Asics Superblast Running Shoe Review
**Update: The Asics Superblast will be available for purchase from Sportitude from March 3rd 2023**
Josh reviews the Asics Superblast running shoes, a highly anticipated, max cushioned ride that ticks plenty of boxes and overlaps a variety of running shoe categories. It offers neutral engineering, meaning that it’s best suited to neutral foot types, mild supinators or mild overpronators that don’t rely on support technologies.
For the high degree of protection it provides, the Asics Superblast has a surprisingly lightweight design. This combination of characteristics makes it versatile for your easy-going runs, high mileage runs and when you shift the pace up a gear to make the most of its responsive feel. It’s even a potential choice for your half marathon training and race day, particularly if you find that a carbon plate doesn't agree with you and prefer a running shoe without one.
High-performance Asics AHAR rubber in the outsole provides targeted durability – exactly where you need it and not where you don’t. This keeps weight to a minimum, without compromising on the longevity of the running shoe and the protection of the midsole.
The engineered mesh upper creates a foot-conforming fit while providing enough depth to secure your foot on the platform during faster, progressive runs and enough room in the forefoot to allow your toes to splay naturally.
The winning formula of FlyteFoam Turbo and the snappier FlyteFoam Blast Plus cushioning complete the premium feel – delivering a high stacked, high-performing midsole that's an absolute joy to run with.
Check out the review with full transcript below.
Hi guys, welcome to Sportitude Running. My name is Josh and on the table right in front of me I have the Asics Superblast. This running shoe had a global launch in November in conjunction with the New York City Marathon. Usually when a brand launches a new shoe they roll it out in the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere, so we all get it at the same time.
However, things are a little bit different at Asics at the moment due to the fact that they couldn't keep up the production demands of this running shoe. They had to do a Northern Hemisphere launch and little old Australia and New Zealand down here have to wait a few months for it to arrive.
This running shoe won't be coming out in our market until February to potentially March in 2023. Hopefully we’ll get it a little bit sooner, but good things do come to those who wait.
This running shoe as I touched on is a new shoe. It's very exciting and it's pretty niche. We're going to dive into where it's placed in the market, discuss the competitors that sit in the same conversation as the Asics Superblast and profile the foot type and the runner that could be considering this shoe. We’ll also give you all that information at home to maybe make this your next shoe purchase. Without further ado let's get stuck in.
Foot Type
Before we jump into all the juicy parts of this shoe review, let's talk about a couple of key factors. What foot type should be considering the Asics Superblast? It is neutral in design, so there’s no medial support system that's going to cater for that severe overpronator. On the flip side, if you happen to be a mild supinator, neutral foot type or a mild overpronator, this running shoe will potentially cater to you.
Who Is The Asics Superblast For?
The other thing about the Asics Superblast which you need to know is where it sits in the whole rotation. Unless it's a racing shoe that's specifically targeted for racing, there are a few grey areas within the conversation of every other category being speed work and mileage, and the Asics Superblast is no different.
It is a max cushioned shoe, however it's really light in its offering and it has plenty of cushioning. I have no doubt that there's going to be a lot of people that are going to enjoy this shoe for easy days and for mileage out on the road, but it's also snappy enough, light enough and has enough push off your toes that someone could use it for some quicker runs, progressive runs and may even be able to session in this shoe.
It does have a few multiple uses which I think is great and that's why I think this is such an exciting shoe. It's not specifically targeting one category of running, it bridges out over a couple.
I might even throw this shoe in on my foot for a half marathon or two, so I'm not ruling out the fact you could race in it. It certainly talks to a lot of runners out there which is exciting.
Outsole
Jumping straight to the outsole of this shoe, there is a reasonable amount of coverage with the rubber on offer and it's Asics AHAR rubber. That's their really durable compound rubber. There's not a lot on offer underneath the foot and it looks very similar to what we had seen with the first Asics NovaBlast and Asics Nova Blast 3 where they had that little pod in the middle part of your forefoot filling out that outsole configuration.
The border of this running shoe is called out by that darker grey rubber which is there to protect the asset which is the midsole in this shoe. I think they've got it right. If they had a little bit more rubber potentially filling out the forefoot, it would probably be a little bit bottom heavy through the front half and the same thing goes for the back of the shoe.
I like the fact that we only have enough rubber and there's high abrasive areas to provide ample amount of protection for that midsole, but not overcomplicating things by making the running shoe too heavy.
Upper
Jumping to the top of the shoe, let's talk all things upper. They have an engineered mesh. It's an engineered adaptive asymmetrical mesh on offer. What that technically means is it's going to conform the foot in all those really important areas. The first thing I'd like to call out is the middle of the foot which is what we classify as the saddle.
