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Thursday 12 October 2017

Brooks Transcend and forget the feared running impact

Our ambassador in the Intersport Run Reigate 2017 Vicky Maher has been telling us last weeks in three post published on our blog different stories about the race: her first half marathon, her painful training for the 10K and her chronicle of the race last September. We asked for her a last favour: a review of the Brooks Transcend, which provided by Simply Sports and Brooks and she wore on her training and during the competition and below you can read her opinion. We can anticipate that her score is close to the perfection. Before the review, we asked for her she defined herself as runner to know her a little bit. 

A massive thank you to Vicky for her collaboration and for having allowed us to experience for a few weeks like a runner before a race. That was our idea about being a Simply Sports ambassador.
Vicky during the Run Reigate (Sussex Sport Photography).

Name and surname: Vicky Maher

Age: 39

How often do you use your trainers?: 2-3 times a week.

Model of trainers analysed: Brooks Transcend. 

Running Profile: I started running 9 years ago. I had never been good at PE, I was the uncoordinated clumsy child, no balance and last picked for every team. No sport ever grabbed me but I did quite like to when the sports day came round and I whilst I wasn’t a good runner I wasn’t terrible. Fast forward to 2008 and you find me age 30 in a pub with two friend, Liz & Wendy. I can’t remember whose suggestion it was that we run an 8K race but we all decided it was a good idea.  Wendy found some training plans to start us running and we went out together to get fit enough to run. The race was the Windsor Running 4 Women 8K and it was a lovely course, I keep saying I’ll go back one day. 

Running with these friends petered out fairly soon after the race and I was uninclined to run alone, I didn’t feel I was good at pacing or motivating myself but as luck would have it I discovered another friend, Laura, went out running every Sunday morning at 8am. This was an ideal time for me being a morning person and she was much fitter and faster than I was. I quickly learnt to keep up with her and we had the added bonus of being able to chat about our week, the kids etc! 


Vicky trying on a few Brooks trainers at Reigate store.

I also had a friend Karen who had told me about an organisation called parkrun and persuaded me to join. She found I had a parkrun near me at Tilgate and told me it was free to join and run. I signed up but did nothing more for around a year. Finally I screwed up the courage to go in 2013 and I have never looked back. Laura usually joins me and since last year so do my mum and sister when they are able.  Sometimes the kids come although they find getting up hard! I ran the Reigate Priory parkrun when it started up and have been there quite a few times, my total parkruns is now over 100 and my friend Karen came all the way from Cardiff to help me celebrate my 100th run

So races!  Since that first one at Windsor I have done the YMCA fun run (5 miles) twice.  First in 2012 with Laura when I was pleased to be under an hour (58:30), and then again this year where my new pb was 49:19.

I ran my first half marathon at Run Reigate in 2015 with a time of 2:13:58 and then the Run Reigate 10K (my first official 10K) this year and was thrilled to come in at 59:43.
When I started running I had shin splints and favoured off road softer ground but in training for the Run Reigate Half marathon in 2015 I finally felt like a real runner. For the first time I was able to go out on my own road running and now that’s my preference. I still had pace issues running solo for a long time so relied on music to help me keep time.  These days I find my legs usually know what they want to do and I just go with it!

Love mapping software and use both mapmyrun and my Garmin FR10 to map what I do, it’s a nice reminder.  

Goals: I would definitely like to do another half marathon, I am 40 next year and want to be even fitter than in my 30’s. I would love to think I was capable of a marathon but I know that would involve an awful lot of work, and I was out of action for a long time after the last half!

Vicky's Review (On a scale from one to ten):





Vicky's Conclusions: I found these trainers a massive help in my Run Reigate 10K, the cushioning meant I didn’t get any joint pain during the race at all and I really felt my feet were being properly supported as well as cushioned from impact. The only thing that stops me giving them a full 10/10 is the grip isn’t quite as good as my old shoes and I would be worried about using them in muddy or icy conditions.