NEWS : TECH (NFPC)

'Minty Fresh' Shoes Cool Your Sweaty Feet

Intense physical activity causes feet to sweat. But now a shoe infused with a common sugar substitute could use that sweat to refresh and cooling your feet.

The Louis Garneau Carbon Pro Team shoes, designed for cycling, use a the sweetner xylitol, more commonly found in gum and toothpaste, to make your feet feel cool even during a heavy workout. Xylitol is an alcohol-based sugar, so when it comes into contact with moister, it evaporates.

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Normally, this aspect of xylitol gives gum and toothpaste a minty cooling sensation. But when used in shoes, it cools the feet. In the last several years, several companies have experimented with putting it into fabric, such as cooler sleeves for your arms. In this case, Louis Garneau put the xylitol in the soles. Ordinarily that would make it more difficult for the xylitol to work because of the lack of air movement. But the company designed the shoes with a lot of extra ventilation to improve the airflow.

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The shoes can be yours for a “cool” $329. There’s no word on whether they help with foot odor, though.

Image: Louis Garneau

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Trail-Friendly Shoe Zips Into Itself

 

Timberland Men’s Radler Trail Camp: $65.00

Going on outdoor excursions can pose a problem when it comes to packing, gear can take up lots of space in a pack, leaving little room for extra items. Timberland’s Radler Trail Camp shoes zip into themselves to halve their size and can be attached to the outside of a pack with a carabiner. The lightweight shoes keep feet protected from the elements are made of water resistant ripstop fabric and contain a removable fleece-lined footbed.

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The outsole is made of 42 percent recycled rubber that should provide some pretty good traction control. The only thing missing from this shoe package is some sort of bag to hold both shoes in one place, or a way to fold them into each other, then zip up. Other than that, they seem like a good way to maximize space during a camping trip or any kind of travel.

Credit: Timberland

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Back to the Future Replica Nikes Selling on eBay

2011 Nike Mag: Prices vary by auction

After logging thousands of creative hours the past six years, Air Jordans designer Tinker Hatfield and footwear innovator Tiffany Beers have produced their masterpiece: The 2011 Nike Mag. This shoe may not be what you want for the court or working out or heavy cross-training -- ah, but it does happen to be a perfect replica of the electroluminescent "Nike Air 2015 Kicks" worn by Marty McFly in Back to the Future II.

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From September 8th to 18th, a total of 1,500 pairs sized 7 to 13 will be auctioned on eBay. Some of the initial pairs supposedly fetched five figures. That's good news for Parkinson's Research. Because not only will all the proceeds benefit The Michael J. Fox Foundation; but they'll be matched dollar for dollar as part of the Brin Wojcicki Challenge set by Google co-founder Sergey Brin and his wife Anne Wojcicki, co-founder of personal genetics company 23andMe. In case you're wondering about the Air Mag's 2011 distinction, according to a recent interview of the shoe's creators by Marcus Troy, "To preserve the value of what people will spend for these shoes and the money that will [go to charity], we're not going to re-release this shoe and we're not going to commercialize it any further. So bid now while you can on a true piece of...future...history.

Credit: Nike

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Geeky 'Sandals' Are Made from PC Motherboards

Data Sandals: $350

There are many ways to express your inner geek, but it's hard to imagine one that will win you more admiration from your peers than these handcrafted Data Sandals. Fashioned from a variety of computer components, they're also the ideal gift for the uber geek who has everything.

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Computer motherboards, ribbon wire and a host of other electronic components all unite as one in these Data Sandals, which are the creation of New Jersey art studio PCB Creations. They're cool, they're highly detailed and they're one of a kind; the only thing they're really not is wearable. Display them, gently fondle them or stare at them in awe -- just don't put them on.

[Via Gizmodiva]

Credit: PCB Creations

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Running Barefoot Better than Running with Shoes

If you're thinking about taking up running to burn off those holiday pounds, you might want to set aside the running shoes. A study published in American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation reports that average running shoes mess up your hips, knees and ankles more than running barefoot or even running in high heels! 

Here's why: When you run barefoot, you naturally run on the balls of your feet. That allows your foot and ankle to absorb the shock. But when you wear running shoes, the cushioned support forces the heel to strike the ground first. The shock not absorbed by the shoe gets transmitted to the ankles, knees and hips. Hello joint and cartilage damage.

The scientists report: "Increased joint torques at the hip, knee, and ankle were observed with running shoes compared with running barefoot. Disproportionately large increases were observed in the hip internal rotation torque and in the knee flexion and knee varus torques."

• An average 54 percent increase in the hip internal rotation torque
• A 36 percent increase in knee flexion torque
• A 38 percent increase in knee varus torque were measured when running in running shoes compared with barefoot

Running barefoot is not as crazy as it sounds. There's been a big movement in recent years to go footloose and fancy shoe free, sparked in part by Christopher Mcdougall, who wrote Born to Run. Here's a nice article from Runner's World that gives some insight into whether you should be running sans shoes or not.

AP Photo/Frank Augstein