NIKE, NIKE WAFFLE SPIKES, SIZE 12

Rubber, Leather, Cotton, Synthetic, Nylon

Circa 1970s/1980s

Offered in this lot is a pair of Special Make-Up Nike Waffle Spikes, an uncommon expression of the brand’s early innovations in track footwear. Reminiscent of both the Nike Vainqueur and the Nike At West models produced during the 1970s and early 1980s, the pair is dressed in a red suede and nylon upper, finished with a navy blue Swoosh and matching accents. Unlike those reference models, this pair incorporates a portion of Nike’s waffle sole patterning combined with a track spike–style forefoot —a configuration neither Vainqueur nor At West carried. Presumably produced for a collegiate or track program, the shoes reflect Nike’s practice of supplying bespoke performance models during this formative period.

As the famous story goes, Bill Bowerman’s breakthrough in sole design emerged from an experiment with his wife’s waffle iron, into which he poured rubber to create the earliest prototype. The resulting traction pattern delivered superior grip and cushioning compared to the era’s standard racing flats, marking the waffle sole as Nike’s first major technical innovation and a defining feature of its early running line.