New Balance, an American sports footwear manufacturer, teamed up with Counterkicks, the web-resource showcasing the news of footwear, to run a design contest aimed at finding the most innovative idea for an iconic and lightweight New Balance Sprint Spike shoes. Every pitch was evaluated by the panel of judges based on the following criteria: inspiration and story, innovation, and execution. This criterias were used by the judges (professionals from New Balance design team including Brett Golliff, JF Fullum, Kyle Strek) based on the criterias of evaluation for professional projects they normally use at work.
Image courtesy: www.counterkicks.com, Push Forward Concept by Brandon Lostutter
«We chose these topics from how we develop our projects in our professional careers. We want every project to be based around a story that is not only inspirational to the consumer but to the athlete as well. It is important to have a product that everyone can relate to. Innovation is vital because we want to always improve where we have been. We strive to make products that will make everyone perform better and that will move the world», state project developers at counterkicks.com
So, on December 08 the winner’s name was officially announced at Countercicks. The main prize went to Brandon Lostutter for his Push Forward concept inspired by the image and performance of ultra-fast spaceship The Virgin Galactic.
«The Virgin Galactic is the first spaceship designed to carry private passengers. It combines these ideas of moving mankind forward with a sense of freeing humans to reach new heights. These are the ideas that an iconic track spike should resonate with an athlete», wrote Brandon in his pitch.
The first thing that impressed the judges most was the story that they found »simple and to the point but also spoke to the heart and soul of the sport»(counterkicks.com). The execution that, according to Brandon, «will propel athletes forward with minimal loss of energy transfer» also scored very high.
The images of the winning entry of New Balance and Counterkicks contest are provided below. If you want to see and learn what New Balance Sprint Spikes will look like, visit the counterkicks.com.
Image courtesy: www.counterkicks.com, Push Forward Concept by Brandon Lostutter
Image courtesy: www.counterkicks.com, Push Forward Concept by Brandon Lostutter