adidas Starting Line Sports vintage sneaker ad from 1978

Here’s an old school Starting Line Sports vintage sneaker ad from 1978 for the adidas Runner, Lady Runner, Arrow, TRX and TRX Competition vintage model sneakers. This original vintage ad is for sale over at our Rewind Running web store.

Ad info is below:

adidas Lady Runner - A

New! One of our best selling women's shoes. All new ripple sole for long wear with good traction and flexibil ity. Improved midsole cushioning. Powder blue nylon with white trim. Sizes: Women's 4-10. $40.95

adidas Runner - B

Made particularly to support the heavier runner with thick, long wearing outer sole, improved sole flex, and wide flared heel. Yellow nylon mesh with blue trim. Sizes: Men's 6-13. $37.95

adidas Arrow - C

Popular cross-country racing flat. Lightweight nylon upper has seamless toe for blister free running. Durable sole studded for maximum traction and cushioning. Royal blue with red trim. Sizes: Men's 7-12. $21.95

adidas TRX - D

New improved cushioned midsole. Waffled sole is flexible yet long wearing. Royal blue nylon with yel low trim. Sizes: Men's 7-12, Women's 4-10. $30.95

adidas TRX Competition - E

New! Excellent for both road racing and cross-country. Waffle-type sole gives good traction on grass or dirt. Extremely lightweight. White nylon with blue trim. Sizes: Men's 6-12, Women's 4- 11. $30.95

adidas

STARTING LINE SPORT'S

BOX 8, MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA 94042

adidas 1979 TRX Competition vintage sneaker ad

Here’s a vintage ad for the adidas TRX Competition model running shoes from 1979.

Ad info is below:

The TRX Competition is incredibly light, a mere 8 ounces*.

Introducing the TRX Competition.
Only Adidas could make it.

The TRX Competition is the incredible new creation of Adidas. It has no less than 6 features that can improve the way you run whether you're an occasional jogger, serious runner or world class competitor. Adidas made the new TRX Competition for the millions of runners all over the world who wouldn't compete without Adidas on their feet. Step into the new Adidas TRX Competition, available in men's and women's lasts, at your authorized Adidas dealer.

The proven Adidas heel counter maximum stability. for the entire foot. Its meticulously engineered construction helps minimize painful pressure.

The TRX Competition's mid-sole and heel wedge have two different densities of cushioning materials designed to absorb the maximum amount of shock even from the toughest roads.

The sole of the TRX Competition is 72 gripping road studs that deliver the surest traction possible. Their design and placement allow you to be sure-footed even on curved or banked finning surfaces which subject the loot to lateral forces.

The exclusive Adidas last provides an extra wide, roomy toe box, that ensures long distance running comfort.

The superlight, breathing nylon uppers arc strong and provide durability race after grueling race. The legendary three stripes guarantee the TRX Competition has met the Adidas standard of superior craftsmanship.

adidas
The science of sport.

*In men’s, size 8 1/2.

adidas 1979 TRX Competition vintage sneaker ad @ The Deffest

adidas 1970s green and yellow SL76 vintage sneaker ad

Here’s an old 1970s ad for the adidas SL76 vintage model running shoes aka “the shoe for all seasons.”

Ad info is below:

PUT YOUR FOOT INTO ADIDAS!

Pounding the roads on a 20 mile marathon or just jogging around the block. adidas is kind to your Met. All the latest technical advantages are built into the world's most popular and widely imitated training shoes. Truly. the shoe for all seasons.

More information available at your next sporting goods dealer or write to:

adidas

adidas 1970s green and yellow SL76 vintage sneaker ad @ The Deffest

Adidas Nite Jogger 1977 vintage sneaker ad

Here’s a 1977 vintage sneaker ad for the Adidas Nite Jogger runner featuring the “ phosphorescent heel stripes” and Ghilly lacing.

Ad info is below:

The Nite Jogger — another first from adidas

Nite Jogger - the shoe to be seen in.

The Nite Jogger is the first road runner ever conceived for the after dark jogger. Its phosphorescent heel stripes glow brightly in the dark. making for safer jogging in busy traffic areas.

But there is more to this unique new shoe than glow. Designed primarily for road surfaces, these additional features make the Nite Jogger the shoe it is: Thicker and softer midsole absorbs the considerable heel pounding experienced on road surfaces, and provides a perfectly cushioned roll action of the foot. Uppers made of Cangoran —a man-made leather-like material that breathes and forms to the foot. New Ghilly lacing makes for easier lacing & unlacing. Traction sole profile is swept up on heel and toe to provide full protection against excessive abrasion and wear caused by road surfaces.

For more information contact your local dealer.

adidas
The all-sports people

Adidas SL72 and SL76 vintage sneaker ad

Here's a old vintage ad for the Adidas SL72 and SL76 engineered with 'traction dynamics’…

​Ad info is below:

SL 72 &76 reborn for the ultimate in cushioned traction 

More propulsion. Extended sole area gradually stores up touch-down energy. At lift-off, this energy is released producing 20% more propulsion per step. 