Generally speaking, if you get that part of your shoe wrong in a lighter shoe it can make things really complicated and quite uncomfortable. When you have a lighter shoe on your foot, a lot of runners will like to get up onto that forefoot if possible, but more often than not will land on their midfoot.
Therefore, if you don't have enough depth through the saddle or the navicular region of your foot it can create a little bit of pressure, making the shoe quite uncomfortable. I like what they've done regarding the depth on offer. I also like what they've done regarding the widths and we'll touch on the widths at the end of this review.
However, as you come through to the forefoot you've got enough space to allow your forefoot to splay out. You have the appropriate amount of depth through the toebox as well.
One of our shoe fitters Oliver and I were discussing that we like the amount of toebox room on offer with the Asics Superblast. It reminds us of a little bit of Asics GlideRide version 1 regarding the upper in reference to the width and the depth. That was a really nice comfortable fit up top and obviously they altered what they did underneath the foot. If we're talking about all things upper, it's a very similar fit, feel and function up top which I believe is a good thing.
Coming back to the heel counter of this shoe, obviously we have a pull tab and for those of you that know me, I love a pull tab. There’s an internal heel counter on offer at the back giving that calcaneus a nice solid lockdown.
They don't need a lot of plastic construction in the back because the midsole wraps quite a lot up around the lateral, central part and the medial side of that heel. Your actual heel sits considerably deeper and there’s a lot of depth on offer. You're getting almost that external heel counter construction from the midsole wrap as well as that internal construction control which is going to give the back half of your foot just the right amount of support and stability.
I obviously like to call out the comfort factor of this shoe. It has a little bit of memory foam and nice soft material on offer around your collar. When you step into this shoe it feels premium and it feels incredibly comfortable.
Midsole
Let's jump to the midsole because I know you've been sitting there and you've had a couple sips of your coffee and you're waiting for me to get to this part of the review because this is where all the excitement happens.
No surprises, this running shoe does fall into that max cushioned or max stacked category. We have 45.5mm in the heel and 37.5mm in the forefoot for that variance of 8mm. There is a lot of shoe.
Let's talk about the two cushioning elements on offer. We have FlyteFoam Turbo which is the mango-coloured part of this midsole and underneath we have FlyteFoam Blast Plus. That cushioning system is the snappier of the two foams. FlyteFoam Turbo has been rolled out in your Asics MetaSpeed Sky racing shoes and the new Asics MetaSpeed Edge, so we're familiar with that feel and that compound.
We have on offer with the Asics Superblast a really new take on how to execute a high-performing midsole. As I touched on, a lot of this midsole is the FlyteFoam Turbo and that lighter, slightly snappier foam being the FlyteFoam Blast Plus which sits underneath the FlyteFoam Turbo. They work in unison together.
For Asics Superblast as we touched on at the start of this intro, we're not really too concerned about what happens on that X-axis and Y-axis. This running shoe is all about that Z-axis. We have to get you landing through the toe-off part of your gait cycle as smooth and as efficiently as possible.
How they do that while using those two cushioning systems is through a relatively stiff construction. There is no plate in this running shoe whatsoever so you're not relying on a nylon plate or a carbon plate. It is purely and simply all put together into this midsole package to provide enough cushioning but a snappy, very stable roll on toe-off.
The other thing I'd like to call that with reference to this midsole is it is a max stacked shoe, although it isn't crazy soft underneath the foot. When I say it's not crazy cushioned, that's totally in respect to where you've come from. If I'm comparing this running shoe to a New Balance FuelCell Supercomp Trainer or maybe even throwing in the Hoka One One Bondi X, all three are very similar shoes. However, the midsole does perform rather differently, and I'll touch on that at the end of this review when I talk all things comparison across those three shoes.
All in all, you have a really stable ride for the amount of stack underneath your foot and a really smooth transition. I am all about what this shoe is doing in the midsole and it's going to go quite well for anyone who's wanting to get out on the road, roll the legs over some easy Ks or if you're keen to pick the pace up. It's going to help you do that just fine.
Relevant Statistics: Weight & Stack Height
The men's size 9 comes in at 239 grams. In respect to the other shoes we've talked about, being the New Balance FuelCell Supercomp Trainer and Hoka One One Bondi X, it is considerably lighter than both of those shoes. The Hoka One One Bondi X is getting up around 300 grams and the Asics Supercomp Trainer sits just under that. There's a considerable amount of difference around 50 to 60 grams variance between those shoes and where the Asics Superblast sits. That is quite a lot, especially for that on foot experience.
