ASICS Tarther RP 3 'Deep Ocean'
Colorway: Deep Ocean/White · Style code: 1011B465-400 · Release date: October 31, 2021 · Price: $2682 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: ASICS Tarther RP 3 'Black Blue' (1011B465-001) · ASICS Tarther RP 3 'White Diva Pink' (1011B465-100) · Asics Tarther RP 3 'Blue Coast Black' (1011B465-401) · ASICS Tarther RP 3 'Illuminate Mint' (1011B465-403) · ASICS Tarther RP 3 'Illusion Blue' (1011B465-404)
Tarther is one of the oldest names ASICS still uses, dating to the marathon racers Japanese runners wore in the 1980s; the word is usually explained as a contraction of tiger and racer. The line stayed largely domestic for decades, and when the brand reissued the Tarther Japan it was the first time that shoe had been sold outside Japan at all. The RP 3 is the modern training branch of that family rather than a heritage reissue. ASICS describes it as inheriting the Tarther character (a firm, direct feel that rewards pushing off) while being built for repeated training use, with an FF Blast midsole supplying the lightness and rebound. That puts it in an unusual spot in the current range: not a max-cushion trainer, not a plated racer, but the kind of firm, fast shoe that has largely disappeared elsewhere. Deep Ocean over white keeps the styling as spare as the ride.