Outsoles

What is an outsole? It is the part of your shoe that has got the most contact with the ground. Some people call it the sole, but there are insoles, midsoles and outsoles. The insole is that flat sponge-like piece that fits inside your shoe, where you directly place your foot on. The midsole is in between the insole and the outsole, with its sides exposed forming a perimeter around your shoe. And back to the outsole again, it can become the most trashed part of your shoe over time.

Technically the outsole provides grip, however shoemakers have a knack for putting in a considerable amount of effort into designing a part of a shoe that hardly gets exposed to the eye. The designs range from a dazzling array of colours, text, graphics and insane tread patterns. They turn out wonderful most of the time and I feel it a pity its only an outsole.

But one thing that really intrigues me is tread patterns. The designs are so limitless that it makes me wonder whether do they fulfill the basic function of a tread pattern at all. Some patterns may be design-driven while others may be function-driven but do they really grip as well as they should?