i think it was etonic or maybe adidias (or both?)that sold a show with removable mid sle plugs so you could harden up the midsoe for "motion control" reasons.
also saucony made a high top running shoe in the late 70s that was dreadful looking.
i think it was etonic or maybe adidias (or both?)that sold a show with removable mid sle plugs so you could harden up the midsoe for "motion control" reasons.
also saucony made a high top running shoe in the late 70s that was dreadful looking.
1977- 78 nike LDV's
In the late 90s Nike release the Air Talaria. If the shoe got wet, the glue holding the outsole together would dissolve.
This one is bad, but boy has it lasted.
http://www.defynewyork.com/2010/06/11/you-think-your-shoessneakers-are-vintage-check-these-out/
redux wrote:
This one is bad, but boy has it lasted.
http://www.defynewyork.com/2010/06/11/you-think-your-shoessneakers-are-vintage-check-these-out/
Does the bird nest come with the shoes or is that extra?
Jimmy Carter running-
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/11/07/article-1226069-00EEBDD71000044C-535_468x472.jpg
http://cryptome.org/eyeball/prezsec/pict393.jpg
http://cryptome.org/eyeball/prezsec/pict388.jpg
Surprising that any presidents ran in public after those pics, but just for the hell of it, Clinton and Gore running-
http://i.huffpost.com/gen/387201/BILL-CLINTON-AL-GORE-SHORTS.jpg
and Bush-
http://www.runnersworld.com/images/cma/georgebush200x200.jpg
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/11/08/article-1226069-00D67E321000044C-68_148x395.jpg
(wearing Asics)
and Obama-
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/11/07/article-1226069-071F265E000005DC-72_224x423.jpg
(wearing Asics also)
[quote]michael t. smith wrote:
[quote]Sam in Berkeley wrote:
I'm usually not one to hate on any particular brand, but Spira was the only time I literally had to pull the shoes off mid-run and trot home barefoot.
The shoes are fantastically light and actually feel pretty nice when you step into them and even run in them. However, the midsole is so airy that the midsole collapsed in around the metal springs. So the metal began digging into the bottom of my foot. I was taking them out for a test run and halfway out it simply was too painful to continue, so I had to ditch them and huff it home.
It was only a couple miles, but I was in Denver in the winter, so I had to run barefoot across town in the snow and ice. Chilliest run through Wash Park ever.
Weren't these the shoes that ADVERTISED that they were BANNED from the Boston Marathon because of the unfair advantage to be gained from the springs?
------
Yes. Letsrun made a big huff of it all. But, I think in hindsight even Letsrun recognized that the 'banned' shoe press was encouraged by Spira. I'm sure it helped boost sales.
What's the quote? 'You don't read your newspaper clippings.. you weigh them.'
Surprising that any presidents ran in public after those pics, but just for the hell of it, Clinton and Gore running-
http://i.huffpost.com/gen/387201/BILL-CLINTON-AL-GORE-SHORTS.jpg
and Bush-
Supposedly Bush was a decent runner during his presidency. Stuart Bowen, who was on his staff and is now the inspector general, came in and spoke to my government class. He said that at Bush's ranch in Texas, he would invite his guests to run a three mile loop in the middle of the summer heat. If it was over 100 and they finished the run, he would award them with some certificate. Apparently, Bush routinely finished the loop in 20:xx or just under 20.
Respect!
great thread.
Been running since 1981. Certainly seen plenty of ideas that didn't work but were not complete disasters.
I would rate Shox and Reebok DMX as probably the worst technology I've experienced.
The most persistent concept (despite failures) seems to be the "customizable" midsole (Adidas LA trainer and another model in the mid-80s with "cassettes" that fit into the midsole), and more recently the Somnios.
Had a teammate in the mid 80s who ran in the Etonics with the energy plate in the midsole and the lacing system that wrapped around the ankle. Those things must have weighed around 18 oz, no joke.
Converse had some good models; the Lydiard Equinox was a good tempo trainer with a responsive midsole, their racing shoes were also OK. They had some flops though, one was called the Odyssey which was a huge straight lasted brick that had asymmetric lacing; another model that used elastic bands on the upper that supposedly secured your foot better; and the Phaeton which had these huge reinforcements to the heel counter that forced the shoe to torque your foot on footstrike much like the LDVs.
I remember the Etonics with the heel worn down, they were called the Allegro iirc. It obviously did not sell well and was ridiculed at the time, but I thought they made sense -- the beveled heel allowed midfoot strikers to move through the gait cycle quickly.
