US Patent 7013583 Footwear with removable foot-supporting member

An article of footwear is disclosed having an upper, a foot-supporting member, and a sole structure. The foot-supporting member includes a heel region located at a greater elevation than a forefoot region, thereby defining a recess under the heel region. The sole structure includes a midsole that forms a protrusion on the interior of the footwear. The protrusion mates with the recess to provide support for the heel region. The foot-supporting member may also incorporate pronation control characteristics, including a downward cant from a medial to a lateral side of the foot-supporting member and a region of reduced support generally underlying the first metatarsal. To further reduce the rate of pronation, the sole structure includes a region in the rear-lateral corner that is more compressible than other areas of the sole structure.