Brooks PureDrift - Retiring Soon

I took the PureDrift for runs the past couple of days and pushes it through my normal/usual pace of training. Yesterday, I noticed that a tear at the upper mesh on the left side shoe has happened. This would usually mean that the shoe will start disintegrating as it is put through the running motion.

Noticed the hole (black)?

Upon closer inspection, The right big toe has shown sign of wear as well, with the inner white cloth lining giving way, making the shoe translucent with only the upper mesh holding it.

The toe box getting "thin"

 So, as of the last 6km run completed on January 21, 2013, the shoe has clocked 157miles.

My active "gears"

At 157miles or about 253km, the prediction that the shoe will end it's life was pretty accurate as predicted in this blog post here. In my opinion, The shoe could still be good for another 30km before the mesh starts to tear off more. I have every intention to give the PureDrift the "sending off" it truly deserves - by literally running it to it's last possible KM.
Minimalist
I am now a minimalist convert. I am not sure how I will react to cushioned shoe again. But I have a Brooks Ghost 5 waiting for me at home. Perhaps, the wiser choice would be to use the cushioned (and heavier) shoe as training shoe and the lighter minimalist as race shoe. That way, the mileage (not duration of inactivity) and lifespan of the shoe will be greatly extended. At RM399, PureDrift is not exactly cheap. But with Brooks constantly giving out vouchers from races and even the 30% discount on selected model, it becomes a bit more affordable.
If it is not because I am loving the Skechers GoBionic more, PureDrift, despite it's setback (blisters and durability), would had been my choice of minimalist racer.
Now, lets see how long more before the GoBionic retires.