The Nike GO FlyEase is an ingenious design for accessible hands-free sneakers that you can slip on and off. They'll sell for $120.
"Usually I spend so much time to get in my shoes," says champion wheelchair fencer Bebe Vio. "With the Nike GO FlyEase, I just need to put my feet in and jump on it. The shoes are a new kind of technology, not only for adaptive athletes but for everyone's real life."
From the New York Post:
The sneaker was dreamed up by Matthew Walzer in 2012, then 16. Walzer, who has cerebral palsy and cannot get dressed the same way most do, wrote to Nike with a plea.
"Out of all the challenges I have overcome in my life, there is one that I am still trying to master, tying my shoes," he said in that 2012 letter, according to Good News Movement whose video-collage on social media has been viewed 1.1 million times.
"Cerebral palsy stiffens the muscles in the body," Walzer explained. "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."
Nike then invited Walzer to consult on a design to match his request, and worked alongside sneaker guru Tobie Hatfield, the legendary designer who created many landmark Nike models, including the Presto and the FlyKnit.
(Thanks, Bob Pescovitz!)
