Ryan Stuart, explore's gear editor

A series that doesn't suck: Brooks Cascadia 4 review

• Posted on March 31, 2009 at 6:43 PM
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Brooks Cascadia IV, the best sequal we've ever seen.

Usually it's a good idea to avoid the fourth version (think: Home Alone 4, Nightmare on Elm Street 4, the fourth Indiana Jones), but that's not the case with the Cascadia ($140; brooksrunning.ca). The fourth iteration of these popular trail runners are a killer shoe that any runner without motion control issues should consider.

Without question they would have made explore's Gear Guide, part of the May issue, except that they arrived a week too late. Once they did arrive we found ourselves slipping them on whenever we could. They're comfortable, provide plenty of cushioning and look pretty good too. They worked especially well for those typical trail runs that involve a little trail, a little mountain and a little road.There's plenty of cushioning for pounding the pavement. The traction is excellent for slippery and step, and the venting is sufficient for the warmest of runs. Plus they ease our green conscience, see below. Our only complaint is that the laces come undone too easily.

Here's what Brooks says about their eco-revolutionary midsole: "Brooks has introduced the first-ever biodegradable running shoe midsole: BioMoGo. Yes, we’ve taken the long-lasting cushioning of our original MoGo midsole and made it more environmentally friendly.

"How, you ask? We’ve added a non-toxic, natural additive to the MoGo compound that encourages anaerobic microbes to munch away once it hits the landfill. Traditional Ethylene Vinyl Acetate™ (EVA) midsoles can last up to 1,000 years in a landfill. BioMoGo’s microbial munch rate is a staggering 50 times faster, biodegrading nutrients into reusable byproducts within 20 years! That means that within 20 years time, Brooks alone will save 29.9 million pounds of landfill waste. For you pigskin fans out there, that equals 1,277 football fields covered one shoe deep!"

Sweet. And that's not all in the green news from Brooks. They use FSC certified paper everywhere, soy based inks, and an ultra efficient manufacturing process. Read more about these efforts here. Gives you warm fuzzies doesn't it.