The other key statistics we need to talk about which we touched on is the stack height. It’s 45.5mm in the heel and 37.5mm in the forefoot for that offset of 8mm.
Similar Running Shoes To The Asics Superblast
Now to jump into what I like about the Asics Superblast running shoes, where it sits and those other shoes which I touched on previously. I've been really excited about the Asics Superblast for six months.
Thank you very much to Asics Australia for sending myself and Oliver here at Sportitude Running a couple of pairs. We've enjoyed every bit of running in these, collaborating and trying to figure out where this shoe sits.
As I touched on, I'd have to say the New Balance FuelCell Supercomp Trainer (above) and Hoka One One Bondi X are pretty similar shoes regarding what they offer. That's in terms of the X-axis and Y-axis and getting you through to the release part of your gait cycle.
The New Balance FuelCell Supercomp Trainer is a a magnificent execution of engineering without the reliance on a plate. There’s no carbon plate or nylon plate, however it is a nice rigid and relatively stiff forefoot. You feel every bit of this rocker underneath your foot and I think that's absolutely fantastic.
It has a higher stack height which isn’t quite as high as your Adidas Prime X which is a 50mm stack height. The Asics Superblast is coming in with a mid 40mm stack height. However, with the amount of shoe underneath your foot it doesn't feel like a 44.5mm stack height, it feels more around that 40mm mark.
It certainly feels like a lot of shoe underneath your foot, but I don't feel like I am being inhibited regarding how I roll through this running shoe by having too much of it underneath my foot. I probably would be cautious maybe of using it for some faster races. I wouldn't be leaning towards this running shoe specifically for a park run where you might have a little bit of cornering because being that high off the ground and leaning too much into that FlyteFoam Turbo midsole, it might be a little bit unstable.
If you're literally getting out the door, pointing yourself in a direction and just going, this running shoe will be absolutely fantastic. Recently here in Adelaide we've had some damp weather. We've had rain, we've had dry and we've had all four seasons in about two weeks. We tested this shoe across all of those elements and there is plenty of grip underneath the foot. That limited amount of AHAR rubber on offer grabs that bitumen and grabs that footpath as much as you'd want it to. I was really comfortable and confident with the amount of grip on offer.
As I touched on before, it does sit across a couple of silos. It's going to be a cushioned shoe for someone wanting to get out and do those easy runs. I personally like it for runners who are looking at getting back into some quicker running, some progressive running and are maybe recovering from some form of injury or need a bit more protection and stability. This running shoe is going to be absolutely fine for your shorter quicker days and I reckon we'll see this shoe even feature on some amateur triathletes' feet for race day.
Not everyone can tolerate a carbon plated shoe. We've talked about that in a number of shoe reviews over the last few years. However, that really stiff, rigid forefoot has become an extremely popular, almost a searched for feature of a running shoe and this shoe has it, it just doesn't have it with a plate.
Therefore, I reckon we'll see this shoe out the triathlon circuit for sure. It's going to cover everything from your Olympian distance right up to your Ironman distance for triathletes. As I touched on, I think we'll even see a few of these out on runners competing in road races, myself included. I might push out a half marathon and wear these purely based on enjoyment and comfort.
The Wrap Up
There you have it guys, that is my take on the Asics Superblast. I want to touch on what I said at the start of this review. Globally, this running shoe did launch in November, however that was more in the Northern Hemisphere. For Australia and New Zealand we have to wait a few months. Come February and March next year, we should have this on the wall at Sportitude Running and we should be fitting you the Australian and New Zealand running community.
If you've used this running shoe, if you have comments, thoughts and theories on what it represents, where it stands and where its come from with the Asics NovaBlast, please contact our Sportitude shoe experts and let us know any other questions related to your shoes or shoe selection.
We'd love to hear from you and we love helping runners all over the world with you running shoe selections. That’s my take on the Asics Superblast.
Take care of one another, happy running, stay safe and we’ll see you on the road.
FEATURES
- Support: Neutral
- Upper: Engineered Air Mesh
- Midsole: FlyteFoam Blast Plus, FlyteFoam Turbo
- Heel Height: 45.5mm
- Forefoot Height: 37.5mm
- Offset / Drop: 8mm
Men
- Weight: 239g / 8.4oz (US 9)
- Width: D (standard)
Women
- Weight: 210g / 7.4oz
- Width: D (wide)
For a more in-depth shoe fitting experience, you can book a free 15 minute video chat in a Live Fit session or make an appointment to discover your RunDNA at Sportitude Running@Hindmarsh.
Happy running!
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