The material on the outsole of this shoe is Carbon rubber, plain and simple. Before anything else is said about the design of this sole unit, the Asics Roadhawk’s use of carbon rubber allows it to really gain a foothold on the durability aspect that was plaguing most shoes; the outsole of the shoe would simply wear down too quickly and wouldn’t give the wearer any time to really enjoy the feel of the shoe. The outsole of the Asics Roadhawk is a bit spotty in some areas though, to make sure that the wearer of the shoe is able to retain a level of flexibility and doesn’t have to worry about the shoe giving them issues in terms of lack of movement. The Carbon rubber is placed in the areas of the shoe that generally experience the most contact with the ground and thus, is on the forefoot and the heel portion of the shoe; the rest of the bottom part of the sole leaves room for the blown rubber in the shoe to be seen. The outsole of the shoe also features a guideline that gives the wearer an added sense of stability while in their shoe.

The midsole of the Asics Roadhawk is designed from a material of Asics’ own design; Flytefoam. This material was designed so that wearer’s of the shoe is really able to get that responsive yet firm feel that they needed while in their shoe; this somewhat differs from the highly, highly cushioned feel of that provided by the gel material that Asics generally fits their shoes with. The Flytefoam material is placed into the midsole using compression molding, which allows the shoe to really give the wearer that added a sense of cushioning and is one of the reasons why the material feels as firm as it does when the shoe is on foot. The firmness of the materials spills out into the outside of the midsole and really gives one that stable feel that they need while running in the shoe; one does not have to worry about excess bending or creasing, at least not while the shoe is on foot.

The upper of the shoe is made of two things; mesh and synthetic materials. The use of the mesh in the shoe’s design really allows the shoe to give wearer’s what they need in terms of airflow and keeps the shoe flexible while it’s being used for those high-speed runs that wearers may partake in. To give the shoe a bit of a protective feel while not compromising the flex achieved by the mesh in the shoe, Asics fit the shoe with synthetic overlays; the overlays allow the shoe to have an extra level of structure, which is important for shoes that are generally made from a mesh material. The cut of the shoe is one that allows it to give the wearer an added level of comfort due; things like the straight lips of the heel of the shoe keep the wearer from dealing with excess levels of discomfort and chafing while the shoe is in use. The upper is also highly padded so as to give the wearer that extra level of comfort and to counteract the feeling of the rest of the shoe when it’s in use; it also has a smooth lining material that adds to this effect achieved by the shoe.

Ready to read something wonderful about this shoe? A men’s size 9 weighs roughly 8.6oz; that is relatively lightweight when one considers that various other road shoes generally weigh in the upper 10 oz range. The lightweight of this shoe, as is usual, can be attributed to the rather minimal mesh upper and the fact that the material doesn’t have a whole lot of overlays in place throughout the design; the use of overlays in a shoe’s design can do a lot to weigh the shoe down if used in excess. The Flytefoam sole unit itself is on the thicker side but is an overall lightweight material that does its job to give the wearer what they need in terms of reduced weight in the shoe. The lack of weight in this shoe is truly amazing simply for the fact that the material allows the wearer to really attain a comfortable feel and doesn’t fatigue the foot while the shoe is being worn; a shoe that doesn’t call for excess energy to be burned during transitions is very rare.

The mesh upper on this shoe definitely takes care of the wearer in terms of their ability to achieve a nice level of air circulation from the shoe while it’s in use. The shoe features a very minimal upper; it has a few synthetic overlays but, for the most part, doesn’t do much to really take away from the feel achieved by the shoe while it’s in use. The overlays themselves even have a netting effect that still allows the mesh portion of the shoe to shine through which results in that level of airflow that wearer’s need to reduce a sweat buildup. Also to this effect, the shoe has a moisture-wicking liner that allows one to reduce a high level of sweat from being built up when the shoe is in use.

The mesh upper of the Asics Roadhawk is one of the reasons why it’s able to provide the wearer with all that they need in regard to comfort; the mesh expands to form along with the curves of the wearer’s foot and allows the wearer to really achieve a high level of comfort because of it’s so doing. Aside from this, the use of the synthetic materials along the side of the shoe keeps the wearer’s foot snugly “trapped” inside of the shoe, meaning that there is reduced movement and a high feeling of comfort achieved by the shoe because of it being so. The foam in the sole unit of the shoe, if there was nothing else in place to give the wearer a bit of comfort, would result in the foot having to deal with an extremely firm surface for the duration of a run; thankfully, Asics thought ahead and decided to make rather decent use of a blown foam insert on the insole of the shoe. The insert of the shoe really allows one to achieve that extremely high level of comfort that they generally need to attain from a shoe such as the Asics Roadhawk.

Well, the Asics Roadhawk is a road running shoe, which is something that can be seen from the use of overlays and the carbon rubber that runs the length of the sole unit of the shoe. The shoe has quite a few attractive colorways that work to ensure that the wearer has a few stylish choices to choose from among their shoes. For instance, the most well-liked model comes not the primary colors of red, white, and blue; these colors really give the shoe a high level of aesthetic appeal and allow the shoe to really provide the wearer with what they need in terms of style. The shoe definitely has a sporty look though and may not blend during casual wear for this reason.

