Nike today began selling its Patriots Lunar Force 1, a shoe "specially designed" for Patriots Owner Robert Kraft, according to Joseph Kahn of the BOSTON GLOBE. The shoe, which retails for $150, features "black with white soles, a dark Nike 'swoosh' down the side" and a Patriots logo on the tongue." They will be available "in limited quantities and sold only through the company’s website and at the Patriots pro shop in Foxborough and Nike’s retail store in Boston." A portion of the proceeds will support the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston, "a charitable arrangement Kraft, who has turned down product endorsements in the past, insisted upon." Patriots coaches and non-playing team members wore the shoe on the sideline of yesterday's game against the Lions. Kraft said, "It’s just a fun thing that’s blossomed and evolved into something I didn’t expect. It certainly wasn’t planned." Kahn reported Kraft was "bothered by foot pain while wearing business shoes" three years ago, so he asked his team’s Nike contacts "about designing something more comfortable for him." Kraft "liked the shoes so much, he shelved his other footwear and began wearing the sneakers all the time." Kraft in May introduced Nike CEO Mark Parker at a Boston College event, where he "told Parker how much he loved the sneakers and about the feedback he’d been getting." Parker "proposed producing an owner’s model, and Kraft agreed" (BOSTON GLOBE, 11/23). The shoes "feature Kraft's initials ... the Patriots' new and old logos, and a quote from Kraft ('We are all Patriots') inside the shoe" (ESPN.com, 11/23). Fox' Joe Buck during the broadcast of yesterday's game said, "Who knew that Robert Kraft ... would be a fashion-forward guy?" He added, "The trend-setting Robert Kraft, a modern day Zoolander" ("Lions-Patriots," Fox, 11/23).
DESERVING OF ALL KUDOS: Buck during yesterday's game talked about the Patriots' run over the past 15 years and said, "The success is obviously well documented with Robert Kraft. ... Look at what this team has done. They built this stadium in 2002, now the area around it is developed. They just dominate here at home." Fox' Troy Aikman: “Our league is better because of Bob Kraft, and there's others around the league that have made a real impact on this game. You think about what he's done since he's taken over here as owner of the New England Patriots. This stadium that we’re broadcasting this game from, no public money in building this stadium” (“Lions-Patriots,” Fox, 11/23).
