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If one more person complains...
... about an accurately measured, certified course being long because their Garmin said so I might just 
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i wore one on each hand for a few races last year...my right arm always runs significantly further than my left arm........your Jones counter can't cope with that can it
From an engineering point of view the Jones Counter is an extremely efficient device for measuring distances. All potential variables with them are known and fixed against standard measurements.
GPS are good for showing where you are on the surface of the earth.
The idea of using GPS to measure distances seems sound until one realises that the satellites are 12,000 miles away, travel at 7000 miles per hour, need to transmit through atmospheric conditions and also bypass buildings and other obstructions lest they lose a signal.
The marketing departments of these GPS devices would be flattered by the loyalty shown by their customers as regards the accuracy of their products. But the fact remains, as a measure of distance it is the Jones Counter. The GPS works, but only near enough.
🙂
In that case I was glad that my GPS showed .05 miles shorter than the measured course in one of the only 2 runs I'm done
I thought it was the Welsh Population Census.
*b-doom-tsh*!
(I'm here all week.)
Dare I sy that my Garmin usually under reads? I've run a 13.0 mile half marathon, should I complain? And who to??
If it thinks each mile is a smidge longer than an actual mile, it will tell me I'm running a smidge faster than I am - I'm being denied PBs because of the inaccuracy! Garmin complaints department, here I come.
Ruddy hard to run with a Jones Counter though!
I think GPS devices have there purpose, mine measures about 0.1 mile out on a full and 0.05 out on most halfs so not too far out. Never complained about that as there is an inaccuracy in GPS and an allowed inaccuracy in race distances too.
Running bench it would make you faster though as most measurers jones counters are attached to bikes <insert smily>
Gutted ;(
The GPS units in this type of device are not very accurate, baldbloke.
They're close enough, for training purposes, etc., but that's all they are - training aids.
I accidentally left mine running when I came back from a run once, on the kitchen counter. By the time I went back to it and turned it off, it had covered a fair amount more distance.
When I uploaded the data to the computer, it showed that while I was in the shower my Garmin had moved about a great deal all on its own, in a wiggly circle.
I'd also quote a post on this subject on a different thread:
There is a margin of error, and 0.1 mile out over 13 miles is well within the few % accuracy that Garmin claim. In fact you could be a good 0.5 mile out over a half and still be within their quoted tolerance. As with any tolerance, some will measure over, some under, some by varying amounts and, depending on how the tolerance is driven, they may be under one day and over the next.
From an Engineering point of view the use of the Jones counter has too many variables to claim to be accurate. It is a reasonable stab at estimation but there is no real accuracy, the minor errors in the many variables will produce a compound error that could amount to 5-10%, similar to the use of two Garmins by the same person, two people using identical bikes and Jones set-ups will produce varying results.
Besides if I run a Marathon what do I care about the odd hundred yards
There's also my amazing ability to run really, REALLY fast, without even noticing.
I know that I do this, because of the max pace reading when I upload my Garmin data
At Reading last weekend, I got to about 6 miles, then decided to run a few very tight circles in a multi-storey car park, then run through the middle of the Vue Cinema complex before returning to the road. Since I know my Garmin to be accurate, yet I dont remember doing that, I can only assume I was sleep-running.
Again.
A lot of my riverside runs show me maintaining a nice steady pace as I pootle along down the middle of the river. It must think I am a very fast swimmer!
I was alone in the house at the time.
Maybe someone broke in, re-arranged things, decided they had been better the way they were and put them back, then left?