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Posted: Feb 12 2009 08:37 pm

Remember when we were kids, and shoes were a really important part of your life? When you would beg mom or dad for a pair of Nike's only to get stuck with a pair of cheap $20 ripoffs from Payless? Maybe, that was just me.

Anyhoo, I thought it would fun to discuss the greatest shoes of the late 80s/Early 90s, when most of us were kids.

I nominate the following:

Nike Air Jordans:

The original "high style & design" basketball shoe. Before Air jordan, basketball shoes were solid white, or you just wore Converse AllStars. These brough color and sytle to the game. If you played basketball as a kid, these were the shoes you had to have.

The Original Adidas:

These were popular among every sports fan. Wheter you were playing football, soccar, basketball, or baseball with your friends after scool, these were a good choice. Good all-around performers.

Airwalks:

The original skate shoe. Thick soles and that went up high enough that you wouldn't rub a hole in the fabric from doing ollies and kickflips all day.

Convere AllStars:

The original athletic shoe, introduced in the 50s, and became mainstreem fasion with the birth of Grunge. Cheap and comfortable, and they came in unlimited colors and patterns.

Rebok Pumps:

A silly gimmick that caught on. These helped Rebok to try to steel some thunder from the unstoppable Nike powerhouse. They also made you to center of attention when you were the first of your friends to get a pair.

Aqua Socks:

For a time in the late 80s, neon and spandex became the rage. It didn't matter if you were a boy or a girl, you had a pair of spandex shorts with a neon pink or green stripe down the leg, and you probably owned a pair of Aqua Socks to match.

Any others that you guys can think of? How about for the younger generation? I know we have a few forumers who are still in school. What's the rage now? The Wheelies? I think those seem pretty cool, and sometimes wonder if they come in adult sizes... If they had those when I was a kid, I would have wanted those as bad as I wanted a pogo bal.

Joined: Apr 14 2006 Location: Lake Michigan Posts: 3332

I don't remember Aqua Socks.

I was a big fan of BK Diamonds:

Posted: Feb 12 2009 09:08 pm

When I was a little kid I always looked for light up shoes, regardless of who made them and how long they would last.

Posted: Feb 12 2009 11:00 pm

I had a pair of Aqua Shocks and several pairs of Converses throughout the 80's. I also had a pair of Batman shoes from the 1989 movie. I'm nit sure who made them but the style of the show was similar to Converse.

Posted: Feb 12 2009 11:45 pm

I don't know if they are the BEST, but I would say Air Jordans are the most iconic 80s/90s shoe for sure.

On another note, I've always been fascinated by those pump shoes, but never owned a pair. Does it really make the shoe more comfortable?

Posted: Feb 13 2009 12:09 am

I've tried a pair of pumps on before and it does adjust the show by using the pump. It makes it tighter if I remember correctly. I also had a pair of shoes with the lights in them.

Posted: Feb 13 2009 04:59 am

Probably one of the most iconic shoes of the late 80s was the Superstar from Adidas thanks to the attention it received because of Run-D.M.C. wearing it on stage. It's also the only shoe that I know of that can claim to have a classic rap song written about it.

Posted: Feb 14 2009 11:28 pm

DarknessDeku wrote:

When I was a little kid I always looked for light up shoes, regardless of who made them and how long they would last.

Yea I was definatley all about the L.A. Lights.

Posted: Feb 15 2009 12:38 am

Knyte, they're called Heelies and they're Evil Incarnate. Being around anybody who has them on is absolute hell, especially in a crowded mall and ESPECIALLY if it's some 2nd grader with inattentive parents that sildes all around you just to see how annoying he can get (often when you're carrying heavy or valuable & fragile boxes) before his mommy stops looking at the hottest new dildoes and stops him. Though I admit it's fun having a friend with them hold on to a rope attached to your bike and ride down a huge hill.

Posted: Feb 15 2009 01:11 am

ThatGuy wrote:

Knyte, they're called Heelies and they're Evil Incarnate. Being around anybody who has them on is absolute hell, especially in a crowded mall and ESPECIALLY if it's some 2nd grader with inattentive parents that sildes all around you just to see how annoying he can get (often when you're carrying heavy or valuable & fragile boxes) before his mommy stops looking at the hottest new dildoes and stops him. Though I admit it's fun having a friend with them hold on to a rope attached to your bike and ride down a huge hill.

Oh my god.

