Nike Inc.’s latest running shoe got its start when designers tried to solve a long-standing request from athletes: make shoes as comfortable as socks.

“We think a lot about what-ifs,” said Ben Shaffer, studio director of Nike’s so-called innovation kitchen. “This was a what-if. What if we made sock shoes?”

Nike had tried bringing sock attributes to shoes before, starting in the 1980s with a flimsy mesh sneaker called the Sock Racer. More attempts followed, and while offering comfort, they were insufficiently durable for running and other sports.

The world’s largest sporting-goods maker now says it has the solution with Flyknit, a 5.6-ounce running shoe made from synthetic yarn woven together by a knitting machine. Besides giving Nike an edge in the fast-growing lightweight running category, executives say the new weaving process could cut costs enough to move production outside Asia and one day allow anyone to personalize shoes to their exact specifications.

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Scott Huffman (Track & Field) 1984-88
Native Kansan Scott Huffman may have been from the small town of Quinter, but he was destined to make a name for himself on a big stage. That stage proved to be the 1996 Summer Olympics, where he finished 13^th in the pole vault. Before entering international competition, Huffman stared at KU, where he was a two-time All-American and Big 8 Conference champion. He also held the American pole vaulting record for two years following his collegiate career. After retiring from competition in 1998, Huffman began a career in pharmaceutical sales, where he continues to work for a Sanofi Pharmaceuticals in the Kansas City area.

What was your favorite part about being a student athlete at KU?
“I would say being able to compete at a Division I school, because as a farm kid from Kansas, getting to move up to a big D1 stage was awesome. I never thought I would end up competing at a school like Kansas.”

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Extending a banner year for Harvard’s athletics, the men’s and women’s track and field teams have been breaking University records left and right. With their season running through May and ending with Olympic tryouts in early June, these runners, long jumpers, and weight throwers show no sign of slowing down.

German-born pole-vaulter Nico Weiler ’13 set a school record on Feb. 11 at a meet against Yale and Princeton by clearing 17′ 4.5″ (5.30m). “My brother started pole vaulting at 14. I’m three years younger than him, so I was about 11 when I started,” said Weiler. “As a little kid, jumping over things is always fun.”

Pole-vaulter Allie Pace ’14 took home second place at the meet, but set a school record, clearing 12′ 9.5″ (3.90m). The Chicago native said she sometimes gets a bit nervous before performing. “It’s a very mental event. The more scared you are, the likelier you are to get hurt,” said Pace. “But I overcome any mental instabilities by repeating a mantra before jumping: ‘I am fast. I am furious. I can do this.’ ”

Success was just what Pace needed after facing a difficult freshman year. “I hit a

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Two currents converged to make John Uelses an American hero in 1962. Mankind was venturing into outer space, and the sport of track and field was at a peak of popularity.

Pole-vaulters were the flying daredevils of track and field. They sought to find how high a human being can propel himself off the ground with nothing but a stick. It required a rare sum of athletic attributes — the speed of a sprinter, the upper-body strength of a wrestler, the agility of a gymnast, and a damn-the-torpedoes attitude.

Technology significantly entered the mix in the early ’60s. Vaulting poles had heretofore been composed of bamboo or steel. Using the latter, Don “Tarzan” Bragg had raised the world record to 15′9¼″ and won the gold medal at the Rome Olympics.

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Orange County, California–Santa Margarita freshman pole vaulter Kaitlyn Merritt started her CIF career with a record-setting performance at the Eagle Invitational Saturday at Santa Margarita High.

Merritt set the state federation freshman record with a meet-winning clearance of 12-10¼.

That clearance broke the previous state freshman record set by former Newport Harbor standout Allison Stokke, who cleared 12-8 to win the CIF state title in 2004.

Her clearance also put her fourth on the county’s all-time list, trailing only Stokke (13-7), former Edison vaulter Tori Pena (13-2), and former Huntington Beach vaulter Allison Koressel (13-1).

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