Shoe review: Brooks T5 Racer

Triathlon Forum
1

I took the new Brooks T5’s ($90 @ LRS) out for a 4-mile tempo run run yesterday, though I’d share some info for those in the market for racing flats.

First, the looks:

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/7935/t5racerzq9.jpg

You either like the design or you don’t. I’m pretty neutral here, but I think it’s a great improvement over the T4 model. I believe the color scheme was the only real change from the previous model, so if you liked the T4, nothing but good news.

Size:
I wear a 9.5 in every brand and style running shoe I’ve used, but I required a size 10 in the T5’s for a comfortable-yet-snug fit. More on that later.

Feel:
Being a minimalist racing flat (6.7oz.), it’s surprisingly substantial under foot. I’m 180lbs, midfoot striker, and normally run in performance trainers (Tangent 2, Mizuno Elixer) or Mizuno Riders. I was expecting much less impact protection, and to be honest, expected some discomfort to start up somewhere in the 3rd mile. Never happened. At the end of 4 miles, I felt comfortable that these could easily go 10K and up to a half-marathon for a guy my size, possibly longer. If I was 150 or less, this could be a great marathon shoe. Not bad for a shoe that virtually disappears on your foot, in terms of weight and feel.

As a heavier neutral runner I tend to drift back and forth between neutral to (very) mild support in my shoe choices, and while this is by no means a stability shoe, the platform felt supportive and seemed to promote efficient transition from heel/midfoot to toe-off. High marks in this department as well.

Construction:
The upper felt soft and smooth on my bare feet, very sock-like. One major strip of stitching inside, but not likely to cause blistering due to it’s placement. The outer shell feels durable and not subject to premature breakdown. Very nicely done IMO.

The tongue is wide with straight-forward lacing, easy to adjust to accommodate anatomical variations. I had no trouble replacing the lightweight laces with elastic Yankz and adjusting to a comfortable setting.

The liner material is cotton-soft (along with the surface of the insole), which initially felt fine, but later managed to behave similar to cotton on my bare feet: after the sweat seeped in, it began generating a massive blister on my left heel. I’m fairly certain I can eliminate this problem with bodyglide or baby powder, so I’m not overly concerned about it, but I’ve never had that problem with other shoes that use a slippery liner like Mizuno’s. The insole is substantial as well, and has a surface similar to the heel liner, which feels comfortable under bare feet.

Concerns:
First, being that the upper effectively behaves like loose fabric, the insertion of Yankz laces causes the upper to cinch up completely when not on the foot, making a quick transition a bit tricky. Then, add to that the fact that the insole will grab on to a damp foot and crumple up into the toebox when trying to slide it on, and you may find yourself with an extra minute of T2 time on your hands trying to get them on properly. I suspect a spray-on adhesive under the insole may improve that situation somewhat, but between the yankz collapsing the upper and the potential for crumplization, I’m not convinced that it will ever be a quick-transitioning shoe.

Also, the last is curved, not semi-curved, and I found out just how different the two are around mile 2. I expected a racing flat to hug my foot more than my trainers, so when I tried them on in the store, I wasn’t concerned that the outside of my feet were up against the sides, however after a few miles, my middle toe began pressing against a solid element in the front of the upper which required me to curl my toes somewhat on my left foot to keep the pressure from ripping off a toenail. Somewhat surprising, but not totally shocking, was that the problems I encountered on the left foot did not present on the right foot (it sucks having two completely different feet). If the left foot was shaped & sized like the right, I could easily wear these shoes without any problems whatsoever; in fact, I’d probably run half of my miles in them if that were the case.

In summary:
As racing flats go, these are well-cushioned, comfortable, lightweight racers that would be ideal for road racers of most distances - provided you can wear a narrower, curved-last shoe. For triathletes with the same foot shape and neutral biomechanics, if you don’t mind risking an extra few seconds in T2, it’s probably a good choice as well.

After a minor modification to relieve the toe pressure, I’ll put some more miles down, work on solutions to the problem areas & post an update.

2

Great review and this is pretty much what I have found this season using this shoe. The only thing I disagree with is the extra time in T2. I have not had the insole bunch up at all in any of the races this year. (2 sprints, a LC Du and HIM). BUT, the tongue did fold over on me somewhat, but I didn’t notice it until after the race. So it wasn’t a discomfort for me at all. But this can perhaps be attributed to the fact that I wear socks because I blister within 1/2 mile in any shoe.

Another thing I found is that they are NOT comfortable to walk in at all. I have to take them off within a couple of minutes of finishing the race because the heel is not supported at all. Which makes sense for a racer.

Thanks for the review!

3

Great review. I just picked up teh Brooks Axiom 2 for a HIM in a few weeks. Many of your points hit home as I was reading this. The Yankz thing was first and the blistering with out socks on was another. I am a little taken back by that as I typically don’t blister and the inside of the shoes see to really be soft and comfortable to the touch. Didn’t expect blistering here.

Thank again for the review.

4

“You either like the design or you don’t. I’m pretty neutral here”

That’s my favorite part.

5

I found the same thing with the sizing of the shoe.
I normally wear a size 10.5 in my Brooks trainers, an ordered a 10.5 in the T5. They were small, so I’m now waiting for my size 11’s to come.

6

Update:

Minor shoe surgery to relieve toe pressure (wide feet) proved effective, as did bodyglide on the heel. No blister problems whatsoever. The insoles are beginning to find their teeth when slipping the shoes on, although I still plan on spray adhesive for race-day transition just to be certain. After a 10k run yesterday, I’m positive these can go 13.1 miles without causing any major discomfort.

Excellent race shoe for narrow-footed neutral runners.

7

I actually had to go a size bigger in the T4’s because i wear my training shoes pretty tight.

Out of curiosity how long is everyone wearing these. I’m aroun 165-170lbs and have put 90 miles on them or so in the last year and i think they are starting to lose the cushioning.

Grant

8

Update after first race-

The Good: set a new run PR (tri 5k) in the new T5’s by nearly 20 seconds, shoes felt great on- and off-road.

The Bad: I wasted a good 10 seconds in T2 trying to get the tongues un-wadded after sliding my feet in. Very difficult entry using Yankz laces with damp feet in these shoes.

The Ugly: Even with gobs of bodyglide applied to my heels prior to the swim AND rubbing a good bit into the heel cup, I finished with a nasty blood blister on the back of my left heel.

Next time I’ll try a dry powder approach, but if it doesn’t solve the blistering and entry problem it’s back to the Elixers for triathlon & the T5’s will be relegated to road racing duty.

9

I think the T5’s are very foot specific, i did a sprint and olympic this weekend for the fisrt time with them and i think they are loads better then the t4. I came out with only two tiny blisters on my toes which is very good compared tothe t4’s where they would be everywhere.

As far as having the tounges un wadded they have parts on tounge to run the laces through did you use those. I didn’t have any problem getting them on this weekend. I actually had t he fastest T2 in the saturday race.

Grant

10

I had the laces run through the tongue loop; it was more of a problem of them bunching up on the sides, not slinking down toward the toe. I’m notoriously picky when it comes to shoe feel (my wife uses the Princess & the Pea reference quite frequently), but they certainly weren’t as easy as my other shoes with fatter, wider tongues.

I do have somewhat pronounced calcaneous bones, which probably account for the blister problem to some degree, but I’ve never had heel blister problems with any other shoes in the past (socks or no socks), so I have to attribute it somewhat to shoe design. Maybe not bad design, but certainly not ideal for my foot shape.

I’ll definitely be using these for 5/10K road racing (with socks, of course). Really love the feel & flyweight benefits.