
Why are modern sneakers so ugly? - swombat
http://www.37signals.com/svn/posts/1151-why-are-modern-sneakers-so-ugly
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hugh
They're ugly because the market which was once (in, say, the 1980s) the
"sneaker" market has segmented into two markets: casual sneakers, whose
purpose is to look cool, and serious exercise shoes, whose purpose is
exercise.

Serious exercise shoes need to be ugly to distinguish themselves from all-
purpose sneakers.

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wumi
do you also complain about how ugly 'modern' computers are? How bout emacs?

No. He's right, it is more about function than form.

as a runner, you don't really care how they look (unless you're on the cover
of Runner's World you ain't gonna look pretty anyways), but rather how they
are built.

honey combed webbing? for breathability . metallic silver? reflectors so you
don't get run over by that guy in his F-150 who 'didn't' see you, or maybe
that lady obsessively talking on her cell phone.

'gel-ified?' gel in the soles to help the shoes endure the punishment a real
runner will give them.

shiny gold? see: metallic silver

Do these shoes correct the flat-footed stride that I have? Do they correct the
over-pronation of my ankles? Will they endure 100-mile weeks while I train for
a marathon? Do they have enough padding and support because I'm overweight?

go take your 'stan smiths' and run 5 miles and come back when your calves are
shot to hell and flinders. would be better off running bare feet than in those
junkers.

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bouncingsoul
_go take your 'stan smiths' and run 5 miles and come back when your calves are
shot to hell and flinders. would be better off running bare feet than in those
junkers._

He said he preferred the look.

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menloparkbum
This is a weak post. There are literally thousands of sneaker variants
available these days. He didn't have to buy the ugliest model. Also, if you
actually run, your shoes get stankdified and munged up very quickly making
them a poor choice for occasions where tasteful footwear might be important.

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attack
> I’d prefer the minimalist look of a pair of Stan Smiths

Those are very ugly shoes.

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aston
Why is MySpace so ugly? Because your tastes are not those of the majority.

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bdotdub
Wait, are you saying MySpace is not ugly? Number of users/Popularity != Site
Not Ugly.

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yummyfajitas
In somewhat more surprising news, a man actually notices and cares about the
appearance of his running shoes.

