One of the top American Track commentators has a catch phrase that goes a little something like “head on down to your local high school track, and run one lap around at this pace…” That’s all well and good, so long as you have an accurate watch, which until COROS Track Mode came along was simply not an option, at least for a GPS watch.
One lap around your local school track in lane one should be 400 meters in distance, which means 4 laps around SHOULD be just shy of a mile. However, when you use most GPS watches, you will find your splits to be anything but consistent, often times being told you are running much faster than reality. A map of a run on the track often times resembles that of abstract art at best, and the drawings of a toddler at worst. Diagonal lines across the infield and 90 degree turns on the curves are just two of the common errors we as runners were used to seeing.
Above is a COROS users results with the COROS PACE 2 in GPS Run Mode outperforming the Garmin 45s – Track Mode refines our technology even further to deliver the highest performing results possible.
COROS as a brand believes in improving performance and training through GPS technology, so our team of developers knew that this was a problem they HAD to solve. It took a long time in development, and just being a bit better than a traditional GPS setting was not an option if it meant an error rate of 5% (even if other devices often topped 10%). So, a special algorithm was created, and in December 2019 (do you remember the world before 2020?) COROS unveiled the first of its kind – Track Mode.
Unlike in our pool swim mode, where the user inputs the length of their pool, and sensors are used to determine change of direction, the track required our developers to go even further. In a pool, every lane is the same distance, but not so on the track where lane 1 maybe 400 meters, but lane 8 is 453 meters in distance. This distance can add up rather quickly, as a mile is covered in just over 3.5 laps when running or walking in lane 8. Many of our users train in the outside lanes, either because the inside lanes are reserved for competition or more often, because the wider, gentler curves are easier on the body.
We asked a few of our COROS Pro Athletes how COROS Track mode has improved their training, see what they had to say:
Emma Coburn, 2017 World Champion 3000m Steeplechase
I love track mode because unlike most GPS watches on the track, the COROS is actually accurate! It is so helpful with going a longer workout. In workouts with repeats longer than a mile, the track mode is especially helpful to me because it gives an accurate mile split. I use track mode for tempos or long repeats and love it!
Parker Stinson, US Record Holder, 25k
The COROS track mode is a completely superior experience compared to other GPS watches because it’s accuracy and reliability. In the past, other GPS watches would have you covering way too much extra distance each lap or nowhere near enough. The distance would be so off that I remember I would have to go back and manually add up the laps to get my accurate mileage for the day.
The biggest benefit from using track mode for me is the accurate data during the workout that I need as well as afterwards when I know I can trust the mileage from each track session.
I do a lot of workouts in lane 8 on the track and it’s really great having the COROS track mode to give me a good idea of what pace I’m hitting when I’m in an untraditional lane.
Emily Infeld, Bronze Medalist, 2015 World Championships 10,000m
COROS Track Mode is a game changer for tracking my training and workouts. Previous watches were so inaccurate. I am amazed at the accuracy of the COROS watch on the track. It pays off when doing fartleks, tempo runs, or reps to track accurate pace and distance. I love how easy it uploads and seeing the perfect map on the track is super gratifying.
Using a non COROS GPS watch on the track, I’ve uploaded my run to see a map with a few straight lines through the grass on the inside of the track cutting off distance.
The biggest benefit of Track Mode is the accuracy, which makes it easy for me when I sync my watch. I don’t have to go back to figure out paces or to see if I was cheated distance or given more distance than I ran.
There you have it, COROS Track Mode, is accurate and easy to use. The time and energy you previously wasted figuring out your mileage with your old GPS watch can now be put to better use – you know like another rep, or maybe some extra recovery.
