Seven Toe-Curling Sneaker Horror Stories
The is one of the most popular silhouettes in the history of sneakers, but what if it had never been approved by the higher ups at ? Similarly, what would the sneakersphere look like if the franchise had been chopped at number 3? What if your Holy Grail was right within your reach and then it disappeared, never to be seen again?
In the words of , 'The life of a sneakerhead is a thrilling journey, with its fair share of highs and lows. Yet, nothing quite matches the frustration of losing prized sneakers... In a strange and Halloween-appropriate way, these losses become part of the journey, reminding us that even in the world of sneakers, the unexpected can happen'.
So, grab your most comfortable creps, these are seven sneaker horror stories sure to make your toes curl.
The Air Max 1 Almost Never Happened
In 1987, came home from Paris with a wacky sneaker idea based on the Centre Pompidou, which was all about showing the inside from the outside. From this, Hatfield drew a mockup of a sneaker with visible air. At the time, Nike were struggling. There was a company-wide lack of innovation, and the sales were being held up almost single-handedly by the Air Jordan franchise. While we now know how the cookie crumbled, there were a lot of people who thought the Air Max 1 would be the nail in Nike's coffin.
In an interview with Tinker Hatfield published in Issue 28 of and again in , Hatfield said, ‘People in Nike marketing at the time – and I shall not name names – were absolutely dead against the development of the Air Max… those same people tried to get me, Mark Parker and a few others who developed the shoe fired… I remember being in meetings where people said, ‘That’s not going to work, people are going to put holes in that airbag and we’re going to get all these returns! And no one’s going to buy them anyway because the shoes won’t hold up! … I was just like, “OK, we’re just going to do this and if we get fired, we get fired!” I mean we literally had hate notes put on our doors! … I know that behind the scenes there were two or three vice presidents who were actively promoting our exit.’
Lucky for us, Hatfield and Parker were protected by Rob Strasser, and the Air Max not only came into fruition, but it blew up the entire industry.
Dog Eat Dog World
'My horror story involves a pair of Nike Air Worp Speed and a rottweiler from hell. Let’s take it back to October of 95 Brooklyn NY. A few weeks before the horrific night, my mom took me to V.I.M to buy me a pair of sneakers. We walked in, and I instantly saw the Zoom Flight 95. The carbon fibre design pods stood out amongst all the other sneakers on the wall. I really wanted that pair, but unfortunately the price tag was out of my mom's budget. I looked over to the cross trainer section and saw that the same carbon fibre design that caught my attention is also on this other shoe, as well as the mini Swoosh sported on the toe box. I had now found the shoe I wanted for a better price and a cooler name, the Nike Air Worp Speed.'
'We get home and my mom tells me not to wear the sneakers to play outside, that I should only wear them for school. Few weeks go by and I decided to breakout these beauties and show them to my friends. We get on our bikes and a friend tells me that there are some puppies behind a house that no one wants. So, of course like any badass kids, we go check out these puppies. We leave our bikes and climb over what seemed like 11 fences to get to these damn dogs. When we get to the puppies, there were five of them and four of us. Everyone took a puppy and I took two.
The only way back to the bikes was to climb those 11 fences or find another way. We decided to go through this abandoned building to make it back. Everyone made it out, but since I had two pups, I was a bit slower than everyone else. As I make my way out through this last doorway, a rottweiler comes charging at me and bites my sneaker clean off my foot. As I’m running away for my life, I look back to see the dog entertained with my shoe and ripping it apart like a chew toy. I was glad he had stopped chasing me but quickly realised that the shoes my mom told me not to wear outside now belonged to a rottweiler from hell.
The moral of the story is to listen to your mother, kids.'
Double Whammy
'My favourite sneakers were stolen not once, but twice!
The has always been my #1 grail when it comes to anything Nike Air related. I first saw the shoe at a game arcade as an 11-year-old kid in Cape Town, South Africa, 1997. It was unrivalled to anything I’d ever seen before.
The original 1997 release was unattainable for an 11-year-old, but finally in 2009, I imported the retro release. As I unboxed the shoes, it was like being transported to 1997 - this was nostalgia at its finest. The neon yellow was in a paler hue in comparison to the original. They were rarely worn and I made sure to not scuff them up.'
'In 2011, a thief broke into my home and grabbed my Air Jordan duffle and took two pairs: my prized Air Total Max Uptempos and my 'He Got Game'. He was later caught with the bag in my area, and the items were returned to me – I was lucky.
Then in 2018, I had my sneaker collection safely under lock and key – or so I thought. I went to look for my Total Max Uptempos and I couldn't find them anywhere; they had mysteriously disappeared. To this day I have no idea what happened to them.
After this rollercoaster journey with years of mishaps, I did end up copping both the 2009 and 2020 pairs. It is still my all-time favourite shoe, and I one day hope to find the original from 1997.'
The Air Jordan Franchise Nearly Stopped With Number Three
The came out in 1986 at a whopping $100. This was almost double the price of the and was a result of a more luxurious take on the AJ. The upper was crafted with premium Italian leather and the Swoosh was removed, a decision made to nod to growing stature. However, the design didn't go over well with MJ or Jordanheads, who were both left underwhelmed. In 1987, Jordan's contract with Nike was up for renegotiation, and the partnership was on the rocks after the AJ2's lukewarm reception. The pressure was on to create something that would put the Air Jordan franchise back on track.
Un-bear-able Soles
'I had a friend who used to work with bears. He was hired for a movie shooting with the bear and he asked me if I could help him. I thought it could be cool to take a picture with the bear and a pair of (Karhu means bear in Finnish), so I took a pair of 1985 Karhus and left them in my car's trunk.'
'When we finished for the day, I went to my car to get the shoes. I opened the box and stared horrified as both soles were now completely separated from the uppers. It was July, so the heat was crazy in that parking lot. Despite the tragedy, it made possible to discover how Karhu cushioning system worked, so at least I learnt something new.'
Grails Lost in the Mail
Ever since I can remember, the has been one of my Grails. Since 2014/15 I have tried to get my hands on a pair. At some point at Sneakermess in Luxemburg, I spotted a pair in my size for a decent second-hand price. Unfortunately, I had little money at the time and could not afford it. I thought about it for weeks! There was just one pair available for a good price and exactly in my size. Simply annoying.
Finally in 2022, the came along and I tried everything to get my hands on a pair and surprisingly, I was able to easily secure one via SNKRS app. It was a great feeling at first, after chasing this pair for years. But then the horror news: 'your package was delivered', yet there was no knock at the door and it was never delivered. The package was not found for days afterwards, so I had to end my emotional relationship with the shoe.'
'But then... two weeks later, a woman in my neighborhood found the package somewhere in her backyard. Everything was fine with the sneakers and I finally had my pair of Jordan 1 Chicago.'