There’s a New Balance of Power at Pratt Miller Motorsports

Eddy Eckart

Anyone following sports car racing news might think the biggest story to come out of the GTD Pro Class at last weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona was the class victory for the number 65 Ford Mustang GT3, which just beat out the number 3 Corvette Z06 GT3.R of Pratt Miller Motorsports for the top step of the podium. Or maybe the clash between Corvette and BMW in the closing hours of the race. But they’d be wrong. 

In a move that has to date garnered little press, prior to the race Pratt Miller made the bold decision to completely refit its crew with new footwear. Following extensive testing that included walking, ambling, shuffling, getting stuff from the fridge, and—crucially—bending over to pull up knee socks, the team’s kit men were able to rule out new offerings from Avia, Pro Wings, Rockport, and Skechers, including both laced and sleek double-Velcro-closure models. 

Pratt Miller Corvette New Balance shoes
Pratt Miller Motorsports

It should come as no surprise to those who follow the vast Corvette apparel industry, then, that the team went with New Balance. Details are thin on the ground, but Hagerty spy photos appear to suggest the team has gone with the Fresh Foam X 880v14 in black, a radical departure from the white-over-navy 608 V5 Casual Comfort Cross Trainers favored by so much of the Corvette world, or the 577 V1 hook-and-loops made famous by the C5 corral at Bloomington Gold for nine years running. 

Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a source close to the team tells Hagerty that, “Frankly, it wasn’t even close. Rockports are comfy, don’t get me wrong, and Avia surprised us with the features packed into a $19 pleather shoe, but the kind of high-performance automotive ballet that goes on within this team, all the shuffling and the back-and-forth over the pit wall … well, we just needed the Corvette of shoes. And that means New Balance.”

Though purists might take issue with Pratt Miller’s choice to go with a model seen as a bit more stylish and contemporary than the aforementioned workhorses, our source reveals that the decision was based partially on the C8 Corvette itself. “The mid-engine C8 is a revolution in American sports car design and execution. Everything about it screams ‘forward thinking’. The team was unanimous that our footwear should scream that too. And these Fresh Foam X 880v14s, they’re screamers.”

New Balance Fresh Foam X 880v14
“They’re screamers.”New Balance

Hagerty’s field reporters from Daytona, Eddy Eckart and Steven Cole Smith, have confirmed that in the entire 24 hours they kept tabs on the Pratt Miller pits, not once did they see anyone trip, slip, or get off-kilter in any way. “Those dudes were upright,” says Eckart, who spent much of the race sipping tall boys of clam-tomato beer with his flip-flops beside him and his frigid bare feet kicked up on the catch fence. Nor were there any reports of fatigue, plantar fasciitis, or collapsed arches from the Corvette team. “Color me jealous,” says Smith, who went through half a roll of racing tape trying to keep his 27-year-old British Knights from leaving him stranded in the paddock.  

Our source within Pratt Miller could not confirm whether the team has been testing the waters for a new kit supplier, but representatives in stone-washed jorts from both Wrangler and Lee were seen schmoozing Corvette Racing execs throughout the event, so it’s entirely possible we could see an updated look for Sebring.  

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Comments

    I’m a Corvette owner but I wear Asics.

    Is NB still even made?

    Actually should have done a story on BMW and Corvette tangling at Daytona. It was much more interesting than the really long Dad Joke.

    BMW beat on the Vettes all race and at the end one was leading the BMW and the team mate that the BMW knocked out got spun out at the end of the race It was worth several positions. LOL! BMW learned the real meaing of FAFO.

    I, for one, appreciated the Dad Joke. Please continue to bring the levity to the Very Serious Business of old cars that nobody needs.

    Yeah this doesn’t help the old guy + Corvette + New Balance shoes joke. My question are they wearing Jean Shorts? If so the circle is complete.

    As a fat former athelet in my mid 50s with two artificial knees, NB Fresh Foams (I favor the Fresh Foam Mores), are the 1974 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham d’Elegances of the shoe world.

    Wasted time reading all the way to the end, all the while waiting for something of importance to be passed on to us. Geez, they get paid to do this?

    I think the Corvette teams should worry less about shoes and more about winning races. It seems like everytime I watch an IMSA races the Corvettes are winning the race then get knocked out of the race by another car, usually a European car. I’m not sure what’s going on here but something should change. It seems like it’s mainly happening with the new C8 racing teams. They either need stricter rules on contact with other cars to stop the C8s being damaged or change the fiberglass fenders to carbon fiber. Just a thought.

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