Colgate owned Etonic when they made the Allegro and gave my store several pair to try and I had everyone bring them back saying how bad they were and they were free. The negative heel made since but they were very hard and had no flexibility but the shoe I remember being the most different was made by Power. Power was started by Ralph Libananti who originally distributed Adidas in the East until Adidas decided to distribute their own shoes. Power developed a shoe that had the heel attached by a hinge and you could unhinge the heel and change the cushioning. They had 3 different pieces that you could put into the heel Soft, Med and Hard and made since but the shoe was very heavy but wore very well. They gave me a few pair to try and everyone liked them but the shoe never really made it.
NS wrote:
Anyone remember when Kangaroos made running shoes?
Sometime in the 70s-early 80s. They even had runners on the payroll. Kangaroos went so far as to pay U. of Oregon advertising money to put their name on the timer/scoreboard at Hayward Field. Unbelievable!
Ray wrote:
Also loved my Brooks Johnny Walkers. Didn't like that as soon as they got wet the blue dye in the brooks logo bled all over the white shoes and I had trouble getting the blue off my feet. They were a death sentence if you combined them with a dose of DNMSO.
Your age is showing, Ray. They were Brooks RT-1, assuming the RT stood for racing/training. Sir John George Walker is a middle distance running legend from New Zealand, not the rainbow-colored Scotch whisky.
There is no N in DMSO (di-methyl sulfoxide).
Piran wrote:
Anybody remember Ron Hill running shoes? I imagine they were only available in the UK, but they used to cost only around £10 a pair. They were pushing the minimalist theme to the limit well before it became fashionable. I had the red white and blue racing flat which was just tremendous (so maybe not relevant to the original theme of this thread)
I had a few pair of the green Ron Hill marathon shoes, world class something, and some blue ones. The Ron Hill shoes were the precursors of Reebok.
Funny that people have mentioned the Cantilever system a couple of times. If look at the bottom of almost any running shoe (Asics, Brooks, Saucony), they all use a form of the Cantilever. A cut-away outsole and suspended midsole in the heel for cushioning.
Behold the next generation of running shoe gimmick. I wonder how long this one will last, and they want 150 dollars for this?? whoa!
Nike Cesium. Lasted 2 models. It was a non-posted motion control shoe. Looked neat but a dud. The also had a quasi racing flat full length shox . WOW
This is suspicious.
http://www.mizunousa.com/running/feature/mizuno-wave-prophecy-running-shoes
I saw a couple of girls running in these at the park several weeks ago.
I asked them about for the name in order to google them when I got home.
The local store that sells them claims that they are good for:
[quote=local Kangoo outlet]•Up to 80% less impact while running
•A few minutes a day will reduce excess fat, manage body composition and improves muscle to fat ratio
•17-20% increase in oxygen uptake and calorie burn
•Improves resting metabolic rate (burning more calories after exercise)
•Increases endorphins, thus fighting depression and reduces mental stress
•Increase the mitochondria count within the muscle cells, essential for endurance
•Stimulates the lymphatic system: thus cleaning your cells, eliminating toxins, and strengthening your immune system
•Speeds up injury recovery by increasing oxygenation of tissues, strengthening ligaments and breaking down scar tissue
•Simultaneously trains all body muscles together
[/quote]
towhee26 wrote:
I saw a couple of girls running in these at the park several weeks ago.
http://www.kangoojumps.ch/I asked them about for the name in order to google them when I got home.
The local store that sells them claims that they are good for:
[quote=local Kangoo outlet]•Up to 80% less impact while running
•A few minutes a day will reduce excess fat, manage body composition and improves muscle to fat ratio
•17-20% increase in oxygen uptake and calorie burn
•Improves resting metabolic rate (burning more calories after exercise)
•Increases endorphins, thus fighting depression and reduces
mental stress
•Increase the mitochondria count within the muscle cells, essential for endurance
•Stimulates the lymphatic system: thus cleaning your cells, eliminating toxins, and strengthening your immune system
•Speeds up injury recovery by increasing oxygenation of tissues, strengthening ligaments and breaking down scar tissue
•Simultaneously trains all body muscles together
[/quote]
Just when I thought I had seen it all!!
The writer may be correct about the Converse cross country shoes he had, but in the early 60's Converse made an excellent cross country trainer with a running shoe profile, soft flex rubber racing-flat type sole and black canvas uppers --super lightweight. I run barefoot most of the time (since 1966), with a pair of cross country racers (Shays) as backup, and I have wanted a source for shoes like the old Converse as trainers for decades---they were that good! One of those "old guys" [Santa Barbara and Wilmington NC]
