HISTORY OF SKATE SHOES - PT 1

Airwalk did the 720, almost up your knee. Things did get big. Really big. So was your choice of footwear linked to who your idols were?
Yeah I think so. But mostly it was based on what I had access to at the time. Shoes were so hard to get – I actually had my Nikes resoled twice! I wore those to death and then the same with Vans, I had them resoled as well. I think the marketing was really clever. As a 15 year old back then, seeing these magazines, I guess the whole thing was euphoric because the magazines promoted terrain we didn’t have and shoes we had to send away for. If we didn’t have the clothes, we didn’t give a shit we just went out and skated. But if you didn’t have the full uniform, you looked a bit of a dick.

I guess it hasn’t really changed in that fashion sense, and the function of the shoe hasn’t changed either, because you wouldn’t ever wear a shoe that wasn’t going to work. You always wanted your shoe to be clean. You would never walk through mud to get to a skatepark. You would find a sealed access way or you would climb a fence to get to the skatepark. You would find a way to keep your shoes clean or carry a second pair of shoes with you. It’s funny to think back to those days...

Man, nothing changes... thanks Tony!

www.tonyhallamskateboarding.com.au
A serious note of thanks to Tony for his unflinching good humour when repeatedly asked to bring more and more stuff to our office for photography. Tony also put us in touch with all our interviewees as well. Thanks to him, these examples of modern history will live on!