History of Nike Skateboarding Shoes

The Untold Story

Before skateboarding was considered a sport worth catering to, skateboarders had to seek out shoes that would hold up to the stress. They glommed onto Vans, which in the 1960s introduced so-called vulcanized shoes, in which a rubber sole was cooked onto the body of the shoe.

Fast forward to the 1980's, although emerging but skateboarding still had a relativly small community to attract serious interests from major shoe makers while they are battling out in the precious basketball territory. This gave smaller companies a chance to gain ground in the skateboarding market, with Airwalk then led the charge, they developed an oversized shoe that combined an inflated tongue, thick sole, suede exterior and air pockets that cushioned the foot. Although Nike had never officially entered the skateboarding market in the 1980's, like its competitors Adidas and the EWINGS many of its shoes (especially the basketball-specific) gained a following in the skateboarding community due to the fact that skate shoes and basketball shoes share many similarities. Strong grips, durable, ankle support and relative comfort were some of the offerings that attracted skaters to them. They were never considered the most desirable skate shoes, due to the 'underground' nature of skateboarding at that time many skateboarders rejected Nike because they believed the brand is too commercial.
The 1990's saw the rise of skateboarding into prominent, and the vast imporvement of skate shoes technology with DC Shoes made major advances in shoe design. It added stronger fabrics, multidensity rubber, gel pockets, plastic eyelets that encased exposed shoelaces and soles with a gumlike grip that improved foot-to-board traction.