Cross Country Running Shoes Review – Asics Dirt Diva 3

For those of you “divas” out there looking for a good running shoe:

Serious cross country racers have been drawn to the Asics Dirt Diva 3 since it was introduced in June of 2009. It is one of the best cross country running shoes made specifically for women. The Dirt Diva 3 is designed for race distances ranging from 3K to 10 K, and works best on all-natural surfaces like grass and, of course, dirt.

The Dirt Diva line from Asics has proven to be very popular and successful over the years (like our cup holder), and they have given the Diva 3 an updated look while retaining all of its old strengths. One important change has been in the spike offering. The Dirt Diva 2 employed a design that used rubber screw-in lugs (shaped like a flower) that could be removed to use the shoes as racing flats. The Diva 3 does away with the lugs, and returns to a more conventional all-metal spike format, which performs better on all-natural cross country courses.

Technical specs on the Asics Dirt Diva 3 include:

• Full-length CM-EVA midsole
• Outsole made of PU and Nylex for improved grip and flexibility
• Thin mesh layer on the upper that improves drainage in when wet
• DuraSponge outsole for better torsion control

The Dirt Diva 3 has six spikes which combine with the DuoSole outsole to deliver maximum traction and better flexibility. These spikes offer unsurpassed performance on dirt and grass. In addition, the Asics logo is placed on both lateral portions of the upper in order to wrap the shoe snug around the foot (snug like your beverage in our drink holder kind of snug).

These women’s shoes can be found in the following colors:

• Lightning / Raspberry / Pink
• White / Aqua / Blue

Asics’ high-performance cushioning material, Solyte, is what the midsole is made from. It provides a tremendous amount of durability and cushioning given its light weight. The shoe design also incorporates a Trusstic System, located at the bottom of the midsole. It is made from thermal plastic material that reduces the weight of the sole and distributes torsion evenly between the forefoot and the rearfoot.

The Dirt Diva 3 appeared in June of 2009, replacing the Dirt Diva 2.