Back in 2012, 16-year-old Matthew Walzer wrote a letter to Nike asking them to consider making a shoe that could be put on and secured with one hand.
The reason that Walzer took the time to personally write to Nike was because he lives with cerebral palsy which makes him unable to tie his own shoes.
Out of all the challenges I have overcome in my life, there is one that I am still trying to master, tying my shoes. Cerebral palsy stiffens the muscles in the body. As a result I have flexibility in only one of my hands which makes it impossible for me to tie my shoes. My dream is to go to the college of my choice without having to worry about someone coming to tie my shoes everyday.
The letter gained a ton of attention and Nike asked Tobie Hatfield to make a sneaker for the young man.
Hatfield got in touch with Walzer and the two worked together to design a sneaker that would specifically fit Matthew’s needs. Now, the evolution of their design is going to be available for everyone. Called Nike Flyease, the technology features a zipper that wraps along the heel of the shoe so that they can be put on and secured without full dexterity in one’s hands.
It’s an amazing technology born out of an even more amazing story. The first shoe to incorporate Flyease will be a version of LeBron James’s team sneaker line, the Nike Zoom Soldier 8. That will be available for purchase on July 16th.
Sole Collector was able to conduct interviews with both Hatfield and Walzer where the two talk about how Nike Flyease came into being. It is an awesome feature and well worth checking out HERE.
