Friday, October 14, 2011

Thoughts on Shoes

I've got a thing for Brooks shoes.  Once I bought my first pair of Brooks Adrenaline GTSs, I stopped looking at other shoes—they were that good.  At the marathon expo in 2010, I picked up a different pair of shoes: the Brooks Launch.  (Yes, still Brooks.)  They're a lighter shoe, and I was worried that with less cushioning, they'd be less than ideal on longer runs.  But, after running an 11.6 Mile Half Marathon, a real Half Marathon, and a 10 Mile in them, I don't worry about them at longer distances anymore.  So, I'll be retiring my Adrenalines and not buying another pair.

Yes, I said it: I'm not going to buy Adrenalines again.

I'm going to make the Launch my default training shoe.  By doing this, I now have room in my lineup for another type of shoe.  I want a real racing flat, and I'm tired of getting blisters from my old cross country spikes.  I'm looking at these two shoes at the moment:


Brooks Green Silence.  A semi-traditional racing flat made with eco-friendly materials.  I've heard good things about this shoe, and it just looks cool.



Brooks Pure Connect.  This is a brand new shoe in a brand new line from Brooks.  I first heard about these at the marathon expo 2 weeks ago, and I'll admit that I'm intrigued.  I'm not into the minimalist fad, but I appreciate lightweight shoes for racing.  I haven't really seen any reviews of these shoes, so I'm hesitant to pull the trigger on them.  Maybe I'll swing by Hanson's and try them on.


Any Other Suggestions?  I'm open to other suggestions for racing flats.  They don't have to be Brooks (I promise), so suggest your favorite shoe.  And if you have any info about these Brook Pure shoes, leave that feedback here too.

4 comments:

Matt @ Faster Than a Turtle said...

I added the Green Silence to my rotation in June and love them. I use them for shorter runs, speed work, and races. I ran the TC Half Marathon and the Brooksie Way Half Marathon in them with no problems, though I usually don't wear them on longer runs. I've used the Launch since July for longer runs and runs on rough or rocky terrain, and I really like them. I used the Ghost 3 before that and they worked fine for me, but I wanted a little lighter shoe model so I tried the Launch and have liked them.

I like the two-shoe rotation of the Green Silence and Launch, but I had a gift card for Hansons and decided to check out the PureProject line even though I wasn't quite due for new shoes yet. I went with the PureFlow because I need a fairly wide toe box (which the Ghost 3, Green Silence, and Launch all have). I think the PureConnect seem like a great shoe, but I need a wider toe box. If the PureConnect had a wider toe box, I may have gotten those to eventually replace the Green Silence in my rotation. Instead, I got the PureFlow which will probably replace the Launch in my rotation (review/thoughts at: http://fasterthanaturtle.com/2011/10/10/going-with-the-pureflow/)

I love the PureFlow so far – they've been great for everything from 800m repeats on the Paint Creek Trail to a nine-mile run along the local roads. They're lighter than the Launch, yet (for me, at least) they have enough cushioning for longer runs. I also thought they felt great for the 800m repeats, though I'll continue using the Green Silence for most of my speed work and racing because the Green Silence have a much more distinct "speedier" feel.

I know it's totally a matter of personal preference, but I think the Green Silence and PureProject shoes are great, and any of them that feel comfortable and fit your running style should be a good choice.

Matt said...

Matt-
Thanks for your thoughts. I went to Hansons and tried both shoes, and found them to feel very similar. Both were light, although I agree with you that the Green Silence feels"racier". Surprisingly, the PureConnect was $10 cheaper, so I bought those knowing that I could use the Pure shoes for more than just racing and speedwork. I've done 2 runs in them (with 5 miles being the longest), and I like them. It's a lot less shoe than I'm used to (other than XC spikes), so I'll need to rotate them in and out with the Launch. I'll post a review once I've put a few more miles on them.

Matt @ Faster Than a Turtle said...

No problem, Matt. I'm glad you like the PureConnect so far. All of the PureProject shoes seem to be pretty versatile, and it's nice that they can be used for different types of runs. If my feet were a little narrower, I might've given those a try because they seem like great shoes. I hope you get adjusted to them soon and can work them into your rotation more frequently in the coming weeks. I'm looking forward to reading your review once you've had a chance to run in them some more!

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