Oct 19, 2013 08:29 AM
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Review of Nike Air Max: What do you expect when you spend a bomb to buy a running shoe? That is lasts a while and gives you the protection you seek. Right? I thought that I was making an investment into my health when I purchased a Nike Air Max for an astronomical sum of Rs 9000/- on Feb 29, 2013 at Nike showroom in Kochi.
The salesman explained as to how this was better than the Adidas range of which I am a regular customer due to rugged build and durability. It was tough decision but the glossy design with air pockets did me in and I shelled out the sum of money which might be enough to run monthly expenses of a small family, or buy three pair of good quality running shoes.
This was my first Nike ever; a step up from Adidas, which usually has more affordable range for Indian customers. But I wanted to give the US company a chance this time and why not, when all the big names from NBA vouch for it. The shoe was fine and in fact provided much more running comfort than my Adidas shoe (worth Rs 6000) and I felt that I had made the right decision by switching to Nike. But like all good things, this happiness of mine had to come to an end too.
Last month, that’s about after 5 months of usage, when I was on a usual run on the road, one of the shoes developed an odd bounce like a stone had lodged under it. I stopped running and examined the bottom of the shoe and to my utter horror found the sole underneath the air pocket swollen like a big boil. On return to my place, a closer examination revealed a thorn in the shoe, which is a pretty normal occurrence in India. The thorn had pierced the sole and was in the air pocket thus blocking the air inside it and I assumed as the heat of the road must have swollen it. I removed the thorn with a pincer and the air escaped with a hiss and the shoe came to its normal dimension. But on squeezing the sole, air seemed to leak in and out of the air pocket, which was not the case with the other shoe. i.e. The air inside the sole is meant to be sealed tight. Now since this is an expensive shoe, I presumed that there must be some mechanism in the sole to auto-heal the small puncture and make it as good as new by the next day. But that wasn’t the case and the shoe with the puncture developed much more spring than the other one.
I decided to visit the local Nike showroom in Visakhapatnam, where I now reside. In the showroom, the salesgirl began to tell me the greatness of the Nike Airmax that was kept at the display. I finally revealed to her that the purpose of my visit was the ‘punctured’ shoe. She didn’t offer much help and neither did her manager who asked me to contact the company website. So here I am sharing with all potential owners of Nike Airmax, about the pitfalls of buying this shoe. The shoe now is unable to take a run more than few kilometers at which point it contorts and the heel squeezes in. The resulting imbalance is making my knee ache. I hope to hear from Nike soon. They are a reputed company and I am sure they will take this as a positive feedback.
