New Balance

After dabbling in walking/​jogging/​running for a few months I decided I needed some real running shoes. I went to the mall and tried on lots of kicks until I found the lil ol New Balance store.
The gentleman who helped me asked me a few questions about how many miles I ran/​planned on running. He was impressed with my running induced (then) 40 lb weight loss and the flattery was definitely going to make coughing up over $ 100 for shoes easier.
He did an intense evaluation on my feet complete with ink paper and analysis of arches and observation of step patterns that all resulted in me having pretty normal feet. That said he brought out 2 shoes for me to try and let me walk around the food court in them for nearly 45 minutes until I decided which shoe to get and which size.
I felt bad because at one point he was putting the shoes on my feet and my foot slipped accidentally kicking him in his baby maker. .. I was mortified but he told me don’t worry it happens quite often.
Let me get this straight. .. Periodically during his career as a shoe salesmen (think Al Bundy) he.. literally.. gets kicked in the balls.. .
Wow not only did I get a kick ass pair of running shoes that have lasted me almost a year.. . but I realized that someone has a worse job than me.
That my friends, is a 5 star experience.

Today I purchased my first pair of New Balance shoes from the store at Tuttle Crossing. I was impressed by the level of personalized customer care I received in choosing my new shoes. The selection of shoe styles wasn’t as wide as I had envisioned, but NB seems to be more about quality than quantity.
What I was after was a pair of good walking shoes with just enough support to cushion my heels and (arthritic) toes, but not so much that the insole put pressure on my sensitive arches. Danielle, my sales associate, listened to my concerns, asked questions, and employed two different methods to measure my feet. First, I was asked to step on a pad which took an inked impression of each foot. (So cool!) Danielle then «diagnosed» my stride and arch level.
After that, she measured both of my feet. I was surprised to discover that my left foot is a full half-​size larger than my right! The associate showed me how to make a special kind of knot in my laces that could help compensate for the difference in foot length. The «runners knot,» she explained, offers more stability. I wasn’t expecting to learn a new way to tie my shoes– pretty neat!
Danielle brought me three different shoe styles to try on, along with some insoles. She did not try to pressure me or influence my decision in any way, other than to point out that «you can walk in a running shoe, but you can’t run in a walking shoe,» which makes sense because the support needed is different.
I ended up choosing the WW846 (
), a lighter-​weight walking shoe with mesh incorporated into the uppers. They are exceptionally comfortable even without the Pressure Relief memory foam insoles I purchased with them. Additionally, the style I chose was available in a pink-​and-​white color scheme, 10% of the proceeds of which would go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation (Click here for information on NB’s partnership with the charity:
) I don’t go out of my way to buy «pink,» but when I have the choice of two otherwise identical items, it’s nice to feel I’m contributing to a good cause.
Why not 5 stars? Well, I’d give 4.5 if I could. The shoes are expensive, and the colors and styles are somewhat limited. It would have been nice to find walking shoes in a base color other than white. Accessories such as socks and inserts are of high quality, but overpriced (in my opinion.)
Bottom line: If you don’t mind spending around $ 150 for a pair of excellent-​quality walking or running shoes guaranteed to fit well, then New Balance is for you. If you’re looking for something cheaper, and you’d rather do the choosing unassisted, then by all means shop elsewhere. This is definitely a specialty store geared towards a specific market niche of which I happen to be a part.

Their apparel is modern and good for workouts, but the shoes, unlike the New Balance you find at Kohl’s, are American made, why not help the family of American workers rather than some Malaysian 8 year old making 35 cents a day. The 1906 is the best running shoe I’ve ever worn and will carry me through my first marathon this year.

New Balance makes the best running shoes known to man. While the «top» shoes companies were busy wasting megamillions a year on superstar athletes to «drive the brand,» New Balance has been focusing their resources on making quality running shoes. A friend’s father is an ultramarathon runner and in high school we would always make fun of his ugly NewB’s, but he would log 50 miles a week on those NewB’s.
I’ve now purchased four pairs of NewB’s and have never worn out a pair. Some have met untimely early departures (thrown in lake when skinny dipping… thrown out by a roommate while cleaning) but the other two pairs still see regular wear.
The New Balance store has the stock of what you want. From the high end Rolls Royce’s of running to the dozens of colors in the lower end stuff, it’s there. Can’t really say anything about the apparel, but the shoes are worth their weight in gold, or even gas for that matter…

New Balance. What a great, strong name for a shoe, don’t ya think? I love these sneakers more than any other sneakers in the land! They are the best. I haven’t had another brand of shoes since 1997 and I don’t intend to be deterred easily. I am most happy with my aptly named sneakers and even thought they deserved a whole review.
Now onto the store…
If you’re a fan of New Balance, here you’ll find every color combination, every style and in every size. These shoes just get better with age and the geniuses that make them seem to impress even the toughest of critics year after year.