HISTORY OF SKATE SHOES - PT 1

Did their shoes influence you?
No. Even in 1976, when pro-skateboarding first began, we weren't thinking about shoe companies. That came later. Vans was the first skate shoe company I was ever aware of and Airwalk came along shortly thereafter. Regardless of when those companies were first formed, that's the sequential order that they first became generally known in our sport. Prior to that, the most well-known and widely worn shoes in skateboarding were Converse Chuck Taylor high-tops.

We never considered Converse a skate shoe company since Chuck Taylor was a basketball star, but they definitely made the best shoe for skateboarding for a long time, mainly due to the way shoes were judged at the time. Not by being trendy or cool, but by function alone. We liked Chuck Taylors because of the relatively thin sole and the high-top. Thin sole for being board sensitive and high-top because we were always being smashed in the ankles by other skater's runaway boards. That's why Van’s Old Skool high-tops (I don't think they were originally called that, but I could be wrong) were so popular later. Vans added the padding to the high-top area where we always got hit. High-tops were also popular because of the added ankle support a high-top provides. My first shoe sponsor was Converse in the late 70s. Three of my teamriders, Jim McCall, Tim Morris, and Rodney Mullen, also received regular packages from Converse. I think the fact that Mullen skated wearing high-tops for so long shows me clearly that advanced maneuvers and footwork are not particularly hindered or restricted by wearing high-tops.                 

Name the coolest skate shoe of all time?
I'd say the Vans Old Skool High-Top because its design was based on skateboarding function, not fad or fashion. By my observation, it was probably the most widely worn skate shoe of all time.