Random Pair of Shoes I Once Wore

Holy crap. It has been a while since I posted anything on this site. So many good Wisconsin sports stories have taken place over the past few weeks (Badger Bowl wins, Badger Basketball starts out 2-0 in the Big Ten, Packers on fire heading in to Playoffs, Brewers deferring money on Wolf's contract to sign Washburn, etc.) however I have had no drive to post anything. Well, I figure I might as well get the ball rolling again with the latest installment of "Random Pair of Shoes I Once Wore". This installment brings you one of my favorite pairs of shoes ever. The Air Force 180's from 1991. Also known as the Charles Barley shoe.

These things just looked awesome. They were a little bit heavy but not as bad as the David Robinson Air Force V's I previously discussed and wore a year earlier. These were also the shoes that I wore while getting cut from the Freshman basketball team at Case. There was no need for a slow, good passing, OK shooting guard at that school. So these shoes became my inter-mural/wear to school shoes. Even though they didn't get a lot of basketball use, they were sweet shoes to wear around. Unfortunately my feet grew out of these before I could wear them out.

I still get an Eastbay catalog about twice a month. Looking at the basketball shoes thay have out now, I would still rather purchase a pair that loked like these. Seems like basketball shoe styles peaked in the early to mid 90's and have just gotten very strange and ugly since then. Doing a quick search, I noticed someone is selling a size 8 of these bad boys for $180 bucks on Ebay. Who the hell wears a size 8?

Random Shoes I Once Wore: Gazzeles

These were classics. I loved these shoes. I still love these shoes but can only find them in black. I digress these shoes were a staple of my wardrobe from freshmen year of high school through mid college a solid 6 year run.

This was right around the time Adidas’s name was rumored to stand for All Day I Dream About Soccer. Unless you went to the public school in town and the (S) stood for sex, allegedly.

They were cheep (relatively speaking) came in multiple colors and were so comfortable it was ridiculous. Now they didn’t offer any support, traction and lacked any durability but I loved um.

You could burn though a pair of these in about a month of good wear. So it was best to own multiple pairs and mix up the rotation. I owned Grey (still my favorite), Blue, Black, Red and I think I had a Port Pirate Green pair at one point.

The more worn in these bad boys became the more comfortable they were. They became more like socks then shoes. The insole foam took the shape of your feet and the swede became softer over time.

My favorite memory comes from the red pair. After I lost them in a high stacks game of between the sheets (cards, get your head out of the gutter) the night prior the big winner was in a minor car crash the next morning. As he laid on the emergency room table his mother noticed his blood red feet and cried hysterically that her boy’s feet were bleeding. Nope. He was wearing his winnings on his way to pick me up for school.

Good times.

Random Pair of Shoes I Once Wore

Nike Air Force V.
David Robinson Signature Shoe.
Purchased in 1990 for 8th grade basketball.

Growing up I was a big David Robinson fan. I had Robinson posters on my hall and way too many Spurs t-shirts for a kid in Wisconsin. So when Robinson's first signature shoes came out, I had to have them for what would be my last basketball season. My feet had just recently grown to the point where I had to start buying adult sized shoes which meant more money. The Air Force Vs were top of the line stuff, so they were up there in price. My parents set a $60 limit and I had to pay the rest with my snow shoveling money. I believe these things were at or over $100.

I that they looked awesome and loved them. Until I tried to play basketball in them. In 8th grade I was just your average sized guard and a stringbean. I think these things weighed as much as I did and came half way up to my knee. It felt like I had blocks on my feet. These shoes were definitely not designed for 8th grade point guards. Eventually I talked my parents into buying some $20 pair of shoes at the Nike Outlet to replace these monsters. However, they did look great with the Catholic school uniform.

The one other thing I remember about these shoes is that they game with some giant plastic Nike Air square key chain thing attached to the shoes. I took it off right away, but remember seeing others waring them with the key chain thing still attached. Remember, this was back when keeping all the tags on your baseball hat was cool. Anyhow, I can't imagine these shoes being any clunkier, but adding a key chain would definitely do the trick.

I cant imagine these things were that popular. They were just so clunky. There is a reason Nelly sang about Air Force Is and not Air Force Vs.

A little more info according to NiceKicks.com: The ultra high top cut is a favorite for vintage heads as well as the rubber mesh netting that covers the tongue and on the heel. The big Force logo is stamped on the tongue in case anyone thinks this shoe wasn’t made for a big man and the toe box features micro perforations.

Random Shoes I Once Owned, Week 3

Anybody remember the Reebok Blacktops? Early 90s. The theory was making line of shoes durable enough to withstand playing outside on playgrounds. Nothing like bringing a little "street" to my very white existence in Port Washington, WI.


They lasted longer AND were cool: a perfect scenario for my penny-saving Mom. A win-win! Well, they didn't wear down slower...those sonsofbitches wore out faster. Talk about false advertising! They had this thick black sole which looked like asphalt, but wasn't any stronger than styrofoam. A truly terrible shoe. Seriously, I've never bought anything but Nike because of these piles of shit. Hell, Reebok specifically designs a shoe to withstand playing on the playgrounds, and they fall apart faster? Screw you, Reebok! I didn't realize so many people were hoodwinked by this fools gold until I found this 1991 article:


"Two months into its commercial life, it has sold out of many stores. By year end, Reebok expects to have delivered to retailers some 2.2 million pairs.Why the fuss over a $69 sneaker? Reebok says it's because the Blacktop, which has a tough sole and heavy leather uppers, is built especially for punishing play on urban outdoor courts."


Sorry, I can't for the life of me find a picture of the ones I had - the standard mid-tops in white. The Blacktop Pumps, 21 pounds and $60 more, are shown here:

Random Shoes I Once Owned

After the the rousing success of the "Dave Parker Random CD of the Week" on Chuckie Hacks, I figured here was as good a place as any to start a new feature entitled "Random Shoes I Once Wore".

First, a little background. I went to a Catholic school from Kindergarten through 8th grade. We had to wear navy blue pants and a white or light blue button down or polo shirt every day. Had to wear a belt and had to wear black socks. But for whatever reason, there were no restrictions on the shoes. This is where it was my time to shine. I usually got one pair of sneakers at the beginning of the school year and then a pair of basketball shoes later in the fall. These would be my school shoes for the year. Since the uniforms were had to wear were pretty blah, my young self must have decided to make a splash with some truly ugly shoes. This "Random Shoes I Once Wore" series will chronicle the ugly shoes of my past, explain why I wore them, the teams/players that wore them and some other random tidbits about the shoes. Most of the photos will be from the internet, but if I go to my parents house and find any of these shoes laying around the basement, I'll take a photo.

Without further adieu, we kick off the series with an orange and white pair of Nike Air Dunks. I'm guessing I picked these bad boys up around 1987 or 1988. I got these at the Nike outlet when it was in its first iteration in Kenosha by Superb Video. The photo shows a hi-top version but I had the low-cut version. These things were hideous. However, I recall them being pretty comfortable. I remember wanting these shoes after seeing Syracuse wear them in the 1987 Final Four. I can distinctly remember Rony Seikaly wearing these bad boys. I grew out of these pretty fast, so I think they had only a short run on my feet, but I wore them long enough for people to tell me I had Creamsicles on my feet. Didn't deter me. I loved these bad boys.

A little more info on the Nike Dunks. They were designed as a technical basketball shoe with a lower profile so you could have more control during "basketball moves". However, they were most known for their color patterns designed to match college team uniforms.