THE BROOKS BLOG

Greenbiz.com, a leading online news source for the “greening of mainstream business” recently posted a review of our environmental efforts. The article, titled “The Running Shoe Leading the Race to Sustainability,” gives us props for the Green Silence, BioMoGo, and our very cool, very green shoe box among other things.

An excerpt:

As a social responsibility professional who enjoys trail running, seeing more athletic companies pick up the pace on sustainability is a welcome trend. One business at the front of the pack is Brooks, whose modest marketing approach has left its efforts less known than peers.

It’s likely that will change with the launch of the Green Silence, a shoe that exempifies its commitment from heel to toe, bringing visibility to a successful example of sustainability leadership.

>>Read the full article.

>>Visit our Green Room.

We’re proud and excited to announce the (slightly) early release of the Green Silence . This shoe represents the culmination of years of planning, research, and asking ourselves again, "is there anything more we can do?" The result is a groundbreaking racing shoe that sets a new standard for environmental stewardship.

Innovations include:

• 75% post-consumer recycled materials
• BioMoGo midsole
• Biodegradable biobatch collar foams
• 38% less solvent in glues and overlays
• Water-based adhesives
• Non-toxic dyes and colorants
• About half as many components as a comparable shoe—meaning less energy used in manufacturing

Although the environmental story behind the Green Silence is very important to us, it’s just as important that the Green Silence meets our high standards for performance—and it does. At 6.9 oz, the Green Silence is ideal for road racers looking to tread lightly and swiftly.

With a midsole heel thickness of 18mm and forefoot thickness measuring 10mm, the Green Silence has among the lowest heel-to-toe drops for Brooks at 8mm. That’s compared to 11mm for the Launch and an average heel-to-toe drop of 12mm for most of our regular "trainer" running shoes.

>> Read more about the Green Silence .

>> Take an interactive tour of the Green Silence components .

>> See what wear-testers have to say .

Summer racing season is in full swing … and so we welcome the Launch, a brand new neutral lightweight trainer that provides “just enough shoe” and cushioning. The Launch has one goal in mind: let you run fast and not lose any energy in the shoe. Lace these up for mile repeats or tempo runs, and know this shoe will help you hit your splits.

With a nice midfoot wrap, BioMoGo midsole, and carefully constructed forefoot – the Launch embodies the definitions of resiliency and effort-enabler. And the minimally constructed upper keeps you secure in the shoe, but avoids unnecessary weight or possible areas of irritation.  One early reviewer raves: “like running on a cloud…the miles feel effortless in the Launch.”

Added perk: Fans of the old Brooks Burn can finally clean out their closets!

The award-winning infiniti 2

Go, Brooks! We recently learned we won two awards from Shape magazine:

• The Infiniti 2 won the “Best for Distance” Award in the Spring 2009 shoe guide. Shape’s bi-annual Shoe Award selection process uses 260+ women who test shoes from 20 athletic companies in the running, trail running, walking, and training categories.

• Brooks, the brand, won a 2009 Green Living Award for the Trance™ 8. New for 2009, the Shape Green Living Award honors people, places, companies, and products that successfully blend fashion and practicality with eco-friendliness.

As you probably already know, the Trance™ 8 is no longer the only shoe with Brooks’ biodegradable BioMoGo midsole. BioMoGo is now also available in the Adrenaline™ GTS 9, Glycerin® 7, Cascadia 4, and the above-named Infiniti 2.

Both distinctions appear in the popular women’s fitness magazine’s April issue, on newsstands NOW!

Hip, hip, hooray! For the second year in a row, the Brooks Cascadia 4 won “Editor’s Choice” Award in Runner’s World’s Spring 2009 Trail Shoe Guide! The Cascadia 4 received best overall marks after rigorous testing by Runner’s World editors and wear-testers, and being flexed, pounded and prodded at their independent Shoe Lab testing facility.

What makes this shoe so great?

The secret sauce is that the Cascadia 4 is a pure trail running shoe designed from the ground up. Neither a stripped-down hiking shoe nor a glorified road shoe, it combines the best attributes of both. Using our “pivot post construction,” the Cascadia 4 adjusts to undulation in terrain which allows the foot to stay neutral on a multitude of surfaces. Runner’s World also summed it up by saying “The Cascadia offers dependable traction for technical trails, yet is cushy enough so that running short distances on roads won’t beat up your legs.”

This latest version of the Cascadia 4 also offers an assymetrical lacing system (which allows the overlays in the forefoot to be relaxed for wider feet, or snugged up tighter for narrower feet), as well as Brooks’ biodegradable midsole BioMoGo.

The Cascadia 4 is geared for neutral runners with biomechanically efficient strides. Stabilty-seeking trail runners should check out the Brooks Adrenaline ASR 5.

Now go hit the trails!

Last year, Brooks introduced the first-ever biodegradable running shoe midsole: BioMoGo,

How’s it work? Adding a non-toxic, natural additive to our MoGo midsole compound encourages anaerobic microbes to munch away once it hits the landfill. Traditional midsoles can last up to 1,000 years in a landfill — but BioMoGo breaks down 50 times faster, biodegrading into reusable byproducts within 20 years!

BioMoGo made its debut in the Brooks Trance 8, but is now also available in the Adrenaline™ GTS 9 (M’s/W’s), Glycerin® 7 (M’s/W’s), Defyance 2 (M’s/W’s), Infiniti 2 (M’s/W’s), and Cascadia 4 (M’s/W’s). Watch for more Brooks shoes with BioMoGo to hit the shelves later this year.

To learn more about BioMoGo, visit the Brooks Green Room.