THE BROOKS BLOG

Twitter was all, well, atwitter today with first photos of our awesome M*A*S*H-style expo booth at the Chicago Marathon expo. Brooks is offering free podiatrist consultations and gait analyses to runners and expo attendees who sign up at the booth (#733).

But that’s not all. Everyone who participates receives dog tags worth a chance to win prizes. Simply walk your dog tags over to the retail area of the booth to see if you’ve won! Prizes include 10 head-to-toe Brooks outfits, 50 pairs of shoes, 250+ cotton T-shirts, and 150 water bottles. The odds of winning something? Pretty, pretty good.

The B*R*A*S*H (Brooks Running Athlete Support Hospitality) is open till 8 p.m. tonight, and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. tomorrow. Get there early to snag an appointment!

Check out these awesome Twitpics posted by our pals at Fleet Feet Chicago (@FleetFeetChgo). Click on any image to see the full photo post at Twitpic. Nice shots, guys and gals!

Brooks made its first-ever appearance at the Mardi Gras Marathon Health & Fitness Expo, January 30-31. As a part-sponsor of the event, our EZ T’s, Podium 1/2 Zips, Equilibrium LS, Aireplex Jacket, Run Skort, Epiphany Shorts, and more, were used to create the official race gear. The logoed pieces looked awesome–kudos to Varsity Sports, and sold quickly. There were lots of fresh new running shoes available for purchase and try-ons. Local retailers Phidippides and Southern Runner Sports, Brooks Sales Reps, and Brooks Marketing Guru Gabriel Rodriguez were on hand to help customers find the “perfect ride for every stride.”

Brooks’ “Go Card” decoration table and Run Happy Mardi Gras bead distribution table were bright spots at the Expo (if I do say so myself). It didn’t take much encouragement to get hundreds of kids and adults to stop and make signs of encouragement for Moms, Dads, friends, and other loved ones who were racing Sunday, Feb. 1. “What a fun idea!” and “Thank you guys so much for doing this” were just two of the comments heard frequently. Smiley face stickers and glitter glue on hand for sign embellishment were a huge hit.

See local coverage of the event here.

How’d we forget to post this? The guys at Flotrack came out to Brooks Headquarters back in November and filmed a little tour of the office!

Congratulations to Brooks’ own Steve DeKoker, who won this past weekend’s Seattle Half Marathon! While most of us were still digesting turkey, Steve cranked out a 1:11:50 on a hilly course. Along with running (a lot), Steve otherwise keeps busy by heading up our Brooks I.D. Program. He’s also known as a snappy dresser around the office.

Congrats Steve!