Brooks Divide 4 Review

The Brooks Divide 4 is designed as a road to trail shoe. This is essentially a mixed terrain shoe. It offers enough cushioning to be used on tarmac but also has some grip for hard packed trails. The midsole isn’t quite as stiff as a road shoe so that it can flex a little bit to accommodate and unsmooth running surface like a rocky trail. Which together with the grip makes it a better option for trail use than a road shoe would be. Although this bit of flex in the midsole does make it slightly less smooth on tarmac than a road shoe would be.

Trail shoes quite often have a snugger fit than road shoes. This is because the ground isn’t even and so there is potential for your foot to get moved around in the shoes. As the Brooks Divide 4 is designed for use on road and trail Brooks have decided to make the fit more similar to that of a road shoe. Which means that the Divide will be feel very similar in fit to a Brooks Ghost or Adrenaline GTS. The big toe line is a bit straighter than some Brooks shoes. Similar to the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 23 (which has a straighter big toe line than the GTS 22), Brooks Dyad and Brooks Ghost Max. The straighter big toe line allows you to push off more powerfully and also allows better foot function as the toes aren’t under tension having been pushed into a pointed toe box. This helps with stability off road as your foot can spread out easier.

The width is a regular width D for Men and B for Women and the shoes size in line with other Brooks shoes. Brooks are similar in length to Altra, Saucony, NNormal. If you use Hoka, New Balance or La Sportiva then we would suggest trying half a size smaller in a Brooks shoe.

BROWSE THE RANGE

The Brooks Divide 4 have a midsole made from DNA Loft. It is 20mm thick in the heel and 12mm thick in the forefoot. The rubber used is Brook’s trail tack which is designed to give a good level of grip in the wet and dry and still be durable enough for road use. The lugs have very little depth and are large. There is also a lot of them to give a good surface are in contact with the floor. This is to give good traction on smoother tracks and trails. The lugs aren’t deep enough to offer any traction on soft ground. The outsole is 4.5 mm thick giving a total stack height of 24.5/16.5.

The heel to forefoot drop of 8mm which favours the heel striker more but, although the Divide is a little stiff initially to allow for a easy midfoot strike the midsole does get a bit more flexible after 50 miles and then it is easier to land midfoot.

The DNA Loft midsole gives ample cushioning but is on the firmer side compared to the current trend for soft midsoled shoes. The advantage of this is that you have more feel for the ground. As your foot knows it is on the floor it will function inside the shoe more than in a soft midsoled shoe and the midsole will also last longer.

A firmer more responsive midsole is also far better for running uphill. It’s much easier to maintain an efficient quick cadence. You can also gage pace better in a firmer midsole shoe and run quickly in it. Which means that the Brooks Divide 4 is a very versatile shoe as it can be used for road and trail use on easy runs, steady runs and fartlek, hill reps or other quicker running.

The Brooks Divide 4 is available in two version. A breathable mesh version and a waterproof Gore-Tex version. As the Gore-Tex used is Gore’s invisible bit the fit of both shoes is the same. Standard Gore-Tex uppers have an internal membrane stuck to the inside of the upper. This takes up some of the volume inside the shoes which means that the shoes are slightly narrower and shorter. Gore-Tex Invisible fit is where the Gore-Tex membrane is what is used to make the upper. So, it is almost as thin as a mesh upper. Gore Invisible fit is also very soft and pliable which gives a much better fit than the standard Gore-Tex upper as like a mesh upper it can mould to the shape of your foot.

Which version of the Brooks Divide 4 is best for you will depend on the environment you are running in. A mesh upper shoe is much more breathable which makes them cooler to run in when it’s warm. Gore-Tex is waterproof and windproof and although they are breathable we find that they make your feet sweat if they are used at above 5 degree C. Which makes them more of a winter shoe. The other disadvantage of waterproof footwear is that if you get water inside the shoes while crossing streams or running through very long grass then the water can’t get out.

The heel cup of both version of the Divide 4 is nicely padded. The heel cup is firm and grips the heel well. The tongue is padded enough but, not to the excessive point that it will absorb or hold water. Just enough to make the shoes comfortable for daily use and your unlikely to feel any pressure from the laces. The tongue is gusseted to prevent any debri from getting into the shoes.

As will nearly all Brooks shoes there is an extra lace loop at the top of the laces. This means that you can Butterfly lace the shoes or just thread the laces through the extra hole to give a snugger fit at the heel should you feel you need to.

On the upper of both version of the Divide is an overlay that runs around the base to protect the upper from abrasion that you often get when running in the mud of on dusty tracks.

The Brooks Divide 4 with the mesh upper weighs 264 grams in a Women’s UK 5 and 295 grams in a Men’s UK 8. The GTX version is slightly heavier being 278 grams in the Women’s version and 309 grams in the Men’s version.

I like shoes with a firmer more responsive midsole. This helps me run with a better posture and makes we lighter on my feet. Brooks Ghost, Trace, Adrenaline GTS and Addiction GTS all have this feel to their midsoles Which makes them more versatile in that you can run slowly or quickly in the shoes. In effect you push against the shoe and it responds to the force. In softer shoes you sink into the midsole of the shoe and it feels like there is a delay to the rebound. In a shoe designed to be used at least partially on trails this is a great asset as it makes the shoe nimbler. Which means it’s easier to quickly change direction or pick your way over a section of broken terrain. Uphill running also feels quicker.

The downside from a trail perspective is the lack of lug depth. Which means that the Brooks Divide offers no traction on softer terrain. Whether this is a problem or not depends on your running routes. For me is limits the shoes when it is as wet as it has been recently. In the summer when it’s drier or last winter when it didn’t seam to rain much at all the lack of lugging wouldn’t have been an issue. It’s difficult to design an outsole that cruises over hard surfaces like tarmac but, also bites into the mud. The Brooks Divide feels just like a road shoe on the tarmac. A shoe with longer lugs wouldn’t feel quite as smooth. As with all trail shoes you need to look at the terrain you will be using the shoes on most and a pick a shoe with the attributes that are going to help you on that terrain.

In summary the Brooks Divide 4 is in effect a versatile road to trail shoe. If you runs are mainly run on a mix of terrain at varying paces then these should are worth considering.

Other Considerations

Hoka Challenger 7: A narrower more pointed toe box. Softer cushioning. A rocker gives a bit of propulsion and reduces heel strike. https://www.northernrunner.com/blog/hoka-challenger-7-review/

Topo Ultraventure 3: A broad rounded toe box allows for greater foot function. The cushioning is a little softer and promotes a more midfoot strike. 

Inov-8 Parkclaw G280: A very similar shoe to the Brooks Divide 4. More flexible so it rides over broken ground easier than the Brooks Divide but the traction level is similar. https://www.northernrunner.com/blog/inov-8-parkclaw-g-280-review/

Karhu Ikoni Trail: A slightly softer ride. Karhu Fulcrum allows you to run with good posture and helps with forward propulsion. The outsole lugs ride well on tarmac but are deeper and bite better into soft ground than the flat shallow lugs of the Brooks Divide 4. https://www.northernrunner.com/blog/karhu-ikoni-trail-review/