Charlie's Sneaker FAQ and Glossary - O

This FAQ and Glossary defines a number of terms used in regards to athletic shoes, Charlie, or sneakers.

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Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Abbreviated "OSA." A medical condition where a defect in the muscles or structure of the nose, throat, or both causes one to not breathe intermittently at night. People with Obstructive Sleep Apnea frequently suffer from some combination of daytime fatigue, high blood pressure, and morning headaches. A CPAP machine resolves the problem for most patients who will put up with sleeping with a mask over their nose at night. There are other techniques to treat OSA, some more successful than others, but CPAP is the most successful as a first try.

Ochoco: A lake and state park in Oregon, located east of the town of Prineville; also a United States national forest. Probably the naming inspiration for the Nike Ochoco sport sandal.

O-Flex: A forthcoming (Spring 2006) cushioning technology from Nike-owned Starter. O-Flex sounds a lot like Shox.

Okemo: A mountain in Vermont, one of the fifty United States of America. Probably the inspiration for the Nike Air Okemo hiking boot.
Old School: A term sometimes used to describe sneakers that were around when Baby Boomers were going to school, or more recent designs that emulate these designs. When Baby Boomers went to school, it was "The Wonder Years" in real life, before Title IX: basketball boys in Chucks and cheerleaders in Keds.... and the most dangerous thing was getting caught smoking in the restroom (which I [Charlie] never did). Examples include the adidas "shell-toes" Promodel and Superstar, the Converse "Chuck Taylor" All Star and the One Star, and the Puma Clyde suede sneaker. Charlie should know all about "old school" as he went to one built in 1923.

Old Skool: A spelling of "old school" used by those who most likely didn't get A's in spelling class. Nowadays, they probably wear addidas Shell Toes.

Ollie: A basic skateboard stunt. Propelling the skateboard into the air, while maintaining foot contact, and landing; all without hands on the skateboard. Named after skateboarder Ollie Gelfand.

Ollie area: The front edges of skateboarding shoes, which encounter heavy stress while doing an ollie.
One Star: A suede version of the low-top Chuck, with one star cut out of the side.

Onitsuka: The early name (before 1997) of one of the predecessor companies of ASICS Tiger Corporation. Named for Kihichiro Onitsuka, founder and chairman.

Oregon: Reportedly, one of the most beautiful states in the entire United States. Oregon's many rivers and lakes contributed names for many Nike sport sandals and hiking boots. Its cities include the Portland suburb of Beaverton, possibly the center of the sneaker universe.

Oregon Waffle: A term for the outsole of Nike athletic shoes and a one-time style (introduced about 1976). Derived from bizarre experiments by Nike employees who tried making prototype sneakers with the family waffle iron.

Ornament: The (usually) plastic coating at the tips of sneaker laces that makes it easier to pass the laces through the eyelets. Also called an aglet or a tag.

OSA: See "Obstructive Sleep Apnea."

Otomix: A brand of sneakers. From what I can tell, their target market invariably enjoys going to the gym, pumps tiny barbells, wears tight workout wear, and primps in the mirror constantly.

Outing shoes: A term occasionally used for sneakers. If they got full of sand, they might be sandshoes.

Outsole: The portion of the sneaker sole that makes contact with the ground; the part that is visible as the bottom of the shoe.

Outsole, Replacing: This question came up recently by someone that remembered shoe repair kits of the past. After doing some research, I (Charlie) came across the following information:

Shoe repair businesses resole expensive dress shoes as a major part of their workload.
Even if the outsole is replaced, the rest of the shoe is still original material which may be worn out without looking like it.

NOTE: I have no experience with this process. If you decide to try resoled athletic shoes, I would like to hear about your experiences.

Oxford: A low-top sneaker with laces across the instep; compare to a slip-on.

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Last Updated: 29 March 2008 22:59

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READERS PLEASE NOTE: Names of athletic shoe manufacturers, shoe styles, and technologies may be trademarked by the manufacturers. Charlie's Sneaker Pages uses these names solely to describe the shoes with the same familiar nomenclature used by the manufacturer and recognized by the reader.