One day I was in a department store, which was in a mall. Everybody was doing their thing, I was looking at jackets, and some lady got in line. Her son quickly got bored, so he started speeding around the store with his heelies. Everybody was getting pissed, and one of the workers started yelling at him to stop. The kid turned head towards her, and suddenly plowed right into a huge display stand. There was a huge snap, and the entire thing collapsed. Boxes fell to the ground, clothes went flying everywhere, and the nearby manikin somehow got knocked over. Everybody was shocked, I'm trying not to laugh, and the lady and her kid got kicked out of the mall. Good times.

Posted: Feb 15 2009 02:22 am

I always wanted LA Lights so bad, but never got any. The coolest 90's shoes I ever had were black, almost Chuck Taylor looking ones covered in multiple, neon skulls. With matching laces.

Posted: Feb 15 2009 05:07 pm

That's funny... I had those same pair of LA Lights that were in the picture and have some white and black Air Jordan I's. I had a lot of Adidas superstars before too-- they looked cool but they ended up hurting my feet a lot.

Also, I was never a big fan of Converses for some reason.

Anyway, I nominate the Barkley sneakers:

Posted: Feb 15 2009 06:37 pm

I wear nothing but Chucks. Even though they kill my feet, they're the only shoe that matters to me. The Airwalk knock-offs are pretty cool too, and only half the price.

Posted: Feb 18 2009 03:02 pm

Those Reebok pumps are stellar. I need to get a pair....No matter the cost.

Also, Megatron must be stopped....No matter the cost.

Posted: Feb 18 2009 04:11 pm

Airwalks had terrible ventilation, everyone I knew who wore them had rancid foot stank when they took them off.

Posted: Feb 18 2009 05:06 pm

TopShelf wrote:

Also, Megatron must be stopped....No matter the cost.

Cue Stan Bush.

Anyways, probably my favorite shoes I owned were the Shaq Pumps.

Also, did anyody else have the suede Eastlands back in the early 90s? If you rocked those bad boys with a silk shirt, you could pick up all the trim.

Then it was the AirWair Dr. Martens.

Posted: Feb 18 2009 09:06 pm

The Batman Converse shoes I mentioned earlier:

Posted: Feb 18 2009 11:40 pm

I know I've told this story before, but it's funny enough to tell again. One of my friends told his parents he wanted some Jordan's. They accidently bought him Michael Jackon's. He just saw the MJ and assumed they were Jordan's. He wore them to school and was showing them off. He didn't realize they were Michael Jackson's until kids started pointing it out and making fun of him.

Posted: Feb 21 2009 12:59 am

scamrock wrote:

TopShelf wrote:

Also, Megatron must be stopped....No matter the cost.

Cue Stan Bush.

Anyways, probably my favorite shoes I owned were the Shaq Pumps.

Also, did anyody else have the suede Eastlands back in the early 90s? If you rocked those bad boys with a silk shirt, you could pick up all the trim.

Then it was the AirWair Dr. Martens.

I had the suede grant hill's by FILA and they were the shit.

Posted: Feb 21 2009 01:53 am

Andrew Man wrote:

scamrock wrote:

TopShelf wrote:

Also, Megatron must be stopped....No matter the cost.

Cue Stan Bush.

Anyways, probably my favorite shoes I owned were the Shaq Pumps.

Also, did anyody else have the suede Eastlands back in the early 90s? If you rocked those bad boys with a silk shirt, you could pick up all the trim.

Then it was the AirWair Dr. Martens.

I had the suede grant hill's by FILA and they were the shit.

I liked the Grant Hills. They pretty much put FILA on the map.

Anybody remember the Derrick Coleman BK Dymacels?

A few years ago, I actually found a pair of Converse Larry Johnson Grandmamas.

Posted: Feb 21 2009 03:10 pm

Late 90's?

SOAP SHOES
[img]http://www.solidgrind.com/shoe/vector/1/[/img]
I own a pair. Love them.

Posted: Feb 22 2009 05:24 am

I'm lucky I didn't become a paraplegic with all the spills I took goofing around with soap shoes.

Posted: Feb 22 2009 03:22 pm

Good grief, this thread is still going? And people say women spend too much time thinking about shoes. Razz

I actually wish I could add to the discussion, but I'm very much a "buy the cheapest pair of sneakers you can find, and wear them until they fall apart" school. That or I get hand me downs from my sisters. (I'm older than them, but my foot is smaller lol.)

Recently I bought a nice pair of Nike running shoes for PT tests and the gym and stuff, but that's about it.

Joined: Mar 13 2009 Location: Arlington Posts: 467

If I could travel back in time, I'd probably beat myself up. They were cool at the time.

Posted: Mar 15 2009 07:12 pm

Thorton02 wrote:

If I could travel back in time, I'd probably beat myself up. They were cool at the time.

yea right, those are super fresh.