Methods for and footwear assemblies with releasable attachment of soles

A method, comprising:

• putting a sock onto a first foot of a user, the sock covering toes of the user;
• putting the sock into a toe cap of a water resistant, stretchable oversock, with the oversock toe cap covering at least a portion of the toes of the user;
• conducting a hands-free attachment of the sock to the oversock while the sock is being worn on the first foot,
• with the hands-free attachment occurring on the sock at only a single sock attachment site, and on the oversock at only a single oversock attachment site,
• wherein the single sock attachment site is located on or near a heel rear portion of the sock, with the heel rear portion disposed on a rear of the sock between a heel turn and a sock upper edge, and with the heel turn disposed on a heel of the sock near a sock sole and arranged to provide an L-shaped bend in the sock, and
• wherein the single oversock attachment site is located on a rear section of the oversock and corresponds in location to the single sock attachment site on the sock, and
• with the hands-free attachment conducted by:
• placing the first foot bearing the oversock onto a surface,
• stepping with a second foot of the user on a protrusion extending from and behind a rear edge of the sole,
• moving the first foot of the user forward and away from the second foot to stretch the oversock along the length of the oversock sole to fit the first foot into the oversock,
• bringing corresponding elements of an attachment fastener into releasable attachment, with the corresponding elements further comprising a set of magnetically attractable elements with:
• a first attachment element that is magnetically attractable and is located on the sock at the single sock attachment site, and
• a second attachment element that is magnetically attractable and is located on the oversock at the single oversock attachment site,
• wherein bringing the corresponding elements of the attachment fastener into releasable attachment further comprises aligning the first attachment element with the second attachment element;
• and
• conducting a hands-free detachment of the sock from the oversock while the sock is being worn on the first foot, by:
• stretching a portion of the oversock between the toe cap and the oversock rear section to increase the oversock in length,
• applying a lateral shearing force to the attached first attachment element and second attachment element to overcome attachment therebetween and to effect detachment therefrom, and
• sliding the sock out of engagement with the oversock.

An oversock sized to fit over a sock when the sock is worn on a first foot of a user, wherein the oversock comprises:

• an oversock rear section sized to contain at least a portion of a heel of the first foot of the user;
• a toe cap sized to contain the sock over the user's toes on the first foot;
• an oversock sole therebetween, the oversock sole
• formed at least in part of a water resistant, stretchy material to impart an amount of water resistant stretchiness along a length of the oversock between the toe cap and the oversock rear section, the amount of water-resistant stretchiness selected to allow the portion of the oversock between the toe cap and the oversock rear section to increase in length an amount sufficient to allow the first foot of the user to slide out of engagement with the oversock when the sock is being worn on the first foot, and
• having a rear edge with a protrusion extending from and behind from the oversock sole and sized to allow a second foot of the user to step thereon and to stretch the oversock sole between the toe cap and the oversock rear section;
• a single oversock attachment site,
• wherein the oversock is releasably attachable to the sock at only the single oversock attachment site, and
• wherein the single oversock attachment site is located on a rear section of the oversock and corresponds in location on the oversock to a single sock attachment site on the sock,
• with the sock releasably attachable to the oversock at only the single sock attachment site,
• with the single sock attachment site located at or near a heel rear portion of the sock, the heel rear portion of the sock being disposed between a heel turn and a sock upper edge on a rear of the sock;
• and
• an oversock attachment element that is magnetically attractable and is located on the single oversock attachment site and is releasably attachable hands-free to a sock attachment element that is magnetically attractable and is located on the sock at the single sock attachment site when the sock is worn under the oversock on the foot of the user, wherein the oversock attachment element has, with the sock attachment element,
• an amount of attachability that is sufficiently high to bring the oversock attachment element into releasable attachment with the sock attachment element when the oversock attachment element is in alignment with the sock attachment element, and
• an amount of shear strength that is sufficiently low to allow a lateral shearing force applied to the aligned sock attachment element and oversock attachment element to overcome attachment therebetween when the oversock is worn over the sock on the first foot,
• the amount of attachability and the amount of shear strength allowing hands-free attachment and detachment of the oversock from the sock while allowing the sock to remain on the first foot.