As I suspected, this year Asics is timing the release of the next iteration of the Novablast to coincide with the New York Marathon. Although there’s still a week to go until the New York Marathon, the Novablast 5 is already available on asics.com.
ASICS Novablast 5 running shoes
The Novablast is one of ASICS’ most popular lines, and it’s no wonder – it’s a versatile, dynamic, lightweight running shoe that always puts a smile on my face when I run in it.
For me, the one thing that separates the Novablast from the perfect running shoe is its stability, which, although it has steadily improved, has fallen short for me. I noticed this especially on longer runs, and after 300km I could feel the metatarsus leaning in (I see a lot of runners with a leaning foam running in Novablast). It’s getting better, the stability of the shoe has improved and maybe the 5 will get better, I’m hopeful.
It’s changed a lot from the previous version, just by looking at it, it’s worth going into detail.
Asics Novablast 5 midsole
As I expected, the midsole is made from ASICS’s new FlyteFoam Max foam, which made its debut in the Glideride Max running shoe. Based on durometer measurements, FlyteFoam Max foam has the same softness as FlyteFoam Blast Plus Eco (43 HC), but is noticeably different from the foam I used before. FlyteFoam Max is more energetic, has more bounce, is lightweight and comfortable. The midsole height is unchanged at 41.5mm at the heel and 33.5mm at the forefoot. With only a thinner layer of FlyteFoam Max foam in the Glideride Max, the Asics Novablast 5 running shoe will be the first to really experience the properties of the new foam. Although the midsole height has been maintained, the weight of the shoe has been reduced by 5 grams to 253g.
Asics Novablast 5 Upper
The upper is also made from a completely new material. It has a softer and thinner mesh material than the previous version. The tongue is thin and winged like the previous version. The heel collar is still padded, which provides good support and comfort.
Asics Novablast 5 outsole
They kept the AHAR Lo rubber compound on the outsole, but changed the shape a bit and added a completely new pattern. I ran 200km in the Novablast 4 and had minimal wear on the outsole, so this compound is not only lightweight, it’s also very durable. Somewhat encouraging in terms of stability is the long trough running down the middle of the outsole and the continuous outsole on either side. This can provide support on both sides.
Price unchanged
The good news is that the price of the Asics Novablast 5 remains unchanged, it will cost the same as the previous version, with the manufacturer offering a price of $140.
As soon as the ASICS Novablast 5 is available, I will test it and also make a more post about it.
Here are the product numbers to look out for the Novablast 5: 1011B974-001, 1011B974-002, 1011B974-100, 1011B974-400, 1011B974-401, 1011B974-402, 1011B974-403, 1011B974-500
The Novablast 5 has been completely redesigned with FF Blast Max midsole foam, making it even more dynamic and bouncy than its predecessor.
