BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The high-performance car racing shoes available do not adequately address two problem facing drivers. First, drivers face intense vibration in the interior of the car. This can lead to foot blistering as the back heel portion and sides of the foot come in contact with inflexible, uncushioned portions of the shoe. This problem is particularly acute around the"ball"of the driver's heel, which is in contact with the vibrating floor of the car. The problem is also present on the sides of the foot, which frequently come in contact with the sides of the shoe, particularly when rapid foot movement between accelerator and brake is necessary. Accordingly, it is particularly desirable in racing driving shoes to have high-quality cushioning in the heel and midsole areas, as well as on the sides of the shoe. Current racing shoes lack this cushioning, with the upper portion of the shoe (the"upper") being bonded or sewn directly to the outsole. The resulting thin shoe frequently causes blistering, wears out very quickly, and subjects the wearer to feeling every stone on the ground through its thin surface when worn outside the car.

A second problem confronting drivers relates to the shape of the heel.

Shoes that are currently available have an exaggerated, sharp and laterally-flattened heel that presents problems during driving. For example, the shoe of Ellis. U. S.

Patent No. 5,544,429, discloses a heel extended as in other prior art shoes, and does not follow the natural spherical curvature of the human heel. Ci.'429 patent, Figure 6. When down-shifting, the act of"heeling and toeing,"or pivoting simultaneously between a car's accelerator and brake in order to downshift while braking, is difficult since the shape of the shoe does not facilitate the foot's rotation along the coronal and transverse planes.

Flat heels also present a problem for walking. While walking, the heel of the typical shoe extends beyond the rear of the natural heel of the foot. The shoe's extended heel acts as a lever when the wearer's heel contacts the ground, accelerating the step as it enters the pronation phase or"midstance period,"where the foot is level with the ground. This premature pronation results in an unnatural walking style. This unnatural walking style is characterized by the"slapping"sound heard when a walker's forefoot hits the ground. Most of the typical racing shoes and driving moccasins worn by drivers have such pronounced heels, and are particularly ill-suited for the task of everyday walking. Natural stride and comfort are also enhanced by "toe spring"-the curvature away from the ground plane from below the metatarsal heads, or"ball of the foot"to the toe. This feature allows a natural roll through the push off phase, or"propulsive period"of the gait cycle.

Existing shoes also lack the capability to minimize discomfort from vehicle vibrations. The lack of a cushioning element for existing driving shoes and driving moccasins results in the foot being subjected to vibrational stresses when it contacts and moves relative to an inflexible part of the interior of the shoe. Intense vibration and rapid movement of the foot while racing can cause blistering as the back heel portion and sides of the foot come in contact with inflexible, uncushioned portions of the interior of the shoe. In the prior art, separate heel liners were often required to solve this problem.

Such uncushioned shoes are also more likely to result in"overuse" injuries, subjecting the foot to repeated stresses and impacts where it is not naturally cushioned or protected.

It is thus an object of the invention to facilitate automobile driving through use of a rounded heel and specially contoured sides of a shoe to simplify "heeling and toeing,"the process of rocking the right foot on both the brake and gas pedals in order to downshift while braking.

It is another object of the invention to provide a shoe having a substantial amount of cushioning in the heel and side areas, which can be used to reduce foot stress and blistering while driving.

It is another object of the invention to provide a shoe that allows for a natural stride. This is done by approximating the natural shape of the heel through use of a rounded or spherical heel.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to one aspect of the invention, driving or walking shoes are extensively cushioned in the heel, midsole and sides of the sole in order to prevent discomfort and blistering. The sole of a shoe has a toe region at a distal end of the sole, and a heel region at a proximal end of the sole. The sole of the shoe includes a metatarsal region, corresponding to the metatarsal bone of the foot, positioned substantially between toe and heel regions and along an inner side of the sole, said toe region extending upward from the metatarsal region in order to follow the natural curvature of the foot and to facilitate"toe spring" (the natural curvature away from the transverse plane from below the metatarsal heads, or"ball of the foot"to the toe), which enhances natural stride and comfort. The heel of the shoes, which rest on the floor of the car while driving, have a rounded bottom contour to facilitate"heeling and toeing" (rocking the right foot on both the brake and gas pedals in order to downshift while braking). The sides of the shoes are also contoured to facilitate this movement.

The rounded heel of the claimed shoe extends the athletic construction cushioning of the midsole up the heel of the shoe to counteract this problem. This extension of cushioning is also present on the sides of the shoes, especially at the forefoot to cushion contact with the sides of the foot well. The shoe also uses wraps (made of rubber, expanded foam, or similar cushioning material) at the heel and on the lateral side of the shoe to provide additional protection and grip on the pedals and floor. The heel wraps also provide greater durability and grip. The rounded heel not only benefits a driver in a car by providing a cushioned area, instead of an edge at the bottom of a typical heel, it also allows a natural impact and roll into the gait cycle while walking.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a side sagittal plane cross-sectional view of a shoe sole taken substantially along line A-A of Figure 3a.

