It is time to talk about one of those flagship shoes that has been around forever and brands have to be very careful about it because they don’t want to upset the fan base, it’s the Brooks Ghost 15. First, we are very happy to tell you that they haven’t messed with it all that much and if you’re a fan of the Ghost, you will continue to love this shoe. So if you don’t want to read any further, you already know how this plays out. However, you might be excited to know it does have a few changes which you might actually quite enjoy.
Quick Details, Specs, and Availability
- Brooks’ quintessential daily trainer gets a whole new midsole and a slight redesign to the upper.
- Weight – 10.1z or 286g for a US Men’s 9, 9.1oz or 258g for a US Women’s 7
- Cushion – 35mm of cushion and a 12mm heel/toe drop
- Pricing – $140.00 USD
- Colors – 6 colors for men and women with more coming
Construction and Materials
- Upper – An engineered mesh upper with 3D printed overlays that offer support and stability across the mid foot.
- Midsole – Features the new DNA Loft V2 midsole which is lighter and plusher than ever before.
- Outsole – A segmented Crash Pad composed of super durable rubber.
Performance Review
What we loved
One of the main things that we love about the Ghost lineup is the fact that the shoe is incredibly comfortable. The upper, while it has been continually redesigned, always typically features a really nice step in, and feels like something you could wear every day and honestly not even use for running. They have done a really good job maintaining a plush well padded lock-in experience for the rear of the foot, while delivering a nice openness to the forefoot giving your toes plenty of room for movement. It is simply an easy shoe to wear.
The big change here comes in the midsole as the shoe shifts to Brooks’ DNA Loft V2 cushioning. We have seen this before in other shoes and the Loft V2 foam is less dense giving it a lighter feel underfoot. This delivers a more plush comfortable ride while still providing some level of performance. This is not going to be a fast shoe, it is a shoe that anyone can wear on any given day. It is comfortable enough on the legs to go for a decent distance while also being supportive.
We can’t forget the outsole on here because like all Brooks’ shoes, there is a ton of rubber on here and that just means these shoes are going to last. It also means they are going to stand up to the elements so for those of us who are based in areas with a little nastier weather and we need a little more traction, this is exactly what you might be looking for. Brooks is Seattle based, after all, so you have to imagine their wear testing takes this into account.
What we didn’t
There are a couple of nitpicks with the shoe, but It’s tough to call them that because it’s simply the way the shoe is targeted. First, this shoe is a little too heavy as a daily trainer and we’d love to see it drop down below 10oz. However, a lot of that weight sits in that rubber outsole which is one of the strong points given its durability and grip. This is also not a performance-oriented shoe so being a little over 10oz is not a huge deal for most runners in this target market. Second, it lacks a bit of liveliness and focuses more on comfort. We would love to see this get a little more pop to it just to give it a bit of a more up-tempo ride for people, but again that’s not how they’ve oriented this shoe so as much as we don’t love it, it’s not what the Ghost is meant to do. We just think it would improve the platform overall.
Overall Conclusion
If you are someone who likes to have one shoe in rotation, then the Ghost 15 is targeted exactly at you. It is a well-designed, simple, daily trainer, that can tackle really whatever you want to throw at it. If you are a fan of prior iterations, then you will continue to be happy with this shoe and the move to DNA Loft V2 is definitely a reason to try the Ghost 15 and make the upgrade. It is a better shoe than the 14 and delivers a better ride overall. We’d love to see Brooks make these a little more lively and fun to run but that is where the Hyperion and Launch come into play and we’ll have more on those soon.
Learn more on the Brooks website
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Check Out Other Reviewers Thoughts
As always, we gather together some of our favorite reviewers so you can get a well-rounded view of the shoe. Here are our favorites.
