Two watches during race???

Jun 12, 14 21:17

Post #1 of 22 (5230 views)

I have a 70.3 this weekend and I know I might look crazy (who cares) but I really like the idea of wearing two watches. Here's the deal, I have a Nike GPS sportwatch that I want to use as a stopwatch for the entire race and then I have a Garmin 620 that I want to use purely for run metrics and pacing while still having an exact measure of overall time. I know I could do the math in my head and stop the Garmin after the bike and restart it fresh at the beginning of the run but I don't love that idea of playing around with the watch in transition and then doing the math for my overall time.

Also, I'm aware that they make watches with multi-sport functions, but I wanted to buy the 620 because...well...I regret the purchase.

Do I really need overall time? No. But do I want it? Yes.

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

Jun 12, 14 21:59

Post #2 of 22 (5195 views)

I would just make "time of day" as a data field on the 620...As long as the race starts on time, that isn't much math.

Re: Two watches during race??? [dfroelich] [ In reply to ]

Jun 12, 14 22:19

Post #3 of 22 (5173 views)

Right, that's what I'll do. I always over think these things!

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 3:02

Post #4 of 22 (5056 views)

I have been doing the two watch thing for years. I use my Timex to run the clock for the entire day. It is nice to look at the time coming out of the water. I judge my bike off of my mph and time on my odometer. I then start my Garmin for the run portion of the race to judge my run. I know there are more efficient ways to do it, but I like to look at my overall time coming out of T2 to help determine the run needed for my goal time. At Kansas, I knew I had to run a sub-1:35 half to break 4:55 and was able to pull it off. Having the Garmin for run splits helped. With that said, I don't really see others using this approach.

John Snyder @URNotAsCoolAsMe

Re: Two watches during race??? [Snyderman] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 5:09

Post #5 of 22 (4972 views)

For longer races I go with two watches as well. Right wrist has basic low-profile watch with total time. I throw my 310 on for the run on my left wrist. It may look a bit strange, but it works for me and I can track my swim time and total time on the stop watch.

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Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 5:40

Post #6 of 22 (4935 views)

I start with the 310xt on my bike and simple timex on my other wrist which runs total time. This gives me a swim split where I dont have to worry about losing my bike power data in the swim, and serves as a back up for some type of effort monitoring if all systems fail on the garmin.

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Re: Two watches during race??? [Snyderman] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 5:55

Post #7 of 22 (4915 views)

This. Timex on one wrist, Garmin on the other.

Re: Two watches during race??? [TriFloyd] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 6:12

Post #8 of 22 (4902 views)

I'll do the math at the finish line or pull out my phone for the live tracker... or for smaller races go to the timing tent where they have printouts usually available immediately.

Lately I'm actually racing for position (a new concept for me) so my overall time isn't as important as the pacing and effort I put out. Overall time varies too much with weather and course conditions. How I performed to my peers is a better indicator. Just my take.

I know that I hate anything on my wrist in the swim and don't care of it on the bike. I'd stare at it and wonder how many grams of drag it's costing me.

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Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 6:49

Post #9 of 22 (4864 views)

Not quite the same but I have my 310 on for the entire race and my 800 on the bike.

BC Don
Pain is temporary, not giving it your all lasts all Winter.

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 7:23

Post #10 of 22 (4821 views)

910xt on one, a simple Timex with a timer on the other for nutrition/hydration alarms.

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 7:25

Post #11 of 22 (4815 views)

I wear two. Standard Timex watch tracking total time and my Garmin 910 in multisport mode. The Timex is really a backup in case something happens to the Garmin.

Rodney
TrainingPeaks | Altra Running | RAD Roller
http://www.goinglong.ca

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

Jun 13, 14 7:36

Post #12 of 22 (4796 views)

Nothing strange about two watches. When I pace marathons for other runners I've got a GPS going on one wrist and a regular run watch on the other. Since others are depending on my accuracy, I can't risk being without a functioning stopwatch.

Sometimes, though, when I'm racing for myself I'll race with no watch at all.

Sharon McN
@IronCharo
#TeamZoot
Clif Bar Pace Team 2003-2018

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

BrentwoodTriGuy

Jun 13, 14 10:12

Post #13 of 22 (4714 views)

Make sure both watches weigh the same and wear one on each arm... symmetry!

Re: Two watches during race??? [BrentwoodTriGuy] [ In reply to ]

May 8, 23 13:26

Post #14 of 22 (1741 views)

why is the weight is so important?

Re: Two watches during race??? [MitchMcCrown] [ In reply to ]

May 8, 23 13:32

Post #15 of 22 (1730 views)

On the swim, do you wear both watches under the wetsuit or do they clear your suit ?
i.e. is it hard to get the wetsuit off quickly if wearing 2 watches

I have a hard time even with 1 watch....possibly because wetsuit is so tight

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

May 8, 23 15:46

Post #16 of 22 (1622 views)

I do this. I’ve got a Timex Ironman watch to start at the swim, I lap it for transition and at the start of the bike and run. I’ve got a Garmin computer on my bike, and when it comes to the marathon, I have my Garmin 645 watch for GPS, pace, heart rate and mile splits. No big deal, nobody ever comments.

Sharon McN
@IronCharo
#TeamZoot
Clif Bar Pace Team 2003-2018

Re: Two watches during race??? [SharonMcN] [ In reply to ]

May 10, 23 4:26

Post #17 of 22 (1435 views)

I also wear two watches. I find my Hublot to be my lucky watch, I wear it very often and almost everywhere, sometimes I swim with it. It was a great find when I addressed bigwatchbuyers.com that sell Swiss watches in NYC.
And I have a Garmin watch that I use for workouts, running and cycling.

Last edited by: BessYa: May 17, 23 1:01

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

May 11, 23 18:50

Post #18 of 22 (1279 views)

I had some thoughts to share with the OP but I'm pretty sure they've figured out some sort of solution during the 8+ years that have elapsed since they first posted this.

Re: Two watches during race??? [evickers] [ In reply to ]

May 11, 23 20:29

Post #19 of 22 (1258 views)

I do two watches like others have said. However, I don’t wear the Garmin during the swim. One watch only in the water, slap the other on in transition.

RP

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

May 12, 23 5:47

Post #20 of 22 (1152 views)

What does overall time matter? That is just an outcome of how well you execute. If you stay in the moment and present, that is your best plan. Also you may limit yourself if you are doing better then you had predicted.

Good luck with your race.

Re: Two watches during race??? [SwiftRunner] [ In reply to ]

May 12, 23 5:55

Post #21 of 22 (1144 views)

I set my watch up as a run and hit start at the beginning of a race.
One page shows total time another page shows current lap metrics.
At the start of the run segment I hot lap button to reset the current lap page so I know running paces, miles etc.
The other page still show cumulative time for the entire race.

No need for two watches

Re: Two watches during race??? [BCDon] [ In reply to ]

May 12, 23 10:58

Post #22 of 22 (1072 views)

BCDon wrote:

Not quite the same but I have my 310 on for the entire race and my 800 on the bike.

Similar here. I have my 945LTE on the whole race in multisport mode, and have customized my displays for each discipline to show what I want. That said, to avoid looking at my watch on the bike I use my 530 on the bike, but ultimately dump that file and use the files from my 945 for Strava, etc.

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