My first pair of running shoes were some kind of Nike shoes I grabbed at JCPenney 10 years ago. Then I started running…a lot…and discovered those shoes were garbage.

I went to Tri-State Running here in NKY and got fitted for some shoes that were the Asics GEL-Nimbus (15?). Over the last 10 iterations of the shoe, they’ve changed a great deal, incorporating ever more foam and cushion.

It’s gotten to the point that the latest version is unrecognizable compared to what I started with.

So, as these things changed to maximum foam, higher ride height, and overall squishier feel, I found the mid-tier Excite line was more to my liking.

Maybe I’m getting old and am resistant to change.

Nope.

I tried out the higher ride with the Hoka Speedgoat (2?) and didn’t like the instability in the ankle while on trail or the “over-” cushioning. It made it harder to feel the trail, and on side sloping trail, the physics weren’t great.

Plus, my regular trail runners are relatively low in terms of ride height, so it doesn’t make much sense to have an ultra cushioned road shoe.

Maybe I’ll get into these chunky shoes more in the future, but for now, these more traditionally designed Asics will do just fine for my current training cycle ending with the Sheltowee Trail Ultra 50-miler in April.

If all goes well, I’ll be on a slow cruise on the Flying Pig Marathon course 8 days later. Very slow. Extreeeeemely slow. 5-6 hours slow;-)

Oh, and these are a fraction of the price of the flagship Nimbus line.

If you’re getting started with running, I strongly suggest getting fitted and having your running gait checked at your local running shop. They stock the top of the line shoes, so you’ll pay more, buy you’ll get great shoes that are fit to your running style.