“Brooks Announces NEW VARUS WEDGE and SOFT SUPPORT SYSTEM”
Some of the earliest running shoes with actual pronation control are featured in this rather old ad.
The Vantage, Vanguard, and Victor all featured the varus wedge system. It’s amazing to see to full foot contact philosophy returning to running after so long!
“Mortgage The House.”
New Balance decided they needed to justify the cost of the 1300 in this retro ad:
Hope you enjoyed the ad, leave a comment if you remember these! We just uncovered a wealth of old magazines we had in boxes so there should be many more ads to come!
“You’ll find our extremely breathable Weatherbeater suit really repellant”
Since it’s supposed to get chilly soon, maybe. What’s up with this weather? Anyway, here’s an ad for a waterproof jacket that New Balance fused with a technology called VersaTech.
Thanks for looking and have a great week!
“More run for the money.”
Our representative for Altra Running recently sent us an old ad for Saucony for the Gripper running shoe. It’s a really cool ad, check it out:
It’s not often that we get to see advertisements for a shoe this old, so it’s always enjoyable to find more of them!
It’s been several weeks since I’ve had time to post one of the retro ads, so my apologies to those of you who were disappointed in the lack of updates!
Without further ado, here is an ad for Turntec from 1985:
Jerry Turner had some pretty cool ideas for his time. Unfortunately, as I’ve been told, the company was not run efficiently and went belly up. Leave a comment!
“Still crazy after all these years.”
“The Nike Sock Racer. A serious racing flat with a full-length Nike-Air midsole. Definitely not for everyone.”
Without further ado, here is the ad:
More proof that “minimalism” is not a new idea! Today’s minimal shoes are basically the same thing as “racing flats” from decades ago. Anyway, leave a comment after the gap!
“Meeting The Earth On More Comfortable Terms.”
Another Brooks ad, but it includes three shoes. Interesting to see a couple of different models from the same era together in one ad.
“Argent, superior cushioning and patented support.”
“Chariot CC, premier stability with enhanced comfort features.”
“SuperNova, versatile performance with multi-surface outsole.”
Leave a comment after the gap!
“Stop taking abuse.”
An ad featuring the Road Warrior by Etonic. The new ZO2 sockliner and the anatomical heel cradle worked together to improve cushioning and stability.
Turntec wanted this shoe to protect runners from the abuse that they might feel while out running. Turntec didn’t pan out as a company, but I think that it was due to poor management rather than a sub-standard product. Leave a comment!
“No Ph.D. Required.”
The Nike V-series was a lineup of shoes for women including the Venue, Vengeance, and the Vortex.
The Venue was the most stable of the three, followed by the Vortex. The Vengeance was a lightweight cushioned shoe.
The Vortex was apparently the best of both worlds according to the ad print, and usually stability shoes work for a majority of runners so that makes sense.
Thanks for looking, and leave a comment!
“Some guys eat sneakers”
An ad touting the durability of the New Balance 850.
The 850 used carbon rubber, cordura for the upper, a high density footbed, and a strong heel counter to resist breakdown from runners who were hard on their shoes. Apparently runners in this era had a fair amount of trouble finding a shoe that would last; most buyers today are not overly concerned about durability since modern shoes rarely have that problem. Leave a comment!
