Pliable athletic foot guard

Abstract

A foot guard to be worn with a shoe comprising an upper and a sole, said foot guard comprising: an upper comprising at least one pliable shock absorbent protective layer that covers the shoe; a top opening; and a bottom opening. The at least one protective layer comprises a plurality of protective strips protruding outward from the at least one protective layer that are raised with respect to the level of the at least one protective layer; extending from the bottom of one side of the upper, over the top of the upper, and down to the bottom of the opposite side of the upper; and ranging from the toe portion of the upper to the top opening. The protective strips and rows of the at least one protective layer are arranged in adjacent rows in an alternating pattern. The protective strips comprise a pliable shock absorbent material.

I claim: 
     
         1 . A foot guard to be worn with a shoe comprising an upper and a sole, said foot guard comprising:
 an upper comprising at least one pliable shock absorbent protective layer that covers the shoe;   a top opening in said upper allowing the shoe to enter the foot guard;   a bottom opening in said upper having a perimeter that is defined by the perimeter of the sole of the shoe; and   said at least one protective layer comprising a plurality of protective strips protruding outward from the at least one protective layer that are raised in height with respect to the level of the at least one protective layer; extending from the bottom edge of one side of said upper of the foot guard, over the top of the upper of the foot guard, and down to the bottom edge of the opposite side of the upper of the foot guard; covering at least part of the forefoot portion of the upper of the foot guard; and ranging from the toe portion of the upper of the foot guard to the top opening of the upper of the foot guard; wherein   said protective strips are arranged in rows in an alternating pattern with one row of the raised protective strips followed by and adjacent to a row of said at least one protective layer at the original level of the at least one protective layer; said row of the at least one protective layer at the original level of the at least one protective layer followed by and adjacent to another row of the protective strips which is subsequently followed by and adjacent to another row of the at least one protective layer at the original level of the at least one protective layer; and so on in a repeating pattern; and wherein   said protective strips comprise a pliable shock absorbent material.   
     
     
         2 . The foot guard of  claim 1 , wherein said protective strips comprise an aramid material. 
     
     
         3 . The foot guard of  claim 1 , wherein said protective strips comprise neoprene. 
     
     
         4 . The foot guard of  claim 1 , wherein said protective strips are fastened to said at least one protective layer. 
     
     
         5 . The foot guard of  claim 4 , wherein said protective strips are fastened to said at least one protective layer using stitching. 
     
     
         6 . The foot guard of  claim 4 , wherein said protective strips are fastened to said at least one protective layer using an adhesive fastener. 
     
     
         7 . The foot guard of  claim 1 , wherein said upper of the foot guard comprises at least one eye fastener fastened to and extending from the lowermost edge of the perimeter of said bottom opening of the upper of the foot guard.