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The Grandfather of Nike Super Shoes Returns as a Sleek Everyday Sneaker

Half a century later, one of Nike’s original racing shoes is back with a touch of technical flair.

Nike Air Max WaffleNike

By Jack Seemer

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It would be difficult to overstate the effect of the Nike Vaporfly had on the footwear design.

Following its monumental release nearly 10 years ago, shoes from virtually every brand under the sun have become bigger, lighter and, most importantly, faster.

However, the Vaporfly is far from Nike’s original super shoe — a title that should go to the iconic Waffle Racer of the 1970s.

Waffle about

According to Nike, brand cofounder and former track legend Bill Bowerman came up with its unique lug-like outsole by pouring rubber into his wife’s waffle iron.

Though crude by design, it worked, giving his athletes (including Steve Prefontaine) extra grip without the added weight of spikes.

Nike Air Max Waffle
Nike cofounder Bill Bowerman came up with the tread-like design using his wife’s waffle iron.
Nike

Since then, Nike hasn’t been shy about using waffle soles across its catalog and it’s become one of the brand’s most storied and consistent motifs — second only to the Air Max in terms of prestige and regularity.

With the Air Max Waffle, however, the two innovative technologies come together to breathe new life into Nike’s original super shoe. Only here, it takes the form of a sleek everyday sneaker for use off the track.

Nike Air Max Waffle
From the front, the Air Max Waffle looks like the standard Waffle Racer, complete with a tonal upper of suede and synthetic materials.
Nike

From the front, the design looks like the standard Waffle Racer, showcasing a synthetic upper with tonal suede accents and a high-contrast Swoosh for good measure.

Nike Air Max Waffle
The Sprinter Green and Electrolime colorway (pictured) features a high-contrast Swoosh logo in bright pink.
Nike
Nike Air Max Waffle
The Bright Ceramic and Sail colorway (pictured) borrows its orange makeup from a previous Dunk release.
Nike

However, the shoe starts to chart its own course the further back you go, namely with a sculpted foam midsole and visible Air unit in the heel. The interplay of innovations is probably most apparent underfoot, where Nike blended both systems and even sealed the design with a Tuned Air badge.

Nike Air Max Waffle
The sculpted midsole features a visible Air unit in the heel.
Nike
Nike Air Max Waffle
The blend of technologies are most apparent underfoot and on the heel.
Nike

Pricing and availability

Previously released in the second half of 2024, the Air Max Waffle returns on June 18 with two new colorways: Bright Ceramic and Sail, as well as Sprinter Green and Electrolime.

It costs $145 and will be available exclusively on Nike’s Snkrs app.

About the Author:

Jack Seemer is the executive editor at Gear Patrol, with over a decade of experience in product journalism. He currently reports on a wide range of topics, including footwear, watches, EDC, cookware and more.

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