Onitsuka Tiger Osaka tops - these reflect the Blue Ribbon Sports Company, which was importing Onitsuka Tiger shoes from Japan. Phil Knight was the founder of this company, which soon would morph into Nike.

Provenance impeccable; a spike plate Bowerman waffle iron shoe is extremely rare.

Says Geoff Hollister in his book, Out of Nowhere, "I received a call from Bowerman one morning. Kenny Moore and I were to report to his home by 9:00 am. When we arrived, he pulled out some old Tiger flats. and turned them bottom side up. Stuck to the outsole were strange-looking tan nubs of urethane. He instructed us to put them on and run up the gravel road that passed an old pioneer cemetery in the trees to the left. The sensation underfoot was remarkable. The little change felt like pillows. We were only gone for five minutes, but when we returned, the nubs were gone. Bill looked at them curiously and said, "Well it looks like I have more work to do." I left, not expecting to see this idea again."

Phil Knight, in Shoe Dog, points out that the urethane left over from building the new track was the urethane Bowerman used on that fateful Sunday when he first poured melted urethane into Barbara's waffle iron.