2007 - BEST OF THE BEST SNEAKERS

JAPO / SF FORUM / AMSTERDAM

I can talk for ages about this shoe, about the difference between the retro and the new release, the mystery and the air unit. We are not going to do that. I do have a personal story with a lot of childhood memories where it makes my flesh crepes. When I got them at the age of eight in 1989, I went to my parents asking them for the Air Max ‘Women’s’ Lights, the mens style weren’t in my size, my feet were too small.

In our school, you wouldn’t get away with a pair kicks if you didn’t have a big air unit! Huaraches, Agassis and Air Max 1, 90 and 180 ruled the streets. This was the days with the biggest windows you’ve ever seen. The Chigago Bulls were the shit, MJ was boss, the Terminator hit the big screen, Transformers and Streetfighter, Manga had taken over the community. I am losing it! Excuse me sir, just a big child I am. There I was with my dad at the local soccer shop (words like sneakers or kicks didn’t exist back in the days). Nope, we went buying sport shoes in the local sport shop. Yeah I am feeling it 13 years back in time. I was looking at them and my heart kept bouncing harder and harder and I already saw the orange tag. So I asked the salesman for my size and he said he had a pair left. His colleague came out and gave the shoe box to the guy next to me and I looked at his box and it was my size! Oh shit, let me think, the salesmen said he had one pair left. That’s my size, oh shit I have to kill him. I was waiting and praying that he wouldn’t take them.

All of you guys already know the end of this story. I didn’t kill him and I didn’t get my pair. These were the old days, no internet no webshops, no cellular phone! That’s it, no lights for me. But now at 26 years, I hooked up with the og lights and it made feel so fucking good, flesh creeping again. That is Nike love, nothing better than that!