Abstract: The present invention relates to athletic garments and, in particular, to tight, form-fitting athletic garment with panels to simultaneously warm preselected small, fragile muscles and tendons and provide ventilation for preselected large, hard-working and heat-generating muscles. In a preferred embodiment, the garment is a runner's tight with relatively open mesh panels covering the quadraceps and calf muscles and tightly knit panels covering the hamstring muscles, the front of the leg, the achilles tendons region and the groin area. The open mesh panels and the knit panels are preferably joined at their adjacent edges by relatively broad, four-needle flat seams which provide a proprioceptive effect.

Abstract: An athletic shoe with an adjustable width, adjustable tension "speedlace" closure system is disclosed. The system comprises a serpentine closure element body with relatively wide shoelace openings at different widths across the throat of the shoe, shoelace holes which frictionally grip a shoelace threaded therethrough, and a guide ridge on the shoelace openings.

Abstract: A shock absorbing sole member used in an athletic shoe having an upper and a sole is disclosed. The shock absorbing sole member is comprised of an insert member and elastomeric foam encasing the insert member. The insert member is formed of resilient plastic material and includes a plurality of transversely and longitudinally spaced discrete shock absorbing projections. The elastomeric foam has a low hardness, less than 70 on the Asker C scale.