Brooks Launch 11 Introduction
With the Brooks Launch 11, you can test your distances and paces in these lightweight running shoes. The Launch 11 delivers a fast and versatile ride thanks to its light weight and updated midsole, the DNA Flash.
With other competitors that are similar such as the Hoka Mach 6 and the New Balance Rebels, the Launch 11 has the advantage with a slightly lower price tag. But is it really worth the price compared to the other two?
Brooks Launch 11 First Impressions
My first impressions of the shoes as I opened the box was that the midsole was totally different from to Launch 10, meaning a different experience on the runs possibly? But by the looks of it, the new midsole, DNA Flash, felt softer on the touch compared to what the 10 had. But as I put the shoes on, the midsole felt okay to me.
During my first run, I felt the midsole and its firmness. I was hoping as the more miles I got in the shoe; it will start to break in and feel some sort of responsiveness. The grip and traction on the shoe felt amazing. I spotted that feature of the shoe right away.
Brooks Launch 11 Upper
Another pro for me is the upper with the Launch 11. The shoe uses a secure and breathable mesh upper that fits nicely around the top of your foot with no saddling or anything around the midsole areas.
The material is somewhat breathable as the mesh upper uses multiple layers along with some structure to it with the Brooks logos on both the medial and lateral sides of the shoe.
The shape of the toe box seems to be narrow, but as I put them on, that was not the case. My toes did not feel tight and were no hot spots nor blisters. The shoe runs trues to size.
The shoe lacing system is pretty standard, and the tongue is semi gusseted that is semi padded. The overall combination of the lacing system and tongue fits well with no feeling of any constrictions.
And finally, the last portion that makes the upper secured is the Speed Heel collar, an unpliable structure that fits the shape of the Achilles. The lockdown fits very nicely with no heel slippage on any pace.
Brooks Launch 11 Sole Unit
The Brooks Launch 11 midsole is fully updated with DNA Flash and DNA Flash v2, in which both are nitrogen infused compounds, which makes the shoe feel responsive.
The updated midsole technology and lightweight the Launch 11 provides the customer with a ride that can handle various paces. And compared to the Launch 10, the Launch 11 has a lower drop (8mm) compared to the Launch 10 (10mm). While testing this shoe out, I mainly used it for the easy daily miles and ran as far as 10 miles (16km’s) with the shoe.
The only times I actually did speed work was when I would be doing strides, but during those strides I found the shoe to be somewhat responsive but more firm.
As far as it comes to the feel underfoot, there was really nothing special that stood out or anything if I am being sincere. Whether the pace was easy effort or anaerobic effort the feel underfoot was mostly firm and did not “wow” me.
The outsole is the biggest pro for me with the Launch 11. The shoe uses a road track rubber. The rubber has amazing traction and with more than 50 miles (80km’s) the rubber has no wearing on it. I’ve tested the outsole out on grass, dirt, gravel, concrete, and the treadmill.
Brooks Launch 11 Conclusions
In conclusion, I found the Launch 11 to be very comfortable but not a fun shoe to run in. Even with the updated midsole, the ride itself felt similar to the last model.
Just a shoe that will just get by for those daily miles. I initially thought the shoe would eventually break in and after over 50 miles in the shoe it didn’t.
As I mentioned earlier, it did feel okay during my strides, but the lack of responsiveness was kind of a disappointment.
Would I recommend this to someone looking for a friendly budget shoe, probably not. There are other options out in the market such as the New Balance Rebel or even the Hoka Mach 6. Those two shoes slightly higher in pricing but are worth their price. Both of those shoes can do what the Launch 11 can’t, which is having a more enjoyable experience.
