Rentable bowling overshoe

A bowling overshoe for fitting over footwear of a bowler, the bowling overshoe comprising:

• a lower sole;
• an upper portion integral formed with the lower sole and defining an access opening therein;
• a gripping section and a slide section secured to a bottom surface of the lower sole;
• wherein the gripping section, the slide section and the lower sole are each substantially unstretchable while the upper portion of the bowling overshoe is sufficient stretchable to facilitate the bowling overshoe receiving and accommodating a variety of different size footwear;
• the upper portion is sufficiently stretchable so that an extra small bowling overshoe can accommodate footwear sizes from 3½-5½ and shoe widths from A to EEE, a small bowling overshoe can accommodate footwear sizes from 5½-7½ and shoe widths from A to EEE, a medium bowling overshoe can accommodate footwear sizes from 7½-9½ and shoe widths from A to EEE, a large bowling overshoe can accommodate footwear sizes from 9½-11½ and shoe widths from A to EEE and an extra large bowling overshoe can accommodate footwear sizes from 11½-13½ and shoe widths from A to EEE;
• and
• the access opening, in the relaxed state, has an axially length which is at least 60% as long as an axially length of the bowling overshoe.

A bowling overshoe comprising:

• a lower sole;
• an upper portion, connected to the lower sole;
• a gripping section attached to a bottom surface of the lower sole;
• a slide section attached to the bottom surface of the lower sole.
• the slide section and the gripping section are spaced apart from one another on and permanently attached to the bottom surface of the lower sole;
• the lower sole is at least twice as resistant to deforming when subjected to a lateral force as the upper portion;
• the lower sole and the upper portion are created from the same material together in a unitary die mold;
• the upper portion is substantially stretchable in a lateral direction and the and lower sole is substantially non-stretchable in a lateral direction;
• an access opening for the shoed foot of a bowler to be inserted through, the access opening being, in a relaxed state, at least 60% as long, front to back, as a total exterior length of the bowling overshoe, the access opening adopting an elongate, generally oval shape in a relaxed state;
• a ratio of a shortest distance along an outer surface of the bowling overshoe from a base of the lower sole to the access opening measured at a frontmost location of the bowling overshoe, to a shortest distance along an outer surface of the bowling overshoe from the base of the lower sole to the access opening measured at a location coincident with a narrowest portion of the bowling overshoe, is between 1.96 and 1.50.;
• the gripping section having a static coefficient of friction against steel of greater than 0.4;
• the sliding section having a static coefficient of friction against steel of less than 0.4
• the lower sole being integrally molded to at least one of the gripping section and the sliding section;
• a face of the gripping section is recessed at least 0.75 mm into a bottom surface of the lower sole;
• a face of the sliding section is recessed at least 0.5 mm into the bottom surface of the lower sole;
• an integral, arcuate reinforcement strip adjacent an exterior surface of the bowling overshoe in each a front and an opposite back area of the bowling overshoe;
• and
• a side wall of the bowling overshoe in the upper portion having a thickness of between 2 and 3 mm.