The Nike Lance Shoe And Why Some Won't Buy It

Triathlon Forum
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Bad news to University of Arkansas, Oklahoma, OSU or LSU grads—who are road bikers—wanting to buy the “Lance Shoe.” Its a good shoe. Its expensive. But even if we are as rich as Daddy Warbucks, it’s simply a no go, because Nike has put that dreadful image of a Texas flag on it and ran us all off from it. For some of us, it would be like Osama Bin Laden riding a US Postal bike.

I’m not putting it anywhere near my feet.

However, we can debate whether some of us would be offended by it instead being placed on the heel or bottom of the shoe. I think we would not mind if the Texas flag were put on the heel, because it would be enjoyable to step on and scuff up. But to see it on every cycle and spin, is just terrifying, much like the almost catatonic reaction we had when Lance put a Longhorn football helmet on his son, Luke, before a televised national football game a few years ago.

That poor kid.

Hell, Tibbs is a longhorn fan.

We can only surmise that something close to this discussion took place at Nike HQ, over the “Lance Bike Shoe.”

Marketing Nike Guy: “Are you sure about putting that Texas flag on the front flap of the shoe? It may alienate the Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Lousiana people who despise Texas, most particularly, Oklahoma Sooner graduates?”

Nike VP Guy: “Yeah, what are we talking about there? About 16 people who might not buy the show over that, down there?”

Marketing Nike Guy: “Yeah.”

No self respecting graduate of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and biker would dare wear that damned, infernal thing, because of that strap. And frankly I find the whole thing a slap in the face to us Texas haters.

http://penncycle.com/site/images/library/large/nike_78927_04_m.jpg

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I wouldn’t have even known it was a Texas flag. I would have just thought of the USA. Sorry, guess I must be ignorant.

Aloha,

Larry

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The eyes of Texas are upon you all the live long day…

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"The stars at night, are big and bright, (clap clap clap clap)

deeeep in the hearrrrt of Texas’

LOL

Mark
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Yeah. Exactly. See?

They have a song in which they sing and rejoice in wanting to spy on you all day long. Think about that for a minute or so.

Wait until they take over Louis Garneau, and you guys will be hitting search here: “boothrand, Texas, Bike shoes, End Of The World.”

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Married a Californian, live in SoCal. Born and raised in Texas. Never was a Longhorn fan, though. Just thought I’d throw in their song for your benefit.

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You Oakies are different. IMO, the biggest world’s embarrassment to Texas is GWB. Lance is the state embassador.

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You don’t need to be from Arkansas or Okie to not want to wear this shoe. I live in California and wouldn’t be caught dead with lonestar shoes on (no disrespect to our fine Texan colleagues intended). Seems like a dumb marketing move.

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Just curious to know if your moniker is taken from the Grateful Dead song, “Dire Wolf?”
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Remember the Alamo.

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I always think it ironic how people like to hate Texas when its usually a case of jealousy or “little man” syndrome. I am hoping that the post is meant to be humorous, but the fact is that he grew up in Plano and calls Austin home. Everyone that is a hater…deal with it.

Anyway, didn’t Gyro make the Pneumo in a Lance edition and a regular? Is this the only version of the shoe? I guess if someone from OKC wins the tour 6 times we will get to purchase a shoe with an Oklahoma flag on it, but until then, you will have to look at that nice big Lone Star on the flap of all of your “Lance Clones”.

I love Texas

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"Just curious to know if your moniker is taken from the Grateful Dead song, “Dire Wolf?”

yep
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Hey you Texas types, a question. Does Texas have the world’s biggest midgets or smallest?

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I wouldn’t buy it because it isn’t a tri shoe.

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Giro made a “lone star edition” of the top of the line, Atmos I think it is. It was normally like $200, about a $50 premium over the others, but all of the 2004 Atmos were on sale for the same price when I shopped helmets. Even though I lived in Texas for a long time, I couldn’t think of a reason why I would want it on my helmet…even if it is a so called “limited edition”…which means limited to as many people as there are who are willing to pay $50 extra for it I guess. My carbon gray and yellow is much more awesome looking :-).

