Monthly Archives: April 2012

Reader Paula asks —

Although you haven’t reviewed the Asics Gel Nimbus 13 for women, I wanted to comment on it, since I’ve had a strange experience. I bought a pair about a year ago in the Lightning/White/Magenta color, size 10 M. They were very cushioned and fit pretty snugly. Just a month ago, I replaced them with another pair of Asic Gel Nimbus 13 in the exact same size, but this time I got the White/Lightning/Turquoise color. The new color fits differently and has less cushioning! It is wider and deeper, and the sole feels harder. The magenta ones felt like running on marshmallows, and the turquoise ones don’t have the same spring. They are really uncomfortable. Can you shed any light on this? Do shoe companies change the construction of the shoes based on color? This seems crazy to me.

Concerned that Paula’s question might be true, I tracked down Asics Gel-Nimbus 13 in both colors. Imagine my surprise when I discovered the shoes were slightly different even though they had the same name. Hopefully, this is just an aberration due to different manufacturing facilities and nothing to worry about. Otherwise, we’re all in trouble as there will be no consistency even within the same version of shoe. Here’s my video analysis of the same model shoe in two different colors.