Shoe Exploration

Shoe Upgrades

Added a shoe tag at the end of my running shoes to assist me when putting them on. The picture on the right shows the before and after. This was a great quick project to demystify shoes and add upgrades to the shoes.

Upgraded a newer pair of shoes to have the BOA retracting capabilities. I normally switch between tight running mode and loose relaxed mode. BOA clicking mechanisms help me do that super quickly and without needing to worry about laces coming loose. I have worn these for a year and there has been no issue. People have brought up BOA mechanisms can break but their experience is from snow boarding gear, that to my opinion, has really high forces and would see high impacts to damage them. With normal use these seem quite rugged.

Tear Down

Purchased some cheap used shoes and cut them apart to understand the patterning and layering. Again another step to understanding the makeup of a shoe. Some portions are sewn, some are glued, and other parts welded together. I think its a combination of manufacturing and design.