[HEIRLOOM TECHNOLOGY SA^TN^ID^RA^ELS]

By Tim Anderson

Solve multiple global problems at once when you make your own sandals from an old tire.

An accumulation of old tires is an increasing problem in the United States. Tires can’t be easily recycled, and mosquitoes breed in the water that collects in them. But you can solve multiple problems at once when you make your own sandals from an old tire.

Rubber tires make great shoe soles. The line “huarache sandals, too” in the Beach Boys song “Surfin’ U.S.A.” refers to the Mexican tire-soled sandals once worn by well-dressed surfers. The Viet Cong and other armies have been shod almost entirely with such footwear.

Once found in every country warm enough to wear sandals in, they’re increasingly hard to find. The last time my dad tried to buy huaraches in Mexico they had injection-molded soles instead of the traditional tires. He was told that Mexicans associate the tires with poverty. So it looks like we’ll have to make our own. I prefer flip-flops to sandals, so that’s what I usually make.

TIRE FLIP-FLOPS

I’ve been wearing a pair of these for a couple of years now. I’ve worn them in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, China, and all over the U.S., and they’re still going strong. They seem stiff compared to the usual flip-flop, but that becomes a virtue when walking on sharp rocks that would destroy ordinary flip-flop soles.

Now that I’m used to them, it’s far more comfortable than going barefoot, even indoors. The curve from the tire tread is nice — it helps keep the shoe on your foot and it gives your stride a bit of a “rolling” feel.

NOTE: Don’t use a steel-belted tire. It can be hard to find a non-steel-belted tire in the U. S., but spare tires often have fabric belts rather than steel. Most of the world can’t afford steel-belted tires, so it’s not a problem outside our borders.

40 Make: Volume 10