Thicker. softer-grooved wedge for substantially increased overall cushioning 

More stability & cushioning Wider, flared heel for greater stability. 

More Traction. Special profile ejects grit and mud. Profile layout allow, more flexing and therefore better traction. New heel profile for more cushioned heel strike

👟👟

Trust adidas to take these great (often imitated) training shoes, build in revolutionary cushioning and traction features, and end up with a saving in weight too. It's all part of a breakthrough in Traction Dynamics at adidas— real pioneer work that has created new standards in performance and comfort. 

SL 72 & 76 are creations of Adi Dassler, the man behind the adidas name. 

adidas 

The all-sports people

Adidas Boston 1981 vintage sneaker ad

Here's a 1981 Adidas vintage ad for their Boston model running shoes. I think this is one of the models that Kmart Trax spent a decade trying to knock off.

​Ad info is below:

Great for the road. Even better for your wallet. 

Durable rubber outersole with diamond profile for excellent traction. Extra-comfortable pre-formed inlay sole with soft terry lining. 

Boston is the name of the new training shoe from adidas, one of the most comfortable we've ever designed — and at a very comfortable price. The Boston has been created with a newly-developed terry-covered inlay sole, tricot lining at the heel, extensive padding and a supersoft and flexible heel wedge to ensure excellent shock-absorption and comfort. So save yourself some money but don't make your feet pay the price — with the adidas Boston. 

adidas 
We've got a feeling for winning.

adidas 1982 Oregon Bill Dellinger vintage sneaker ad

Here's another track coach ad, this time Bill Dellinger of the University of Oregon in 1982. Bill Dellinger replaced Bill Bowerman after he retired as coach of the Ducks track team in the 70s. In this ad he is endorsing the adidas Oregon, Atlanta and Lady Oregon shoes.

Ad info is below:

adidas reports:
addas U.S.A. 1982 

Bill Dellinger has discovered a new use for Newton's Third Law of Motion

As most of you know, Bill Dellinger is the University of Oregon's running coach; and he will be doing the same honors for the United States Olympic Team in 1984. He has become world-renowned for getting the most out of some of the finest runners around. But now, he's about to become equally famous for getting extra performance from a gentleman who had his peak many years ago. Because he and adidas have developed a way to harness Sir Issac's fundamental law that will make a fundamental difference to runners. 

Distribution of impact shock. The Dellinger Web. For runners, its a loophole in the Third Law of Motion.

Newton's dictum states that for every action, there must be an equal and opposite reaction. Until now, for runners, this has meant that what goes down (in terms of initial heel shock), must go up (as an equal shock transmitted straight up the leg). But The Web disperses part of the heel shock throughout the entire sole of the shoe, where it is not felt by the leg. So in effect, what goes down goes sideways as well as up. The Web: What it is and how it works. The Web is a unique polyamide netting that covers the midsole from heel to toe. To a runner, this simply means a type of construction that can significantly reduce leg fatigue. When a runner's heel strikes the ground, it compresses the netting in the heel area. This compressed netting in turn pulls in on the rest of the netting throughout the entire sole of the shoe. The resistance of the netting and sole acts much like a torsion bar to absorb part of the impact shock.

Close - up of The Web.

Up to ten percent of the shock, in fact. Ten percent that the runner doesn't ever feel. Which means that the runner has ten percent more energy to devote to running instead of shock absorption. As if that weren't enough, there's even another advantage to The Web. The heel impact puts The Web in a state of tension, with some areas compressed and others stretched. As the runner rolls forward into the next stride, The Web springs back, giving a trampoline effect. And all of this is accomplished without sacrificing stability, and with no gain in thickness or bulk. Dellinger's Law: "You pay for the whole shoe, why not use it?" As we've explained, most running shoes only use part of the sole most of the time, an inefficiency your whole body pays for directly. But now with The Web, you can have a shoe that does part of the work you've been used to doing. The adidas-developed Web is currently available in the Atlanta, Oregon, and Lady Oregon. Only from adidas, the company that can bring the laws of physics to heel. 

Atlanta

Oregon 

Lady Oregon 

adidas

adidas Marathon 80 vintage sneaker ad

Here's a vintage adidas Marathon 80 sneaker ad from 1979. We're always down for the old school blue & yellow colorway.

Ad info is below:

Our test track. 

We put everything science could offer into our new adidas Marathon 80. Then we put our Marathon 80 to the ultimate test. The New York City Marathon. To prove that adidas' lightest running shoe (a mere 6.3 ounces*) can make the difference of a ton less to lift over 26 miles.

To prove that the adidas Marathon 80's divided heel spoiler helps absorb maximum shock, even on the most uneven road surfaces.

To prove that the Marathon 80's incredibly sleek silhouette sole of 72 trefoil studs act as glide and stop supports for sure traction. In any weather.

The results are in from the lab. One example: in the 1978 New York City Marathon, the adidas Marathon 80 was worn by the runner who set the sensational new world record for women.

The Marathon 80. adidas' lightest running shoe.

adidas

The science of sport.