is like a stability+ shoe. It is HIDEOUS-looking. Worse than the Sauconys. However, they felt good on my feet (after I learned a new way to tie my laces to make sure they don't slip when I run), and they were compatible with my new Nike+ gear. And...fantastically, my pace was faster than I had been estimating it at prior to the integration of Nike+ into my running.

So, I'm going to buy the pouch so I can use the Nike+ with my Sauconys...and see if there's any more gear that I need.