TSP12: Tinley Lace Locks
Recently I bought my first pair of running shoes in maybe 4 years. The Asics Evo Ride 3. They’re great. Cushioned. Yes. But more importantly light. As I miss the old super-light racing flats of the 80s.
Like the Reebok London. As worn by Steve Jones when he broke the marathon world record at the 1984 Chicago Marathon. And the Nike Air Mariah. As worn by Glenn Cook in Avignon in 1989.
Images:
Triathlete (USA) May 1988
Athletics Weekly (UK) 17th November 1984
To make my Asics Evo Ride 3s even better for triathlon I put on one of my pairs of Tinley lace locks. I got my first pair of Tinley lace locks from Total Fitness in Swindon at the end of 1988.
Now I’ve got two pairs. Below. The yellow pair were a present from my brother a few years ago. And I bought the orange ones on eBay recently.
Having these dangling from your Londons or Mariahs in the 1980s would certainly distinguish you as a triathlete with some class.
Images: My two pairs of Tinley lace locks.
Scott Tinley started Tinley Performance Wear with Jim Riley and two other partners in 1984. This was six months after the closing of Team J David.
Riley already owned a clothing company, Perfection, and Tinley had just quit his job marketing and distributing sports shoes with Sole International. With this skill set combo the company did well.
They made race wear, casual stuff and eventually wetsuits. Every triathlete from San Diego to Slough via Swindon owned something from the collection. I definitely had a vest and maybe some running shorts.
Images:
220 UK) Nov-Dec 1991. Photo credit. Sally or John Lillie.
Triathlete (USA) March 1987
Above is the classic Tinley look from 1987. White cropped vest with solid coloured side bars and a patterned chest bar.
Paired with wide-side trunks, patterned the same as the vest. Scott also has 2 sew on sponsor patches for Raleigh and Bud Light. I was a big sew on patch fan. Something else I need to bring back to triathlon.
Part of Tinley Performance Wear’s marketing tactics involved erecting a huge inflatable Scott at races. The company was sold to Reebok in 1992.
Links:
1987 USTS Hilton Head Triathlon
Steve Jones Interview
1984 Chicago Marathon
1989 World Short Course Championships in Avignon
Team J David
1988 USTS Chicago Triathlon
Sources:
Tinley Bio https://scotttinley.com/bio/
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-06-01-sp-9034-story.html
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-06-04-sp-2853-story.html
