Nike was among the first major brands to adopt the duckboot motif when in late 2010 they applied the weather-resistant look to a pair of Chuck Taylor lowtops. Air Max 87 Womens High-cut Free Runs followed this past October, but for a brand whose classics translate so well to these new hybridized designs, we might have expected more from the One Star. The Masafumi Watanabe x Nike Air Max Purcell Johnny further fleshes out the duckboot theme with the most faithful rendition yet covering the JP Johnny hightop entirely in rubber, save the brown leather ankle collars. Only 450 pairs of this collaboration with Bedwin & the Heartbreakers‘ founder will be available at First String retailers starting February 4th, and you can see more images when you click on the jump below.
There are plenty of anniversaries and flashbulb memories to celebrate with the London Olympic Games coming up this summer, and while most of the sneakerhead set will focus in on the recent past (perhaps most notably the 20th anniversary of the Dream Team), let’s not forget that the modern Olympiad has been around for over a century. About halfway back to the 1896 Athens Games, you’ll find that the last time the Olympics were in LDN, Ottavio Missoni debuted the original ‘Venjulia’ tracksuit on the Italian national team. Missoni met his future wife at Wembley that year, so their marriage and subsequent launch of his namesake fashion label make the tie-in with the upcoming London event all the more special. The Missoni x Nike Auckland Racer brings us closer to the current day with its unmistakable woven upper redefining this timeless running silhouette while their Horween Chromexcel Pro Leather lowtops take the ongoing collaboration in a new direction with unlimited Nike Free Run 5.0 V4 potential. Click through for shots of both pairs and check back with Sneaker News for updates in advance of the October release date. via SlamXHype
For almost as long as Nike’s most recent serious push into skateboarding, Nick Trapasso has had his own pro model. The CONS Trapasso Pro has heretofore been presented in midtop form, a chopped off take on the classic Weapon silhouette that always seems to look good in suede. Similar compliments could also be paid the above pictured pair, though these are closer to nubuck with their DuraSuede uppers than the nappier textures we’ve Nike Free Run Mens seen, and they’re cut off at the ankle instead of above to make the Trapasso Ox more Chuck-like with less Weapon DNA. Have a closer look at them after the jump, let us know whether the Mid or the Ox reigns supreme and pick up this black leather release at Premier.