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Bowling shoes go haute couture? Well, trendy at least
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By Lydia Erickson
October 31, 2005 | Bowling shoes
have become a fashion trend among young adults
in recent years. The growing interest in the sport
has helped spawn the late popularity of this unique
style of footwear. The sport dates to 5200 B.C.
and was practiced by the ancient Egyptians. Today
it is one of the most popular recreational activities
in Logan.
Have you ever wondered how many other feet have
occupied the same rental shoe you were wearing
while bowling? Logan Lanes manager Chad Rawlins
said any given pair is worn about two to three
times per day and each pair has a life span of
about four and a half to five years. This means
each pair can be worn up to 5,500 times.
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THE LINEUP:
Shoes at Logan Lanes. /
Photo by Lydia Erickson |
Rental shoes are meant to withstand rough treatment
and are made with genuine full-grain leather uppers,
foam padded sock liners and rubber heels built to last
game after game.
Rawlins said once the shoes start to look tattered
and worn the employees go through and try to salvage
as many as they can to be repaired and then eventually
resold. People do buy bowling shoes just to wear around
as a part of their everyday attire. This fad was a lot
more popular a few years ago and in fact hurt the bowling
industry tremendously.
When bowling shoes became fashionable, back in 2001-02,
the style hit the stores with enthusiastic approval
from consumers. Some opted for a more authentic shoe.
An average of a dozen pair per alley were stolen a week.
The main target was women sizes 7 and 8 and men sizes
11 and 12. When asked what made the bowling shoe such
a fad, Rawlins said, "the style is different, the design
is intriguing, and the slick bottom makes this a different
type of traction than any other shoe out there."
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Bob Rehringer is a photojournalist and says rental
bowling shoes are the most identifiable form of
footwear ever created. A popular site for
people still keeping the fad alive is Zappos, and is
thought of as the most popular online shoe store.
Zappos offers a complete selection of shoe styles
from each brand in every size, width and color
making the shopping experience more pleasurable,
this site has more customer reviews on shoes than
any other site.
Many people love the fashion while others think
it should have been kept strictly on the alley.
Kirstyn Draper, an interior design major at Utah
State, said, "I think they are too distracting,
shoes should be simple and complimentary."
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THE CLASSIC
LOOK: Bowling shoes at the Logan Lanes
have that 1950s look and feel. / Photo by
Lydia Erickson |
Amanda Petersen, an apparel and textiles major at Utah
State agreed with Draper and said, "It's weird, who
decided to make bowling shoes popular outside of an
alley when I don't even want to wear them in an alley."
No matter what your stance is on wearing bowling shoes
in public you can be sure that an unconventional idea
will be turned in to popular fashion again and again.
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