Asics Gel Kayano 29 2E Wide 'Island Blue'
Colorway: Island Blue/White · Style code: 1011B470-402 · Release date: January 2, 2023 · Price: $2682 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: Asics Gel Kayano 29 2E Wide 'Triple Black' (1011B470-001) · Asics Gel Kayano 29 2E Wide 'Black White' (1011B470-002) · Asics Gel Kayano 29 2E Wide 'Metropolis' (1011B470-021) · Asics Gel Kayano 29 2E Wide 'Deep Ocean Cherry Tomato' (1011B470-401) · ASICS Gel Kayano 29 'Metropolis' (1011B440-021)
ASICS announced the GEL-Kayano 29 in July 2022, and the interesting part was what it removed. Stability shoes had for decades relied on a medial post: a wedge of firmer foam on the inside of the midsole that a pronating foot compresses less than the softer foam around it, tilting the stride back toward neutral. The 29 replaced it with LITETRUSS, a support structure on the medial side that does the same job with less material, and the shoe came out roughly 10 grams lighter for it.
The midsole moved at the same time, to FF Blast Plus in the upper layer, softer and more energetic than the foam below it, so the shoe feels lively at push-off rather than simply controlled.
That combination turned out to be a transitional step. The following year's 30th version went further, introducing the 4D Guidance System, which adapts to how much a runner's foot rolls at different points in a run instead of applying a fixed correction, and swapped in PureGEL for softer landings. The 29 is the last of the Kayanos that braced rather than adapted.