Bill Bowerman Waffle Iron Shoes

Invented by and handmade by the legendary University of Oregon and U.S. Olympic Coach and Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman on his wife Barbara’s waffle iron.

The Holy Grail of running shoe collecting, these shoes are the foundation of the Nike Company.

It is from waffle soles that the term 'moonshoes' originated, when a Nike employee recognized the similarity between Bowerman's design and the footprints that the 1969 astronauts left on the moon's suface.

This pair was made for the Oregon Track Club’s 1971 AAU Cross Country Championship race, the first race known in which Bowerman waffle sole shoes were worn.

Identified by Dennis Vixie, Geoff Hollister, Nelson Farris, and Art Coolidge as authentic Bill Bowerman waffle iron shoes.