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May 5, 2017 Comments (5) Uncategorized

Brooks Caldera shoe review

Price – $140.00

TAUR RATED – 3.57

The Brooks Caldera is a lightweight trail running shoe, built to be light and responsive, while also offering ample cushioning. From looks alone, the tread does not appear to be burly, however, the traction is quite impressive and performs incredibly well in snow, mud and loose terrain. The midsole is made of Brooks trademark BioMoGo DNA cushioning, which works very well and provides excellent cushioning. The shoe sports a very wide toebox that is quite roomy and allows for adequate toe splay. The upper provides adequate protection from rocks and sports a front bumper that works very well, while at the same time being very breathable. The fabric does not hold water, drains quickly and is fast drying.

“This is an excellent all purpose trail running shoe.”

The shoe was very comfortable right out of the box and after my first trail run on a steep, snowy trail I thought this could be my new favorite shoe. The traction was incredible, the shoe was light and responsive and my feet felt fantastic. Our testers tested this shoe on very technical mountain trails, buffed out single track, rocky, muddy and slippery terrain and everything else in between. The shoe performs reasonably well in technical terrain, but one of the weaknesses is that it can be a bit sloppy on technical downhills. The shoe tends to be a bit wide, which becomes more noticeable on the steeper stuff.

“The fact that the outsole started to come apart after only 70 miles was extremely disappointing. Had that not happened, I would have given the shoe incredible ratings, but I could not overlook the durability issue.”

Two of our testers had almost identical experiences with this shoe. Both added it to their regular rotation because it can really perform in almost any terrain while giving plenty of comfort. Both thought that this could be a shoe they would add to their arsenal for longer ultra runs…until after about 70-80 miles the rubber on the outsole began to peel off. This was very disappointing considering how well the rest of the shoe performed. One of our testers was going to wear them on a 50 mile trail race, but the rubber on the heel portion of the outsole peeled off on his last long run before the race.

Overall these shoes are an excellent all-purpose trail shoe that performs very well in a vast array of conditions. They could be an excellent ultra distance shoe for those looking for comfortable light shoes, that also can handle the tough terrain – with the caveat that we had two testers both experience the outsole peeling off before the shoe reached 100 miles.

“I enjoyed these shoes so much that I was going to wear them on a 50 mile trail race, however just before the race I had them on a 20 mile run and the outsole started to fall apart. This was very disappointing because I had such an incredible experience with the shoe up to that point. The shoe had about 70 miles on it when the outsole started to come apart, which made it very disappointing.”

Features

Biomogo DNA Midsole cushioning- Dynamically adapts to every step and stride

Protective midsole

Gaiter tab

Double mesh upper

Rugged outsole

Specifications:

Support level- Neutral

Midsole drop- 4mm

Weight- 9.9 oz

Surface- Offroad/Trail

Arch- Fat, Medium, High

“Over the course of the shoe’s development, we discovered the outsoles in a specific batch of prototypes were not properly bonded. We know runners expect the highest quality from Brooks, and we resolved the issue for the final round of shoes so that runners can have the confidence they need to tackle the trails.” – Jena Winger, footwear product line manager. 

Specifications

Price – $140.00

Drop – 4mm

Weight – 280g

Ratings
Upper 4
Midsole 3.5
Outsole 2.5
Durability 2.5
Fit 4.5
Performance 3.75
Appearance 4.25

Overall

3.57


Photo Reel

5 Responses to Brooks Caldera shoe review

  1. Jim M says:

    Thought I had my replacement for my Pearls until I read your review. Curious has Brooks followed up on the durability issues?

    • Yeah, our hearts broke when Pearl told us they were not making shoes any more. After further conversations with Brooks, they believe the durability issues have been resolved. A couple of our testers are also development testers for Brooks and have seen major improvements in the Caldera 2.

      • FROM BROOKS….
        “Over the course of the shoe’s development, we discovered the outsoles in a specific batch of prototypes were not properly bonded. We know runners expect the highest quality from Brooks, and we resolved the issue for the final round of shoes so that runners can have the confidence they need to tackle the trails.” – Jena Winger, footwear product line manager.

        • Marc Mead says:

          The issue for me has not been resolved. I have bought 2 pairs of these shoes and loved them..but the described sole separation has happened to both pair. I expected a higher level of quality control from Brooks.

  2. Gisel says:

    I bought these shoes around early Spring 2017! I have not used them much because I had to stop running trails….so low to no use in the first 4-5 months, approx.
    However, In the last 2 month I’ve used them off-road on Dikes ( dirt/small gravel pathways) at times combined with some paved road (average 3 times a week)!
    They fit beautifully right off the bat, lite and comfortable!
    However, I was shocked that after such little use the mesh has started to show wear and may split soon! How can it be than the mesh doesn’t last with so little use? I paid the most I’ve ever paid for these runners ( in my 20yrs of running) and have enjoyed the Brook brand!
    I’m not sure if I have one of the problem shoes described in the review, luckily mine have not broken off in the soles!
    I can by a pair today, because they are on sale, and willing to try them again because I’m going to starting up with the trails but how would I know if they are the improved ones? Can Brooks comment? There is no product info listed from the Kintec Store (Canada)

    Ye

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