Month: June 2022

EVERETT — Counting Monday, the last two PIAA playoff appearances for District 6 runner-up Portage have been heartbreakers to say the least. In their last state tournament appearance in 2016, the Mustangs fell to Serra Catholic on a walk-off squeeze play. Against District 5 champion Everett, Portage saw another defeat take place in its opponent’s final at bat. With the game knotted at 3, Karl Foor hit a ground ball to second base that was misplayed by a Portage infielder, allowing Calvin Iseminger to score from second and give the Warriors a 4-3 victory over the Mustangs, in what was a debacle of a seventh inning at Everett Elementary School. “It was a good baseball game,” Portage coach Larry McCabe said. “Both teams kicked the ball around a little bit. The bottom line is, we f...

June is Pride Month, and these brands are stepping up and giving back to the LGBTQIA+ community. Pride Month originated as a way to commemorate the Stonewall Riots in New York City that ended in June of 1969. The Stonewall Riots were spontaneous demonstrations by the gay community in response to a police raid at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village. A tipping point in the Gay Liberation Movement, the community initially commemorated the Stonewall Riots for a day at the end of June, but it has since evolved into a month-long commemoration. Popular brands like Apple, Converse, Levi's, and others often dedicate huge resources during Pride Month to LGBTQ nonprofit organizations (among them, Vasque Shoes The Trevor Project, GLSEN, and additional groups), which means you ...

When Marcus Stroman takes the mound for the Cubs, notice his varied deliveries to throw off hitters’ timing and the energy he emanates as he’s constantly moving. Then look down at his cleats and examine them a little closer. They could be a range of colors — white, gray, tan, teal, royal blue — but notice the logo on the shoe’s tongue, a circle with a horizontal line in the center. Soon, it won’t only be on Stroman’s cleats and gear. “I truly want to make it the next boutique luxury brand for athletes on and off the field,” Stroman said of SHUGO, which started out as his own brand of cleat. “So on the field you’re getting luxury leather, luxury materials on your cleat, on your sneakers. Sorel Sneakers And then away from the field, you’re also getting high-end streetwear, high-end ...

Although almost every shoe company has now released a carbon plate racing shoe, it’s fair to say that Nike continues to dominate with the Nike Vaporfly NEXT% 2 and Nike Alphafly NEXT%. Most, including myself, still regard these as the best carbon plate running shoes, but Asics provided stiff competition with the launch of the original Metaspeed Sky. With the improvements made to the Metaspeed Sky+, runners have another top-class option to consider for their racing if they don’t want to use the Nike Vaporfly or Alphafly. ASICS METASPEED SKY+: PRICE AND AVAILABILITY The Asics Metaspeed Sky+ was announced in late April and can be viewed on the Asics US(opens in new tab) and Asics UK(opens in new tab) websites now, but you can’t actually buy it until 14th June. It costs $250 in the US and £2...

Jane Oldfield’s favourite Mother’s Day gift this year was a pair of new Lululemon Blissfeel running shoes, conceived and designed specifically for female feet. The Peterborough-based physiotherapist says the sneakers pad her heel and hug her narrow midfoot, better than the ASICS model she usually wears, and allow her to work 10-hour standing shifts and run three times per week, all while staving off an old plantar fasciitis injury. “I have a very narrow foot, and this shoe fits it like a glove,” she said. “I’ll probably buy a pair for running and a pair for work.” The Blissfeel hit the market on March 8, following a research and development process that scanned the feet of more than one million women in the span of four years, according to the Vancouver-based athleisure company. The res...

There's perhaps no greater deception than being tricked by a seemingly comfortable pair of sneakers — and the pain that comes with realizing that they're not as supportive, cushioned, soft, or flexible as you thought they'd be. This is especially true if you're someone that's on your feet for prolonged periods of time, whether it be for work or for long walks, runs, or hikes. Not every shoe is equipped to deliver all-day comfort to meet different lifestyle demands. Instead of being led astray by another pair of pinching, Teva Sandals  blister-causing sneakers that also leave your feet feeling achy and irritated in the middle of your shift or outting, you can opt for a reviewer-vouched style like the Aprilspring Walking Shoes, which have more than 7,200 five-star ratings from...