I'll own having missed that as well, or at least overlooking it in my having read the "wrong" as being about the how, and not the why.
I think the gadgets and accessories can be helpful, but absolutely: they're not the point. They, and the speed-sport or health-chore nature he decries aren't relevant to why I run (ran), so I paid them less mind.
I still mostly run with headphones playing an audiobook honestly. When I don't I really appreciate just how focused and serene the experience is. I guess it's just a habit I can't break, and that occasional bad run is much worse without a distraction.
Seems a lot of people missed it, so maybe I just caught it because it's so close to my opinion.
