Female Air Jordan Freaker: 350 Pairs Of Basketball Kicks!

With almost every OG Jordan 6 and 7, some 2001 Jordan 3s, the South Beach Lebron 8s and over 350 other pairs of pure fire, have we ever seen a lady lace 'em up like this?! Meet Rebecca Dahms, a female freaker with a fever for the Jordan flavour! Amidst the Pumps, Js and Hyperdunks, we talked to the girl with the grails for the full story on this massive collection of basketball sneakers!

You have an amazing collection of basketball sneakers! Where did this all come from?
Thank you! It all started back in 2000 when they retro'd the Jordan V in the White/Black/Red colorway. I bought a pair and haven't looked back! The interest in shoes came from when I was a kid growing up in the late 80s and early 90s. My parents didn't have a lot of money growing up and when I wanted a new pair of basketball shoes, it certainly wasn't Nikes or Jordans, it was Payless specials. I remember asking my Dad if he would buy me the new Jordan VIs in the Black/Infrared colorway and he kept telling me 'no' every single time. Eventually I gave up asking for expensive Nikes and Jordans and hoped that one day I would be able to buy my own … and here I am now.

How many sneakers are in your collection?
I quit keeping an accurate account a while ago. I know it's over 350 pair now though. My family and friends think I'm crazy for having that many. I just recently moved and it was a huge pain to pack, unpack and reorganize that many pairs of shoes.

As far as the hyped releases such as the recent Jordan 11 Concords, is it easier to cop for you because the small/women's sizes aren't as highly sought-after? Or is it harder because there's so few sneakers available in your size?
Honestly, I feel it's harder to get the limited stuff. Most of the shoes I buy are 7.5 mens and companies just don't make that many in that size. And with the limited releases, every size is sought after it seems, whether you're going to actually keep the shoes and wear them or resell them. Every once in a while though, I'll search eBay and some good stuff comes up in 7.5, so the stuff is out there. Sometimes I just have to wait a bit after the release to get the size and get it for a good price.

Most girls will generally buy the low-cut, light silhouettes, but your collection features some monsters! Do you wear the bigger sneakers like the Bringbacks often?
I don't wear them as often as say, a pair of LeBrons, but they are all worn at some point. All the Reebok Pumps that I have now, I dreamed of having growing up, especially the Twilight Zones. I used to love looking at the ads in the magazines and seeing the 'new' technology of the shoes, especially the Pumps. To me as a kid, that stuff was ground breaking technology and I had to have those Pumps to help me play basketball better. When I wear them now, they definitely turn some heads.

Your collection of Jordans is impressive, but you've also got a lot of LeBrons, Kobes, Hyperdunks etc. How do you feel the current basketball sneaks measure up to the classic Jordans?
The Kobes, LeBrons etc definitely have their spot in the game today. But to me, nothing measures up to the classic Jordans. Technologically speaking, the Nikes right now are far superior to the classic Jordans obviously. But the classic Jordans are timeless … There's a reason why they're still so sought after today, even the retros.

You've got some amazing OG Jordans in there; did you cop those off the shelf many years ago or have you purchased them more recently?
I wish I would have bought those off the shelf many years ago! I have purchased most of the OGs within the last 5-7 years. For many of them, it was a 'right time, right place' sort of thing. I was on the hunt for some some OG VIs and they just kept popping up in the right size for a decent price. Thankfully each time a pair would be available, I had the funds. I didn't start off buying OGs right away. It took me a few years to really justify purchasing a shoe I couldn't wear, especially for the prices of some of the pairs. Then a pair of DS OG Black/Infrared VIs with the paper and box popped up and those are my favorite shoe of all time, my grail, so I bought them. At that point I decided I wanted to get all the OG VIs and VIIs; I've come very close to getting all the OG colorways in DS condition, I'm only missing one now. One day I might take on all the OG IV and V colorways.

You obviously cop a lot of men's sneakers in smaller sizes. How do you feel about the women's basketball releases? Should they quit with the pink?
I personally don't think they should quit with the pink. I have a couple pair of pink Nikes in the collection. But I think that shoe companies need to realize that there are a lot more females out there that don't necessarily want a shoe with feminine colors for every release than they think. I'm one of those. I've been a tomboy all my life and have almost always gravitated towards the men's colorways. I'm fortunate enough to have a shoe size where I can get most of the mens releases in the colorways I want. I do think that shoe companies have done better over the past couple of years with the colorways for females however.

Which is your favourite Jordan?
The VI, with my favorite colorway being the Black/Infrared.

Which is your favourite non-Jordan sneaker?
Oh man, I would have to say the Reebok Pump Twilight Zone in the White/Black/Neon Yellow colorway. When I heard that Reebok was going to retro those, I was beyond excited. I was enamored with that shoe as a kid.

What are you still hunting for? Do you have a grail?
I'm still on the hunt for OG Carmine VIs – DS with original paper and box. Also, the Thunder and Lightning IVs and Motorsport VIs. There's more, but those are at the top of my list right now.