I ended up with a personal specification:-
1. Must be EASY to read. (Second reason - when away from home useful to have a watch that can be read in poor light in a hotel room at night, for example). So, black face, white hands and luminous.
2. For timing between check points, a rotating bezel is very useful - just zero it against the minute hand at one CP and read off the time in minutes from the bezel en route to the next.
3. Have a scratch resistant face - 'hardlex'?
I found a Swiss Army one which I've now had for 10 years. Cost about £60. Just needs a battery every 4 or 5 years, and shows little sign of wear. Even the plastic strap is still in good order. And it gains about 10 seconds a month. Good enough!
There's a 'happy medium' between the overpriced bling and the cheap & throwaway types.... You pays your money & takes your choice! (My father told me never to buy cheap tools - you just end up buying them twice. He was right.)
RF