Select BITR Apparel On Sale. Shop Now

Brooks Running Neuro Review

Good

Thomas: I ran in the Brooks Neuro on both the treadmill and the road. From the looks of the shoe, I was really curious how it would feel during the run. I was surprised and delighted to feel how smooth the shoe felt on the treadmill. I thought the pod midsole and outsole would feel bumpy, I was wrong. The ride was really quite smooth. Taking the Neuro out on the streets was also a treat. Baltimore was recovering from a large snowstorm, which means, there was a lot of varying conditions. One minute you were on dry pavement, the next over half melted snow, and then some patchy ice here and there. The Neuro’s outsole responded well.

The shoe has a layered upper, a softer sock-like layer that is against your foot, then a layer of support bands that cradle the foot creating the structure. The bands connect to the lacing and provide an extremely comfortable fit. The outer layer is like rough plastic lace. Overall, the shoe fits well and feels good with a well cushioned responsive ride.

Meaghan: I really like the lacing system that Brooks incorporated into these shoes. The “hammock system” wraps around the foot so you get a nice, comfortable fit. The outsole is sturdy. The exterior pods are lined with blown rubber while the interior pods are much softer. It’s a nice balance of cushion and durability. The Neuro is a limber shoe, it folds in half completely at the mid-foot, making it pretty flexible all around.

Bad

Thomas: Whoa Nelly! This is one of the ugliest shoes I have ever owned. Meaghan saw me open the box and said, “What’s wrong?” I responded by reaching into the box and handing her the shoe. Not only is this bird ugly, the outer layer is scratchy and plastic like a Brillo pad. I am pretty sure I could get stuck-on food out of a pan with the upper. Since it is the middle of winter it is tough to gauge breathability. After wearing the shoe for an entire work day, my foot felt clammy. So I am thinking, maybe not that breathable. For a shoe that looks like it would be light, this sucker weighed in at 10.35 oz. for my 10.5 foot. Maybe it is all the plastic, but Neuro needs a diet.

Meaghan: This shoe is an eye sore. I’m talking F-U-G-L-Y. Between the bulbous Propulsion Pods and an upper that resembles the interior of a radio, the Brooks Neuro is hard to look at. My W7.5 weighed 8.4oz. Not light for what’s considered a “fast” shoe. The upper material is a monstrosity. While the shoe itself is extremely flexible, the upper material is stiff. The combination just doesn’t work. The only thing these shoes “propelled” me to do was take them off and hide them.

Conclusion

Thomas: The Brooks Neuro confuses me. Parts of the shoe are really appealing, the shoe had me wanting to take it apart and figure out how the good stuff could be used to improve running shoes in general. It might be because the shoe is soooo ugly I want to reconfigure it. The Neuro is a real head-scratcher. I imagine it is like a DUF that is fun to “Netflix & Chill” with. After awhile, I started thinking the shoe was so ugly that it was actually cool. A car salesman once told me “There is an ass for every seat.” This shoe may be that seat. Somebody is gonna fall in love with this shoe, it just won’t be me. We will see how it does on the open market. Get your pair from Running Warehouse.

Meaghan: I believe that there’s a runner out there who will appreciate the Brooks Neuro. I am not that runner. Most of the time I can get past the looks of a shoe. I really couldn’t with the Brooks Neuro. There are some qualities of the shoe that I like, but the negatives outweighed the positives. For $130, you can test them out and see what you think yourself. I’d certainly love to hear your thoughts.

[supsystic-gallery id=11 position=center]

4
Comments

Have something to say? Leave a Comment

  1. Riverrunner says:

    Definitely been scratching my head over some of the shoe designs of late. It’s almost like scheming people in a back room somewhere designing the ugliest shoes they can, then seeing how many minions will actually wear them.

    1. My guess is they are trying to figure out something new that looks cool in the design phase and doesn’t quite come together in production.

  2. Steve Starr says:

    This is what happens when fired ex-designers from Reebok falsify their resumes and sneak into legitimate running shoe company design departments.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Previous Post
Next Post
Previous Post
Read Article
Next Post
Read Article