Brooks Infiniti Jacket III

Look what Santa brought me for Christmas a new running Brooks Infiniti III jacket rrp £85.

I have been wanting one of these for a while and certainly wasnt disappointed. As soon as I opened it, it was on and I was out of the door, conditions were perfect for testing, windy, wet and cold. 

The jacket is made of a waterproof and windproof fabric which certainly does the trick, throughout the run I was comfortably warm, whilst not getting too warm and even managed to stay dry underneath, well done Brooks giving me an alternative to my Nike Flash vest when its too cold out.

As a safety feature the jacket comes with lots of reflective areas, but I particularly like the drop down reflective flaps on the jacket when increased visibility is needed, I like reflecting!!! As you can see from the photos the pockets are zipped allowing you to keep your valuables safe, theres even a moisture-proof media pocket, which I cant do without since dumping the uncomfortable arm band. 

A great feature of the jacket are what Brooks call the "cozy cuff" which are elasticated cuffs with thumb holes to help keep your hands warm, and for when its biting cold theres alson included flip mits which save you from wearing your gloves and are easily removable when you warm up (they dont need carrying like your gloves!)

VERDICT I really do think that this is a well designed jacket which has excellent features, keeps you warm, dry and visible without being too bulky and protects your valuables well, just goes to show again in the running world especially from Brooks you get what you pay for. Well done Brooks a great jacket!!!

Brooks Glycerin version 9 and 10

Brooks Glycerin training shoes (£110)

When I first started running seriously, I followed the crowd after my first event and noticed everyone was wearing asics, but then I was attracted by the great looking Glycerin by Brooks.

As somewhat of vain runner, I have high standards on how my shoes actually look as well as feel, and these really do look the business, eyecatching and look a well shaped, well constructed shoe.

So I took the plunge and am I glad I did, in the store I laced up and jumped on the treadmill - first impression WOW!!!

 What a comfortable shoe better than any asics I had used before (cumulus 13, and kayano 17). The shoe fit like a glove and was extremely soft and luxurious inside so much so it felt like a sock liner akin to the nike shox nz fit. Weight issues were not a problem to me as was identified by the store assistant, the shoes being very similar in weight to the kayano, I can however, see in comparison that this is a heavy shoe with others available in the same store. I was so impressed by the feel, that I also bought the previous version Glycerin 9 which was on sale as end of range and put those away for later in the year.

Both shoes were fantastic and extremely rugged and hardy in relation to build quality, sole and uppers, my concern however, was with the mesh toe box. Both version managed just over 200 miles before the big toe began to rub a hole into the mesh, this was disappointing as my kayano lasted well beyond 400 miles with no issue. This can be seen on the photo below, but the shoe suffered wear nowhere else, whereas the asics rubbed away behind the heels.

Cushion and support was superb, making running a delight, with Brooks version of the gel (adaptable DNA) giving great variable cushioning related to different surfaces and running techniques. Comfort is also enhanced by the medium width shoe giving the foot plenty of room especially on those foot swelling half marathons.

VERDICT - a fantastic shoe which offers great comfort and cushioning and support, looks great and the build quality can take a fair bit of punishment, weight could be an issue for racers but highly recomended for the casual runner looking after your joints. The only downpoint being wear issue in the toebox. Looks 10/10  Comfort 10/10 Lifespan 7/10 OVERALL 8/10 A great shoe, cant wait to try the 11!

Event clips race number clips

Event clips - £2.99 for 4 clips

One thing that really bugged me about running in events was the holes in my fave running vests and shirts caused by pins holding my number. I tried running belts withe the number held by a spring clip, but didnt like the way the numbers flapped around, so went back to pins, then I discovered event clips!

The clips simply use a snap clip design that holds your race number in place without using pins. The number is held safely in place, keeping the number nice and flat and causes less distraction as the number isnt loose and flapping around.

The clips can be a bit of a fiddle initially to get the number straight and in the correct position suitable for you, but they are well worth the extra bit of hassle and you very quickly get used to them.

The clips are very lightweight for those concsious of weight issues, I have had no irritation from the clips thanks to the minimal thickness and beveled back. I dont think they would be suitable for thick running jackets and jumpers but have used them with my shirts/vests/thin waterproof jacket and my under armour compression shirt.

VERDICT - I love em! Worth every penny if you dont like holes in your tops, or you get annoyed by loose flapping numbers. A great idea - get them from eventclip.net

Garmin Forerunner 10 (FR10)

Today im going to look my Garmin FR 10 GPS watch. (£75-£99.99)

When I initially started running almost 2 years ago, I used my phone and a few of the various apps to track and record my runs. As I became more serious I thought I would try one of the many GPS watches on the market and bought a second hand forerunner 110, when this watch died in a heavy downpour when running a half marathon? I took the chance to purchase the new FR10, the main selling point at the time, it was waterproof.

I can honestly say I have not regretted my decision to buy this watch, and have started to use more of the features it includes. The watch at it most simple tells you how fast, how far and how long you have run - perfect for the beginner. We also have a virtual pacer which gives you an audible signal every minute or so indicating whether you are in front or behind your set target pace. The walk/run feature I have used to set intervals for quick/recovery periods, and that is as far as the options go on this watch. Quite simply it is there for the beginner or the runner who just wants to track runs and to know how fast you are going.

The run screen gives you the options to choose 2 displays of either pace/distance/time or calories and with the large digits as seen on the pics is easy to read, even in low light with the backlight feature. You can choose auto laps 1mile default or choose to use a lap key to manually enter laps during your run. A feature I paricularly like is the auto pause feature, especially in runs including muster points as sometimes I have forgot to restart my watch and not had an accurate record, the auto pause feature prevents this and stops/starts the run in a matter of seconds.

The gps is usually quite quick at getting a signal mostly in under a minute, but I have had occasion where I have been waiting for a signal for up to 4 mins, which can be a pain when your waiting to start your run in the cold and the rain. The watch connects to a computer via USB wire allowing quick uploading to Garmin Connect an easy to use web program for storing and evaluating the details of your runs, records such as fastest mile, 5k, 10k, and longest run. The battery charges quickly and on a full charge I would estimate approx 4-5 hrs running time, I usually indicate half battery after a 2hr 13 mile training run.

VERDICT - a great watch, simple to use perfect for the beginner runner, no heart rate monitor facility here so if you just want to know how quick your running, how far you have run, how long it has taken and how many calories you have used then this is the watch for you. Perfect for the price and available in colours to suit everyone.

Nike Vapor Flash Running Gilet

Nike Vapor Flash Running Gilet (£75-£150)

I will start my blog by looking at my new high viz running vest from Nike, ideal for dark nights. The vest is reversible with one side being very reflective on both front and back (total understatement- it's extreme!)- and the other less reflective apart from the regions as shown in the pictures.

Hopefully you can see what it looks like in the photos when the light hits it and the reflective material can be seen to light it up! I wore this vest for the first time tonight at the running club and the fellow runners were amazed at the reflective qualities with many looking to buy one. 

 I found the vest extremely comfortable to wear with a tailored slim fit, so would recomend buying a size up from your usual size if you need to wear something thick underneath, I ran with a compression top and nike dri fit t-shirt. Just a shame that I didnt have long sleeves which are available on the jacket, as the wet weather may restrict my use but time will tell. The jacket was very warm and waterproof, I think I will look at getting the full jacket when I can afford it.

VERDICT - a great addition to any runners wardrobe, extremely comfortable, reversible too, the ultimate in hi-viz safety. A tad on the expensive side though at £150, I have seen them available online for as low as £75. 

RATING 5/5 a definate must for the safety conscious runner.