Ever since I fell in love with running I’ve been keeping a close eye on Asics. After all, having good equipment is one of the keys to success. Just a few days ago, the NIMBUS 24 has become available in China while the NIMBUS 17 has become some kind of historical collection. Being my fifth Asics shoes, NIMBUS 17 has witnessed many great moments of my life and I felt it necessary to memorize the classical work of Asics.
I got NIMBUS 17 by chance for it was sent to me as a present from my friends. However, I had only a nodding acquaintance with NIMBUS at the time and had little awareness that the shoe’ cushion would be that wonderful. The first impression it gave me when I put it on was that it was so comfortable and elastic that I thought no CUMULUS was better than it.
The colorway of this NIMBUS 17 is gray and blue, making it more than suitable for both running and daily wearing. The vamp is made of engineering cloth and the surface is decorated with a logo and some decorative patterns, which has played its maximum function in offering support. Besides that, the patterns are reflective and the overall texture of the vamp is good, worthy of its title of being a top running shoe.
The midsole adopts the widely enjoyed FLUIDRIDE and GEL, aiming to offer the state-of-the-art comfort. However, it is a pity that the later works of NIMBUS series cannot be compared with NIMBUS 17 in this respect, whose midsoles have become harder and harder. It was not until in NIMBUS 23 that I found the similar comfort given by its midsole. NIMBUS 17 is also equipped with a counter at the heel with reflective material, which is hard enough to support its wearer. However, when it comes to the GEl, I’ve seen many complaints from buyers online that said they were displeased with its heavy weight. From my perspective, however, good cushioning is much more important than being lightweight for a pair of running shoes.
If you happen to have some NIMBUS shoes, you’ll feel that the setups in the outsole are quite familiar. In the fore part, it is the AHAR rubber that is soft, lightweight and offers good grip even if on wet roads. As for the rear part, it is the AHAR+ rubber which is surprisingly durable and suitable to most joggers who are used to landing on their heels. According to many reviewers, it is only the rubber of mizuno X10 that is comparable with AHAR+ rubber.
For a runner like me who weighs 90kg, a pair of shoes with nice cushion is a must and this NIMBUS17 appeared just in time. Last year when the shoes finally worn out, it dawned on me that it has accompanied me along the running “journey” of 1364 km. However, by around the 800-km mark, the shoe’s initial excellent rebound had all but disappeared. And by the 1000-km, the rubber of the fore part of the outsole had become as smooth as silk.
The super thick insoles have also done a great job. They contribute quite a lot to improving the comfortness of the shoes, which are barely seen in the market nowadays.
The shoes have also their disadvantages, not least the inner materials that wear out easily, which has little bearing on me though. Besides, the glue in the toe fails relatively easily, but this can also be fixed with glue, causing no inconvenience to running.
Overall:
As a pair of running shoes with top cushion , NIMBUS17 is a good choice for heavy runners for their daily training, jogging or daily wearing. In recent years, I have successively purchased some more works of NIMBUS series, but I must own that N17 is the best among them and deserves all the praise it has earned.