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...for the Military

UK Gear’s training shoes were originally designed in association with the Royal Army Physical Training Corps (RAPTC). These elite fitness professionals were closely involved in the development and tested our products in some of the most inhospitable conditions on Earth. Only when approved by the Military do we consider our products... Built to survive.

Innovative Products

>>01 July 2004

On our travels around the New Munich Trade Fair Centre, a couple of innovative British products caught our eye.

The first was The Original Balls Up Tennis Ball Retriever from Invent Marketing. The product was invented by the company's John Francis. He conceived the idea during a third set of tennis, where being behind in the game, Francis, due to complete exhaustion through constantly picking up the tennis ball, had the inspiration to develop a simple method of picking up the ball with the end of the racket.

The product is a specially developed self-adhesive strip that fixes to the edge of a tennis racket. The surface of the strip engages with the tennis ball, thus enabling the player to retrieve it without bending.

The next was a high performance running shoe called the PT-03 from UK Gear. It's the first commercial product ever to be produced in association with the army and to bear the army's famous crossed swords logo.

As well as advising on the design, fitness instructors from the Army Physical Training Corps tested the shoe over a six-month period. The entire project, from concept, through design, testing and manufacture, has taken UK Gear 18 months to complete and has resulted in an official association with the army - the first of its kind.

"The PT-03 has been designed and manufactured to very high standards and to meet the demands of some of the toughest runners," says David Hinde, managing director of UK Gear. "It's been created with the help of some of the fittest people on the planet - the army's own fitness instructors - which means it will stand up to the demands of any runner.

"Whether they're an elite athlete or occasional jogger, when they buy the PT-03 they'll know they're buying the best."

During testing one senior officer of the APTC covered more than 800km in the same pair of PT-03s and said they were an outstanding pair of running shoes.

Orders have already been placed by some of the UK's top specialist running shoes and major sports outlets. The PT-03 will retail at around £79, making it very competitive in comparison with the top of the range running shoes offered by other manufacturers.

UK Gear is continuing to take pre-orders for the shoe and the army will also be helping the company announce the launch of the PT-03 to the consumer press to ensure it's heralded with a fanfare of publicity.