Inside Nike Running

I've always been frustrated by running publications and sites. Runner's World seems all about "five ways to great abs" articles, while most of the sites are race databases or training tools. For a little while, I subscribed to "Marathon and Beyond," an ultra-focused magazine/journal that arrived in a brown paper envelope, a la 1950s porn. I was interested by a post today from Twitter friend David Armano, pointing to Inside Nike Running, an attempt by Nike to capitalize on the success of the Nike+ system with some content. Only problem is, as I told David, the content blows. It's still very marketing-like, and there's no easy way for runners to connect. That's too bad. I think Nike's doing some interesting things supporting running through "brand utilities." One of the best is the Nike Runner's Station, a stand along the Hudson, just south of Chelsea Piers. There, runners can stop for water, Gatorade, gels, bandages, whatever. There are Nike products, but it's more about supporting running. This came in very handy over the weekend, when I needed somewhere to get Gatorade during a long run. Since the vending machines tend to be sketchy, the Runner's Station was a very welcome sight. Nike needs to find a way to take that model online.

6.2 miles, 42:44