Do you run with your smart phone?

Armband I get, but how can you put a smart phone in your shorts pocket and not have it bouncing all around?

They are light, but not light enough to prevent bouncing. They are big and bulky, with most current Androids sporting 5"+ displays.

The OP specifically asked about smart phones (and mentions music), but it seems to have devolved into the merits of carrying cell phones for emergencies.

Like I said, I stuff it down my shorts inside a sock. It doesn't bounce around.

I may run smoother than you though.

I love these tough guys talking sh!t about their own families... what a douche

800 dude wrote:

Actually, it's because phones are bulky. I would have no objection to carrying a phone on a run if it were integrated into a normal-sized sports watch. But I can't imagine strapping a smart phone to my arm.

This is my biggest objection too. I would love to use mine to stream music but not at current smart phone sizes.

(I think the "I carry a phone for emergencies" people are nuts).

Of course I wouldn't have a problem carrying Zoolander’s Oh-So Tiny & Fashionable Phone (http://flavorwire.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/zoolander-phone.jpg) because it is smaller and lighter than a iPod shuffle.

Only time I ever ran with a phone was a few years ago when my mom went in to have a kidney removed and I was expecting a call between 1pm and 5pm. Other than that no phone when running.

I've used bread crumbs, but that doesn't always work out so well.

bob james wrote:

Armband I get, but how can you put a smart phone in your shorts pocket and not have it bouncing all around?

They are light, but not light enough to prevent bouncing. They are big and bulky, with most current Androids sporting 5"+ displays.

The OP specifically asked about smart phones (and mentions music), but it seems to have devolved into the merits of carrying cell phones for emergencies.

No, smartphones aren't bulky by definition (maybe your definition). I'd say my LG is about as big as an energy bar and fits in the hip pocket of my running shorts. I use a zipper or safety pin to make sure it doesn't shake free. Like most folks I know, I stopped buying shorts with the useless unzippered untethered front pockets a decade ago.

I understand some people like music, some like gps and tracking apps, some like the safety and ease of access to 911 or their families, some the ability to capture photos, and many appear to have a general dislike for being connected (misanthrope runners on LR? - shocker). Don't really see a problem with any of these preferences and I find it interesting to see how different runners have different methods/reasons for the gear they choose to carry.

I could not agree more. Those who scoff at phone carrying runners ignore the fact that many might never have run in the times before cell phones due to fear of an emergency and not being found. Today, they can go out for a run anywhere without fear of not being able to get help.

Only the last 3,200 miles or so.

Captain Oblivious wrote:

A Dad wrote:

Oh, come on.

Are you also one of those worried Wandas who wants her kids to each have a cellphone at school, "in case of emergency"?

You will be back in 30-40. Maybe 60. Maybe 2 hours. Depending on your route an emergency call will get you back in, as a rough average, half of your run time.

The world will not stop if Father can't be reached.

Nope. I'd just like to know and a smartphone is not "bulky".

I also routinely go running in areas where I really do get lost and my run extends to three or four hours. I don't like choosing a route and explaining where I may be.

For me a phone is about the same as someone else putting a hat on.

Plus I've gotten some really cool nature pictures and video.

Didn't you say that you put your phone in a sock, in a ziplock bag, in the front of your shorts?

oldguy1 wrote:

3. Able to answer the wife if she calls and wonders whether I'm lost

Another guy on the digital umbilical cord.

What's your hang-up with responsible people?

Personally, I run with a standard watch, no gps or anything. I go by feel. Serious runners know their pace by feel, GPS watches are useful to see where you are at if you are doing a tempo or workout, but I can really careless about my vital signals or pace especially on a smart phone. I know what it needs to be for easy runs, tempos and that's why you won't see most elite runners with an armbanded, bulky smart phone (aside from Ryan Hall in that one Samsung commercial). Most people calculate it out afterwards anyway via runningmap or a site. Any time I see someone with an armband phone, they are listening to music going 10 min mile pace in a pair of old Nike Frees.

Call me old fashioned wrote:

I run with a ball of twine. I tie one end to my car and the other end to my wrist. If anyone needs to find me, they just follow the string. Much more precise than someone trying to triangulate my phone signal if I end up hurt.

Yeah, real helpful until someone decides to steal your car and you end up dragging helplessly through the woods for 15 miles by the same string.

A Dad wrote:

Didn't you say that you put your phone in a sock, in a ziplock bag, in the front of your shorts?

Correct. Is that a problem?

The ziplock bag protects the phone from rain, falling in the creek and ball sweat.

The sock allows the phone to be suspended somewhat between my shorts and underwear.

I wear it to the left.

I run with one sometimes. It is mostly for family calls or for directions if I'm running in a town I don't know. It's not that hard to carry it in your hand.

However, I can't listen to music. I've never found headphones that don't annoy the crap out of me while running.

hate to tell you wrote:

Mind Runner wrote:

But last spring I got hurt pretty badly during one run. I really don't know what happened because I was knocked out and "woke up" in the hospital 6 hours later. I was fully conscious during that time (I was walking around and speaking to people) but I have no memory of those 6 hours.

That's not a phone problem.

That's a drug problem.

Ha! Nope, no drug problems here! The last part of the trail I remember was a down hill stretch with some roots. We are figuring I tripped and hit the front of my head on a fallen tree that was sticking out onto the trail. My face was swollen and bruised. I honestly looked like someone beat me. Anyway, my concussion damaged my short term memory affecting the hours just after the accident.

Many of the arguments against carrying a phone seem to be a reaction against gear or devices rather than a dislike of music or convenience or safety. From this view a phone is a metaphor for fanny-pack. Would these same people run at night without a light? Unlikely.

Of course runners are supose to run with phones. How many news stories about bodies found start with a runner finding a body at 5am?