Inspiration can come to a person at any given moment. That is what happened to Bill Bowerman while having breakfast. Early one morning, Bill and his wife Barbara were enjoying waffles when the inspiration came to him that helped him with one of the great innovations in modern sports.
Bill Bowerman was the legendary track and field coach of the University of Oregon. During his coaching tenure he led the Oregon Ducks to 4 NCAA national titles and coached 31 Olympic athletes and 51 All-Americans. In addition to his coaching duties, Bill Bowerman spent many hours trying to design and build a better running shoe. The track shoes of the 1960’s were heavy and made of materials that were less than beneficial for runners.
During breakfast in 1970, Bowerman was curious about the waffle pattern and wondered if the same pattern could be used to create a shoe that would work on multiple services. He took the family waffle iron to his workshop filled it with melted urethane. This experiment led to the creation of the “Moon Shoe.” This shoe went on to become the iconic Waffle Trainer.
Bill Bowerman’s breakfast inspiration allowed he and his partner, Phil Knight to launch their small athletic shoe company into what is now Nike, a company today that has publicly traded shares worth $75 billion dollars.
Bill Bowerman was willing to ask the important question, “Wouldn’t it be great if…” Wouldn’t it be great if we could make a better running shoe? As he worked to create his shoe, he became more and more innovative and his eyes were opened to new possibilities. Bill Bowerman’s passion to make a better shoe and his willingness to be innovative changed the game. What are you passionate about? Are you willing to be innovative and open to inspiration? When we innovate we can change the game as well.
Rev. Keith King, Online Campus Pastor
