100 Years Anniversary : Brooks Sports, Inc. was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1914 by Morris Goldenberg. The name Brooks was selected by Morris Goldenberg as an Anglicized substitute for his wife’s maiden name of Bruchs. Brooks originally produced bathing shoes in 1917 before moving into sports in the 1930s by producing baseball cleats in 1920 and football cleats in the 1930s. In 1975 BROOKS is the first company to use midsoles made of Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), making it one of the first sports shoes companies to use EVA, which today is an industry standard. 1979 the world champion Pittsburgh Pirates endorsed Brooks shoes. In 1984 top quarterback Dan Marino endorsed Brooks athletic footwear. In 2000 Brooks shifted from being a manufacturer of a variety of sports shoes to a running shoe specialist.

Happy Running Era : Brooks acknowledged that runners were no longer interested in marathons timings as in the 70’s. Nowadays, RUNNING IS ABOUT MORE THAN THE FINISHING LINE. Running is about being fit, feeling good and empowered, and raising money for a cause. Thence, in 2010, Brooks adopted the slogan of HAPPY RUNNING. In Malaysia, the Happy Running campaign started, in ernest, 2012 in conjunction with the launch of their Pure Project series. Late 2012, I was fortunate to be chosen to test & write about the prototype & predecessors of Pure Drift & Pure Grit before the shoes were officially launched beginning 2013. Although, I am not an elite runner, my personal running philosophy of the three F’s (Fitness, Fun & Friendship) as the Happy Runner had connected well with BROOKS Happy Running concept & the rest is history!

TRANSCEND pre-launch : One thing I have realised about the BROOKS design team is that they are always busy thinking-up of new ways to enrich the runner’s running experience in terms of Better Performance, Comfort & Feel. So, it was no surprise to me to told by BROOKS Malaysia recently that a new & revolutionary model called TRANSCEND will be launched in February 2014. Again, I was fortunate to attend a closed viewing session organised by BROOKS Malaysia last month as part of their pre-launching market campaign. I was excited & curious to find-out more about TRANSCEND – how does it look? what type of terrain & distance was it suited for? will it be comfortable? how much will it cost?

The Reveal : Yes, I could SEE & FEEL the new demo shoes. However, there were only 4 pairs of TRANSCEND for viewing – 2 Men’s pairs (of two different colours) & 2 Women’s pairs (of two different colours). It so happened that the one size available was my SIZE, and as soon as, I slipped them on, I noticed that my feet felt snug as a rug. Up to that point, I can safely say that I have never tried on a shoe (running or non-running type) which fitted me SO WELL. It was almost as though the TRANSCEND size “US 9” was custom-made precisely for my INDIVIDUAL foot shape & contours. Since these shiny new shoes were for demo purposes, I didn’t feel RIGHT to ask if I could have a run with them. I just have to wait until the first consignment arrives in Malaysia sometime in February before testing them under REAL running conditions. Normally, I would reserve my JUDGEMENT until I have actually pounded the pavement or trail with any new shoe. However, from what I could see & learn about the new technology of the TRANSCEND so far, the obvious absence of street testing didn’t dampen my ENTHUSIASM about them. In fact, I was now even more eager to verify if the BROOKS TRANSCEND can deliver on all of it’s IMPRESSIVE PROMISES! What I can tell you right now is WHAT MAKES TRANSCEND OUTSTANDING in it’s conceptual form, or the “thinking” behind its INVENTION (see below). Next week, I will look under the TRANSCEND hood & inspect its ENGINE ROOM to discover, more closely, HOW TRANSCEND performs. In two weeks time, I will share with you HOW you can get your hands on the EXCLUSIVE TRANSCEND and be the ENVY of your running mates!

STRIDE SIGNATURE : Behind every successful idea is a great concept. Yes, I must admit that I am drawn to BROOKS new concept of Stride Signature. At its foundation, BROOKS believe that every runner runs differently as a result of our biological differences such as the way our hip & knee joints are formed, how our ligaments work, and how much leg muscle we carry. Surely, no one can argue with this scientific point. The second part of Stride Signature concept is less easy to grasp or prove – we should embrace our INDIVIDUAL RUNNING STYLE and not try to run like someone else who will necessarily have a different DNA make-up. After 3 years of research in biometrics, BROOKS have developed the TRANSCEND shoe which allows runner to run in comfort & style without having to worry about whether they should land on their forefoot, mid foot or heel. Yes, the TRANSCEND has been designed to fit all kinds of runners – flat-foot, mid-arch or high-arch types. Clearly, this STRIDE SIGNATURE concept, of “one shoe fits all”, DIRECTLY challenges the current and long-standing view upheld by every other running shoe specialists that you must select the right shoe for your feet & running style. Putting aside different ideologies, the prove will be decided by many runners overtime. I, for one, am quite happy with what I have seen of the TRANSCEND. Because of my awkward feet size & shape, it is extremely difficult to find a suitable pair for me. So, after trying TRANSCEND on for myself, I knew instantly that it fitted me like a glove. I hope to be able to share with you much more before the anticipated launch date of transcend in February 2014. Meantime, for more in-depth information & analysis updates on TRANSCEND, visit my TRANSCEND PARTY page.

MY NEXT TRANSCEND POST : WHY BROOKS THINK THAT TRANSCEND WILL BE THE NEXT BIG WAVE.