The carbon rubber on the outsole of the Asics Roadhawk definitely allows the shoe to have a decent level of longevity; Carbon rubber is highly abrasive which causes it to take a decent length of time to really wear down during use. The material was also placed in such a way as to allow the shoe to be covered in the areas that would require the most pressure to be placed on them. The great thing about the firmness of the foam in the shoe is that the material doesn’t crease as easily as other, more cushioned materials tend to do; the firmness of the material gives the wearer of the shoe the ability to have a shoe that doesn’t simply bend under their weight and compress to the point that the shoe completely loses any of it’s cushioning abilities.

In terms of protection, the upper of the Asics Roadhawk does its job to ensure that the wearer of the shoe doesn’t deal with an injury during the regular curse of events during a run. The heel of the shoe has a synthetic counter and is slightly raised off of the ground due to the drop of the shoe; the synthetic material and the cushioning that is provided by the shoe really keeps the foot stable. The firmness of the flytefoam in the midsole of the shoe also works to give the wearer a bit of stability and ensures that the wearer has what they need in terms of comfort and provides them with a high level of protection from user error; the wearer doesn’t have to worry about mis-footing or anything of the like simply because of the feel of the shoe and the surety that the foam provides to them. The synthetic material on the upper of the shoe also provides the wearer with what they need in terms of protection but does so more by keeping the shoe snug onto the wearer’s foot; it works in much the same way as the sole unit fo the shoe.

Flytefoam definitely gives the wearer what they’ll need in terms of a bounce, that’s for sure. The foam in the midsole of the shoe allows the wearer to have a bit more bounce simply because of the fact that the material is a bit on the firm side; the material still works to conform to the shape of the wearer’s foot despite the firm feel of it and, due to the feel of the material allows the wearer to feel a bit of energy return when the shoe is in use. The upper and the fact that the material in this area of the shoe is so malleable provides the wearer with a responsive feel during use and does so simply because of the fact that the material conforms to the curves of the wearer’s foot during use; the overlays are only present in the midfoot and the heel of the shoe which allows the wearer to really do what they need to gain a high level of comfort from their shoe.

The overlays on the side of the shoe work to give the wearer a bit of support in that area of the wearer’s foot; the overlays aid the shoe in fitting snugly to the wearer's foot. The insole of the shoe, or rather the blown foam insole, does what the wearer needs it to do in terms of providing the wearer wit a bit of support while the shoe is in use; the insole simply provides the wearer with what they’ll need in terms of support due to the fact that the material is a bit on the cushioned side and, as a result, provides the wearer with a level of conformity in respect to the curves of their feet that is simply out of this world.the firm midsole of the shoe achieves the opposite effect simply because of the firmness of the material; underfoot, the material feels amazing, especially when cushioned by the insole of the shoe.

The name of the shoe signals one thing to all of us, this is a road running shoe through and through. The need for carbon rubber in the sole unit of the shoe is painfully apparent when one considers what the shoe itself does for the wearer; roads tend to wear traction on shoes down rather quickly and, carbon rubber works to give the wearer what they need in terms of traction and does so due to the fact that the material is highly abrasive. The upper of the shoe doesn’t really have to be worried about when it comes to terrain simply because of the fact that roads don’t have many spots that could remotely affect the upper portions of the shoe.

An amazing thing about this shoe is that is definitely on the affordable side of things in terms of price. The shoe features various materials that allow it to provide the wearer with ample wear time; the thickness of the sole unit, really the carbon rubber ensures that the shoe doesn’t wear down with excessive wear of the shoe; that’s one of the great qualities of the highly abrasive carbon rubber material. Another fascinating quality of the shoe is that it features the blown foam insert; this material is somewhat higher class and, for the price is quite the steal.

When it comes to traction, the carbon rubber on the outsole of the shoe has definitely got the wearer covered. Carbon rubber is a highly abrasive material that works constantly to combat the wear that is generally expected of it when it comes into contact with the road surface. The fact that this material is also placed in such a way as to allow the shoe to move naturally when in use really allows the shoe to make full use of the sole unit of the shoe and the carbon rubber that is in place.

The rubber on the outsole of the shoe is placed sparingly throughout the sole unit to ensure that the wearer of the shoe will be able to experience a high range of motion while the shoe is in use. The upper of the shoe also allows the wearer to achieve a high level of motion while the shoe is in use due to its use of the mesh material in its design and the minimal overlays that are in place throughout its design.

The synthetic overlays on the upper work to provide the shoe with a level of structure while the shoe is in use. The sole unit of the shoe is on the firm side and allows the wearer to have what they need in terms of stability because of this; the firmness of the midsole does a great job of allowing the wearer to have a feeling of stability while their shoes are in use.

The drop of this shoe is roughly 8mm. This allows the shoe to have what the wearer needs in terms of transitions and is so simply because of the fact that the shoe must provide the wearer with a decent level of support for the heel of the foot.

• Flytefoam midsole
• Blown foam insert
• Carbon rubber outsole

To be honest, this shoe does all that the wearer needs it to really provide a comfortable ride. The foam in the midsole section may be a bit uncomfortable for some due to the thickness of the material but still works to give the wearer what they need in terms of stability and is counteracted by the insert on the inside of the shoe. The Asics Roadhawk achieves a decent level of durability simply because of the use of the hardened rubber on the outsole; that isn’t to say that the rest of the shoe isn’t durable, rather that the sole unit is the highlight area in this respect. The price of the shoe also makes this shoe somewhat of a steal when all of the features provided are considered.