I’m waiting for the closeout on USPS jerseys and bibs. Maybe a collectors edition 20 years from now.

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said the Canadian?

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Why some of you get fixated on saving 20-25 seconds getting in and out of bike shoes in T1 or T2 defies my imagination, if you think and stop for one moment and contemplate you have to ride, after that, 60-100 miles on the bike which may take you an hour or more to complete. The whole drama about using a “tri shoe,” as opposed to a bike shoe, to whip people’s ass into submission over 30 seconds, is simply insane.

The presumption here is that you are some kind of steady state machine, like a Borg Unit, or something.

I would submit to you that that is not the case, with anyone.

I have never ridden a bike for 50 miles or more, looked at my watch, been upset about the slowness of the time, and then blamed circumstances occuring in my first 20 yards an hour before, when I hopped on the bike, or how long it took me to hop on my bike. Too much shit has happened since then!

That 20-25 seconds amount of time you gained in a “tri shoe”, is probably offset 89 times later by slowing down for various reasons on the course, grabbing a water bottle or whatever. It could be from you hitting or skidding on a rock in the highway or road. Maybe you quit pedaling hard because you daydreamed for 12 seconds, 17 times. Multiply 17 x 12, and there goes your tri shoes stuff.

Who freaking knows?

You may even lose all of those 30 seconds you gained in the tri shoe, at the first bottleneck right after T2 or T1, waiting on other bikers in front of you, to “settle” out.

In sprints and shorter distances, you may have a better point. Do Tri Bike shoes really, really even make that much of dent in 17 to 30 mile bike legs, either. I would bet, probably not, at least for most of us BOPers.

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Wrong Booth. It is very important.

I have won outright races by 6 seconds and 18 seconds both because I had a faster T1 than the second place guy.

What I fail to understand is why guys who are competing for top spots don’t pre clip their shoes at T1 and take their shoes off before dismounting at T2. I’m glad they don’t but I don’t understand it.

For an Ironman it doesn’t matter all that much and at a lot of them they don’t even allow you to pre clip. But if it saves me 25 seconds I’ll take it. You never know. How many people have posted on this forum that they missed a Kona spot by the slimmest of margins.

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cerveloguy,

Sorry Booth to hijack your thread, but I just can’t let, “IMO, the biggest world’s embarrassment to Texas is GWB” go without responding.

Evidently you, cerveloguy, believe that the “higher” road would be the Spanish appproach. Do what we tell you to do and you’ll be safe until we “hit” you again because we now know you are weak and will bend to our demands.

I’m waiting to see what the Canadians do when you are attacked, for whatever the reason, and who you will ask to help you defend your nation. I, for one , remember how the Canadian government basically turned their back to us when we elected to “strike back” and take the declared war on us to our enemies’ door step.

Yes, Winston Churchill was a “fool” and a war mongerer for all the lies and inciteful things he said and maintained before Hitler started invading Europe. It was Neville Chamberlain who knew better. Too bad NC passed away in 1940 and missed living through 1945. I wonder if he still would have believed that Churchill was wrong and a fool?

When our declared enemies decide they have paid too high a price for “messing” with us, and begin to choose others they perceive as weaker and less capable of striking back, do you really think that the decadent western lifestyle that the Canadian nation enjoys will escape from OSM and al-Qaeda? Or is it that there are already too many Islamic radicals living in your country that you cannot risk upsetting them for fear they may react? Who does that make a hostage?

That’s good, sleerer cells, they’re already implanted and ready to act when called upon. Smart!

Okay, Booth, I’ll pipe down, and you can have your thread back again. Again, my apologies. I just couldn’t help myself.

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“Patriotism is a virtue of the vicious.” – Oscar Wilde

(read: just ride your f’ bike)
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