These ten lost, listless and likely unlamented Crocs have escaped to an environment already “clogged” with too much plastic.
Unknown Foot Soldiers
You’ve heard of “The Blue & the Gray”? Meet “The Pink and the Green”… some might say that’s progress. It’s not known who lost the abandoned Crocs above so there’s no way to discern which side of the Mason-Dixon Line they hail from. Point is, each one left their “sole” on the battlefield at Gettysburg, PA, and in doing so, helped forge a bond of unity through shared loss.
Fun Crocs fact: The first Crocs model was introduced in 2001 and over the proceeding two decades more than 300 million of the much-vilified ventilated clogs have been sold. There are no firm stats on how many Crocs have been lost but a ballpark figure would be… roughly 3.5 ballparks full. (images at top and above via fauxto_digit)
I Found Bigfoot!
Thank the phenomenon of forced perspective for the intimidating image above – you’d think The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe just bought a new beach house on lovely Trearddur Bay, Wales. Its garish electric blue hue notwithstanding, this solitary sandal retains some dignity by being an official “Croc” (as per the displayed logo rivet covers securing the ankle strap) and not a cheap knock-off Croc wannabe.
Fun Crocs fact: Although Crocs (based in Niwot, CO) was founded by Americans Lyndon “Duke” Hanson and George Boedecker Jr., the original design for a comfortable “boating shoe” was conceived by a Quebec City, Canada-based company called Foam Creations. Crocs bought Foam Creations in 2004 and successfully filed four patents (1 for manufacturing; 3 for design) in 2006. (image via Alastair Thompson)
Childhood’s End
This kid-size li’l pink Croc appears to be revealing itself as the warm spring sun melts away the last of the previous winter’s snow and… the photo is dated “February 5”. Which begs the question: what mother-of-the-year sends their precious snowflake to school wearing Crocs while Mother Nature’s snowflakes fall from a leaden sky? We’re betting the kid “lost” that Croc on purpose.
Fun Crocs fact: Crocs are made from injection-molded Croslite foam that gradually adjusts to the shape of the wearer’s foot and supposedly provides a number of health benefits, as attested to by the American Podiatric Medical Association. And you thought Crocs’ design was merely a trolling fashion statement? (image via Clyde Robinson)
Green as Nature
Lost or found, Crocs will be with us for a LONG time – they’re neither biodegradable nor are they recyclable, at least not in the traditional sense. The problem is the Croslite material which isn’t plastic at all, it’s a type of resin – foamable ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) to be exact, softened with a polyolefin elastomer (“Engage”, from Dow Chemical) and tinted with artificial pigment. This means Crocs cannot be recycled along with other items made out of actual plastic.
Fun Crocs fact: While the explanation above makes Crocs sound like a terribly eco-unfriendly product, Crocs is aware of their shoes’ green shortcomings and participating Crocs retail stores provide bins for buyers to drop off their old shoes for refurbishing. Hey, it’s something – at least the clogs will get more use in the third world before becoming a permanent part of the whole world. (image via Jesse Loughborough)
Lost Croc Blues
You might not be ready to get on the cart just yet but for Crocs, any time’s the right time… ‘specially if they’re imitation “croc-offs” that copy the brand’s distinctive look and market it at a lower price. Unlike real Crocs, the abandoned sandal above could be made from recyclable plastic – its vivid blue hue is identical to the shopping cart’s plastic grill. Maybe that’s why it was lost so easily.
Fun Crocs fact: Crocs trades under the “CROX” acronym at NASDAQ where it was first listed on July 13 of 2011, closing that day at $26.21 per share. The stock recently hit an all-time high of $116.09 per share after nearly tripling in value over the past year. (image via Jeff Youngstrom)
Do you prefer to get your kicks from fully recyclable footwear? Check out Sole Purpose: Recycling Washed Up Flip-Flops Into Art!
