Sports shoes to use 'Superball' technology

Lexington, Massachusetts - A new sports shoe launching in the US today uses the 'superball' technology made famous in the classic childrens' toy. Stride rite says its SuperBall footwear line is the first ever to incorporate authentic SuperBall Zectron technology.

Barely bigger than a cherry, the original superball was the fortunate accident of California chemist Norman Stingley, who in his spare time was experimenting with the effects of pressure on synthetic rubber.

As Stingley learned (to the delight of children everywhere), when you compress rubber under 3500 pounds of pressure (1.7 bar) , you get a supercharged ball with unprecedented resilience. And thus was born Zectron technology and the now famous, “SuperBall” commercialised by Wham-O. Within six months, the company sold 7 million of these high-bouncing balls. Today, over forty years later, the SuperBall remains a popular toy for kids around the world.

According to the manufacturer, these shoes do not use just four superballs; they "also feature highly responsive, multidirectional traction lugs on the sole to keep kids “on their feet” no matter how fast those feet are going. The upper is constructed using “high-frequency” welding for lightweight durability. Finally, they are fashionable with three different styles: Lace, Hook & Loop and Z Strap so there is a fit for every foot. And with great color stories like silver /creamsicle for girls and royal/silver for boys, kids can have a SuperBall shoe to match every outfit."

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Press release from Stride Rite