The inventive subject matter shown and described is directed to an item of footwear with a tensioning system, comprising: a shell for enclosing a foot and at least a portion of a lower leg; a pair of opposing edges generally aligned along the top of foot portion of the shell and/or a front lower leg portion, the edges generally aligning with a longitudinal axis of the foot and/or lower leg, the opposing edges defining opposite sides of the shell; a foot retraction system comprising a tension path and at least two anchor points disposed along the path on the opposite sides of the shell and supporting at least one tensionable cable section disposed along the path, at least one anchor point comprising a tensioning mechanism, the tensioning mechanism allowing for adjustable tensioning of the cable section, the anchor points being arranged on opposite sides of the shell that support the edges, at least one being on a lateral or medial side of a boot and not on the top of the foot and front of the lower leg, so that tensioning of the cable causes the opposing edges to converge together. The inventive subject matter is particularly suitable for use in boots for snow and skating sports or any other such sport where sliding movement of the foot or leg relative to the item of footwear is undesirable and where secure coupling of the item to the foot and leg facilitates transfer of power to a board, ski, skate blade, set of skate wheels, etc., that is coupled to the item.

A traction cleat applicable for use in field sports is provided with dynamic traction elements having larger radial thickness, cross-sectional area and mass than dynamic elements in golf shoe cleats. The strength of a locking arrangement for the cleat in a shoe-mounted receptacle is enhanced by providing an annular array of spaced locking stubs on the receptacle to engage a similar array of spaced locking posts on the cleat.

A footwear ornamentation assembly includes at least one insert and a plurality of design members that can be mounted on the insert or a flip-flop for decoration purposes. The at least one insert is releasably affixed on top of a flip-flop sole. The plurality of design members present different appearances. A method for decorating a flip-flop using the flip-flop ornamentation assembly includes selecting the at least one insert from a plurality of inserts, affixing the selected insert to a top of the flip-flop sole, selecting one or more design members from the plurality of design members, and mounting the selected one or more design members to the at least one of the selected insert and the flip-flop.

Shoes and/or shoe elements facilitate natural foot motion and/or reduce forces tending to fight natural foot motion. In at least some such structures, a wearer's heel is secured to the hindfoot region of a shoe (e.g., by a strap system) in a manner that permits heel/forefoot rotation and that allows the lower leg to remain straight. In other structures, a shoe can include a heel supporting component that is separate from a midsole component, and this heel supporting component can move toward the lateral side and/or medial side of the shoe along an interface between the heel supporting component and the midsole component. Other suitable shoe and shoe component structures also are described.

A sole structure for an article of footwear includes an upper layer comprised of a plate member and a lower layer comprised of a plurality of segmented portions separated by flexing regions. The flexing regions may comprise portions of a compressible material. The sole structure accommodates vertical bending and torsion, while limiting lateral bending.

According to the present invention, a convertible footwear apparatus can be worn as a shoe or converted to a boot by attaching or removing an upper section from the shoe. The apparatus is configured to allow someone wearing the shoe component to attach or remove the upper section with a single continuous operation and without having to remove the shoe component from the wearer's foot. In one embodiment of the invention, the apparatus comprises a zipper. In another embodiment of the invention, the shoe component includes a heel.

A footwear effects toning of the leg muscles. It includes two soles and a redress mechanism contained within each of the soles for redressing the positions of the soles, in order to adjust corresponding feet positions by toning the leg muscles. A shock absorbing pebble for use within the soles, includes an elastic membrane that deforms under pressure, and that defines two chambers that are connected by means of a gas permeable membrane. In a balanced position, the first chamber is filled with a mixture of gas along with fluid, and the second chamber is filled with gas. As an external force is applied to the membrane, gas molecules are forced into the second chamber, inflating it until equilibrium is achieved, thus dampening the external force.

The separate insole 2 with the, ventilation system is separately insertable in the shoe and the separate insole 2 has longitudinal grooves I downwards, which extend from the space of the heel to the space of the toe through bottom surface an elastic foam layer of the separate insole 2. The rear ends of the longitudinal grooves 1 have an air inlet in the space of the heel and the front ends of the longitudinal grooves 1 have an air outlet in the space of the toe. During step, the longitudinal grooves 1 are gradually compressed from the heel to the toe and air is forced from the longitudinal grooves 1 to the inner toe space of the shoe.

An apparatus that assists foot movement includes a normally twisted plate configured to interact with the foot. The foot has a pronation axis, and the normally twisted plate is biased and configured to twist about a plate axis that substantially approximates the pronation axis in response to a load received from the foot during foot pronation. As the foot pronates, the plate twists to apply a non-linear force substantially about the plate axis.

A cushioning member includes a first lattice structure and a second lattice structure. The first lattice structure includes a first network of struts and nodes with voids defined between the struts and nodes. The second lattice structure includes a second network of struts and nodes with voids defined between the struts and nodes. The first network of struts and nodes is interwoven with the second network of struts and nodes such that the first network of struts and nodes extends through the voids in the second network of struts and nodes.

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