NikeLAB Air Zoom Chalapuka
UPDATE: Official images of the Air Zoom have been released. The retro runner curio recently made its unexpected debut at Rochambeau’s NYFW runway event earlier in July, but we now have a chance to indulge in its finer details. The Chalapuka features a mesh upper overlaid with vachetta leather for a drastically more upmarket look compared to its OG inspiration: the TPU-heavy . An sole unit is affixed to the bottom as a further point of difference from the obscure early-2000s silhouette.
No official release date has been given at this point, but we can confirm that the 2016 Air Zoom Chalapuka will be a NikeLab exclusive. Granted that the official Nike images are now public, we can expect a release to follow closely behind. We'll keep you posted.
The Chapuka is back! Well, a version of it is anyway. The daringly ventilated shoe first hit the production line as part of Nike’s Alpha Project, which counted the brand’s highest performing sneakers in its ranks.
These Chapukas here were seen at NYFW as part of Rochambeau’s most recent collection and are constructed with all of the shoe’s original stylistic principals, with the addition of some updated materials. The OG Chapuka was a plastic-meshed runner with a ribcage of TPU encasing a flank-less sneakersock. This new Chapuka takes the upper of its millennial forebear and reimagines it with premium leathers and mesh that doesn’t look like it could belong to an aqua shoe like the OG’s did. The sole too has been revamped, featuring a full length Zoom.
The Nike Chapuka hasn’t been given a release date, but we’ll let you know when you can find it on NDC.
– Originally published July 18, 2016