Figure 2 is a side sagittal plane view of the exterior side of a shoe sole.

Figure 3 a is a bottom plan view of the exterior side of a shoe sole.

Figure 3b is an elongated view of the portion beginning with line E-E of Figures 2,3a and 4 and extending in an rounded manner up the heel of the shoe sole.

Figure 4 is a side sagittal plane view of the interior side of a shoe sole.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional coronal plane view taken along line B-B of Figures 2,3a and 4.

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional coronal plane view taken along line C-C of Figures 2, 3a and 4.

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional coronal plane view taken along line D-D of Figures 2, 3a and 4.

Figure 8 is a cross-sectional coronal plane view taken along line E-E of Figures 2,3a and 4.

Figure 9 is a cross-sectional coronal plane view taken along line F-F of Figures 2, 3a and 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Referring to Figure 1, the sole (4) depicted is shown to comprise a toe region (5), a metatarsal region (6), an arch region (7) forward of a heel portion (8).

Figure 1 also depicts a cushioned base region (9), as well as cushioned side walls (10) extending upward from the cushioned base region (9).

Figure 2 is a side sagittal plane view of a shoe sole. It depicts the rounded heel portion (1) and its associated wrap (made of rubber, expanded foam or similar cushioning material) covering this portion. In this embodiment, the rounded heel portion (1) gradually curves from a position below the base of the heel to a position approximately perpendicular to such position. Thus, the rounded shape approximates that of a human heel. In another embodiment, the heel approximates the shape of a quarter-sphere. In still other embodiments, looking in the sagittal plane, the

heel portion slopes upward toward the end of the heel in the approximate shape of a quarter-circle.

Figure 2 also depicts the wrap (11) extending up the outside wall of the shoe to the side of the metatarsal region. Such wraps at the heel and on the lateral side of the shoe provide greater durability and additional protection and grip on the pedals and floor.

A bottom plan view of the exterior side of the shoe sole is depicted in Figure 3a. The rounded heel portion (12) is shown in part. The upper rounded heel portion (13) is further shown in Figure 3b, an elongated,"flattened"view of the portion beginning with line E-E of Figures 2,3a and 4 and extending in a rounded manner up the heel of the shoe sole. The base of the interior portion (13) of the shoe is outlined by a dotted line. The shoe tread pattern (15) may be varied to suit particular uses or fashions without affecting the objects of the invention.

Figure 4 shows a side sagittal plane view of the interior side of a shoe sole. In the preferred embodiment, the wrap (14) on the lateral side is less pronounced than that on the exterior side.

Figures 5,6,7,8 and 9 show cross-sectional coronal plane views of the shoe sole taken at various points from toe to heel. The views are from the front or distal side. Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially along line B-B of Figures 2, 3 a and 4, cutting through the metatarsal region The wrap (11) is shown on the base and sides of this cross-section. It is apparent from this view that the wrap (11) in this embodiment extends higher up the side of the shoe on the exterior side, away from the body. The cushioned region (3) can also be seen to extend upward on the sides in order to protect the sides of the foot from contact with the attached, inflexible"upper"of the shoe. The use of an athletic construction enhances"toe spring,"the gradual upward curvature from the ground plane from below the metatarsal heads to the toe. This enhances natural stride and comfort.

Figure 6 depicts a similar view along the C-C axis of Figures 2, 3a and 4, showing a cross section of the arch region (7). In the depicted embodiment, this region is extended above the ground.

Figures 7,8 and 9 show the substantially cushioned heel area (16), (17), (2) along the D-D, E-E and F-F axes of Figures 2, 3a and 4. As discussed above, the shoes can be comfortably worn outside the car. Existing shoes lack a cushioning element of an athletic material construction. This lack of a cushioning element in this position for existing driving shoes and driving moccasins results in stress when the foot contacts and moves relative to an inflexible part of the interior of the shoe. In the preferred embodiment, an athletic construction of polyurethane (PU) foam or ethyl vinyl acetate (EVA) foam or similar cushioning material is used to reduce vibration and other motion-related stresses. The heel area has extensive lower heel cushioning with gradually increasing side cushioning as one progresses to the proximal end of the shoe. The distance between the base of the shoe and the ground in Figure 9 reflects the upward curve of the rounded heel portion (1) at this point.

Cushioning thickness would vary based on the size of the shoe, but in most embodiments would be in the range of 3 to 10 mm under the forefoot and 13 to 20 mm under the heel.