It’s not every day that we cover footwear here on Carscoops but every once in a while when a seemingly delusional celebrity releases a shoe-shaped car or an automotive manufacturer partners with a shoe company we’re here to cover it. Today, the latter is the case as Athletic Propulsion Labs (APL) has partnered with British supercar maker McLaren to create a new pair of shoes that cost $450.
Officially called the ‘APL | McLaren HySpeed’, the shoes come in five different colorways with the automaker stating that it’s “an all-purpose performance running trainer”.
The two brands highlighted their concurrent passions for innovation and technology at the announcement. APL for its part mentioned its patent of something called Load ‘N Launch technology which is designed to “instantly increase vertical leap”. McLaren is of course known for supercars like the Speedtail. Which of those creations is more impressive, we’ll let you be the judge. Here are some of the details that make up the APL | McLaren HySpeed.
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A three-piece segmented midsole features APL’s FutureFoam pods at the front and rear of the shoe. Those are linked by a real carbon fiber plate topped by a new nitrogen-infused midsole compound that’s “engineered for supreme responsiveness and energy rich compression.” Of course, nitrogen makes up about 78 percent of the air you’re breathing right now so that last bit feels less impressive.
Certainly, there’s still some flash factor to enjoy though. The five different colors all mimic McLaren’s hues and there are lots of small details that nod to the cars as well. McLaren says that even the shoebox “has almost as many features as the shoes themselves.” We bet one of those features is nitrogen filling.
The collection will be available to purchase online at APL’s website as well as its flagship store at The Grove in Los Angeles and select retailers globally from 2 August 2022.
Sure, $450 is a lot of cash to spend on things that you’re literally going to rub into the ground everywhere you go but hey, it’s also the cheapest way to say that you were in a McLaren (or two) today. And hey, you get a fancy box too!
