Summary: For me, the Megablasts mate perfectly with the Superblast 2s and may even be better racers at my paces/distances than the racier plated shoes.
Three runs on the books with these shoes, and I believe I’ve figured out how they fit into the spectrum of those I’ve listed…at least from the perspective of a ~5’9”, 150lb 53 year-old long-time triathlete/runner who shifted to Asics from Hoka when the Mach 6 failed to fit in the build up for a 70.3 triathlon and who has grown to love Asics’ offerings, which very much play to the notion that there is no do-it-all shoe, in particular when one is training for a first-ever marathon.
Importantly, my feet can be babies, so I have tended to baby them. But I don’t really rotate shoes, only swap between trainers and racers, with the occasional off-road shoe for softer trail runs.
My first Asics (outside of those I wore 30 years ago or so) were the Novablast 4s. Bought them in-store, but in a size 9.5 once on the run, they felt much too small. I swapped those out for SB2s, which I loved. They are slappy and relatively firm, but for me they provide a perfectly stable and consistent training platform to put in longer miles.
After 400+ miles in the SB2s, I went and bought a pair of NB5s, in 10s this time to give more room up front. The hope was that they’d be a bit softer than the SB2s, because I thought I’d like/need that/ Yuck! Way too soft. I think they also kinda created an uncomfortable gait somehow. They’re perfect for walking though. So, I bought another pair of SB2s. And you know what? I think I like that firmness. I think it actually may provide for a more comfortable run (i.e., softer isn’t better?). Still love them for most of my training miles. Probably my favorite shoes of the past decade (and I can’t really remember shoes from before that, so maybe ever?).
Because I found my first pair of SB2s pretty clunky—perhaps too much so for a race? Maybe that would slow me down?—I sought to pair them with a faster race shoe. I started with the Magic Speed 2 (Ekiden, actually), feeling I wasn’t worthy of a fancier plated shoe (super-cheap find on an auction site!). I liked them and continue to use them for various purposes (quick runs from the boathouse, on the erg, etc.) because I like the lower profile. But I don’t really feel much quicker in them. They also feel as hard and flat on my feet as they look.
From there I turned to the Metaspeed Sky+ as I most certainly am a “strider” (who knew those data from the Forerunner would come in handy! Thanks, Garmin!). Big fan of these, which I have used for tempo/interval/track training sessions and also have taken when I travel given their more diminutive size.
I wore them out though, so I turned to the Metaspeed Sky Paris for the 70.3. Turns out that was a bit dumb, as the race was ~60% trail. They held up well despite the mixed terrain, but I probably would have liked a more stable shoe. I raced a series of swimruns (5k run) in them and I found them ideally suited (in my case at least) for that pursuit. I think that the Sky+ were a better shoe for me, though. Primary reason is that the Sky Paris give the impression of running on marshmallows. Way too soft in the rear, forcing one to be extra careful on sharp turns. At pace and running from the mid to front of the foot, I love them, as I otherwise appreciate the very obvious liftoff those shoes provide as quicker paces (7:15/mile or faster maybe?).
Given all that, I definitely did not want to race my first-ever marathon in the Sky Paris. Wasn’t sure, either, that it would be a good idea to bring out the well-worn Sky+. As for the SB2s…I felt I’d feel the clunkiness over those race miles, but figured I didn’t really have much of a choice.
So, I was super-intrigued by the Megablasts when first revealed. In advance of trying them out, I thought they’d fall in between the SB2s and the MSSPs by adding some squish for comfort, dropping some weight for speed, while providing a more stable platform than the MSSPs. And guess what. That’s exactly how they feel. Having put ~33 miles in them, they seem to offer some free speed over the SB2s, perhaps even (at my paces over longer courses) not much less than the MSSPs, while seemingly being vastly more stable over ground. For me, they provided the disappearing act I wanted for the upcoming marathon. I’m targeting 4 hours, which is a good bit slower than Garmin/Athletica.ai think I can run a marathon, but I’m not taking any chances with my first (maybe only?) one.
But only after I (finally today, I think) figured out how to lace them properly. Compared to the SB2s—which I can slide on, seemingly lace up any which old way and get on the road with nary a bit of discomfort, firm slappiness aside—I’ve had to fiddle with the MBs to get them to feel right. I think the primary reason for that is, like all the racier shoes about which I’ve written so far, my feet swim a bit in these. Much less so than in the two Metaspeeds and Magic Speeds (I don’t lace these, as I have lace locks on them for tris), but I still need to variously tighten the laces to keep my foot in the right place and avoid hot spots, constrictions and otherwise. I also needed to use a runner’s knot (which I have never really thought I needed, again probably because the lace locks maybe serve the same purpose) to keep my foot from sliding into the nose of the shoe on the steep declines I often run.
Also of note, I really felt the drop on the first run. Almost an “Oh, no!” amount of drop that left me thinking there was little cushion at the front of the shoe. Perhaps because I was sliding forward in them, an issue now rectified, the shoes feel every bit the racier version of the SB2s that I wanted them to be. Psyched to use them for the marathon.
Side note…I bought the white ones and only late yesterday discovered the My Little Pony glitter. Love it!