Azura and Aya- Saucony’s Underrated Icons Are Back

Thanks to a bevy of slick retro releases and coveted collaborative endeavours, classics like the Jazz, Shadow, Courageous, and GRID lineup have been well-represented over the years as Saucony have delved into their archives again and again. Check the shelves and you’re likely to find some or all of the aforementioned 80s and 90s go-tos.

Despite all of those old school bringbacks, there are still a number of beloved Saucony icons that haven’t seen the light of day. Thankfully, however, that’s finally been rectified in 2019 with the welcome return of a couple of all-timers: 1988’s Azura and 1994’s Aya.

Azura: Dedicated to Those Tired of Hype and Hot Air

Thanks in large part to their partnership with renowned Boston sports podiatrist Dr. Frank Santopietro, Saucony built a reputation throughout the 1980s as a brand dedicated to design-driven comfort. The 1981 instant-classic Jazz, and successors like the DXN, Shadow, Freedom Trainer and Courageous, were the driving force behind the formation of this reputation. Then, in 1988, Saucony’s focus on comfort lifted to a whole new level thanks to the top-of-the-line Azura. 

Headed up by the tagline ‘No Artificial Ingredients’ and ‘dedicated to people tired of hype and hot air’ (shots fired!), the Azura was the absolute pinnacle of high-performance runners at the time of its release. Built atop the brand’s tried and true combo of compression-moulded EVA with a triangular lug rubber outsole, the Azura incorporated stretch-resistant mesh on the upper for durability, and was highlighted by two major pieces of proprietary tech: the Torsional Rigidity Bar (TRB) and Stabil Wrap. Built from aviation- and Formula 1-sourced Kevlar, the TRB was placed in the midfoot to provide support and disperse shock, as well as increase energy return – thus, it set the stage for many of today’s modern runners over three decades ago! As for the Stabil Wrap, it extended laterally to the forefoot to reinforce the lightweight upper. Last but not least was a bold tri-coloured logo and gorgeous colour combos to highlight all of that tech.

The result was the perfect blend of high-performance construction and late 80s flair – and a shoe that laid the groundwork for 1994’s fleet-footed Aya.

Aya: For the Fleet of Feet That Want to Fly

The Azura was all about lightweight, high performance running when it dropped in 1988, and the Aya followed the exact same route six years later. If the Azura had a true successor in the 1990s, it would have been the Aya.

Hebrew for ‘fly swiftly’, the Aya took the cushioning of the Azura and its GRID successors up a notch with a combination of moulded EVA foam and the Ionic system, which employed moulded triangular pillars at the rear of the midsole to provide additional cushioning for heel strikes. ‘Radical Decelerators’ and Stytherm counters also hit the heels, while Saucony’s patented triangular lug tread was even revised and rebuilt with a two-part pattern of durable XT-600 carbon rubber. Finally, multiple sets of eyelets provided a multitude of lacing options, and were coupled with thin toggle-assisted rope laces to offer the perfect fit.

‘For the fleet of feet that want to fly’, the Aya wasn’t just a top-of-the-line road racer, but a versatile trainer that was perfect for just about anything. In fact, Australian great Greg Welch wore the Aya on his way to Ironman glory in Kona, Hawaii in 1994. 

While you probably won’t duplicate Welch’s inrecdible feat of endurance and speed in the Azura and Aya retros, you can still channel that late-80s and early-90s perfection with the faithful remakes of the underrated classics.

Saucony lovers can scoop up the latest retro editions of both the Azura and the Aya from SneakerHub, while stocks last.