Review - Brooks Adrenaline GTS 6 2Es
A few days ago I purchased a pair of Brooks Adrenaline GTS 6s on the recommendation of a sales assistant in a running shop. I had been running on Saucony Grid Shadows for the last year, but thought with the marathon looming ahead a new pair of shoes were in order.
The sales assistant made a great case for the Adrenalines. "They are amongst Brooks best selling models are for slight to moderate overpronators like myself and have good cushioning for heavier runners like you.". I thought they look quite good as well with a light mesh upper promising good ventilation.
My first run in them was an easy 9kms from home to work. This went reasonably well with the shoes feeling a bit hard. I had asked the guy in the shop about them feeling a bit hard, but he said that they would soften with a bit of time.
My second run was my Sunday Slow-long Run with this time was a 25km run up to Hamstead Health and back to a mates house in Maida Vale. This involved a variety of terrains including grass in Hyde Park, Payment running along the streets of London and hard parked trails in Hamstead Heath. It quickly became apparent as I clocked up the kilometres that I had bought the wrong pair of shoes. After about 5kms, I started to feel the terrain. Everything from sidewalk cracks to the odd piece of gravel to pebbles on the hardpacked trails could be felt through the sole of the shoe.
After my run, the ball of my feet were quite sore. Baffled after the sales pitch in the shop, I examined the shoes thoroughly. It turns out that the likely culprit are the gaps in the sole that are designed to make the soles more flexible. However, they also make the soles less protective and the balls of your feet more vulnerable.
I know I need a different pair of shoes and it's promising that the shop assistant has offered to investigate a solution. I hope it involves them exchanging them for another pair of Sauconys, but we'll just have to wait and see.
Does anyone have any recommendations on a well cushioned marathon running shoe that can handle more than just perfectly even terrain? I would be happy to hear your thoughts...