The running sneakers scene exploded back in 2011-2012 and continued to grow strongly in 2013 as well. One of my passions is to collect sneakers (mostly real vintage) and today I will present you my best of 2013 selection. I’ve chosen 20-25 runners released in past year for the modern sneaker consumer.
WOEI x ASICS Gel Lyte III “CERVIDAE”
In honor of their 5-year anniversary, Rotterdam sneaker boutique WOEI presents their take on the popular ASICS Gel Lyte III model. The “Cervidae” draws inspiration from Europe’s Cervidae deer family with colors such as brown, tan and white. Additional features include metal hooked eyelets, premium suede, zig-zag toe box stitching, leather lining and subtle 3M detailing. These jams were released in July in-store only.
Ronnie Fieg x ASICS Gel Lyte V “VOLCANO”
ASICS has been gaining a lot of popularity lately, largely in part to their collaborations with Ronnie Fieg.
They teamed up and re-introduced the Gel Lyte V and bring back this early 90′s runner to the marketplace. This unique tech runner named “Volcano” is a special lace-up sneaker which features a strong mix of high grade nubuck, sport mesh, pigskin, neoprene and 3M detailing.
The sneakers were released in October, in very limited quantities exclusively at Kith NYC stores, KithNYC.com and just a few online stores worldwide.
ASICS Gel Lyte V Original
If you ask me about the most awesome sneakers released by ASICS in 2013, I will tell you how much I love the classics Gel Lyte V. These kicks were introduced for the first time back in 1993. Their reissue debut from 2013 features the original purple and green accented black color combo. I’m glad that I’ve had the chance to see a vintage pair in my hands even for a short time.
ASICS Gel Epirus Mustard
As the ASICS archival avalanche continues to tumble, yet another Gel-infused retro runner has been resurrected from the grave back in 2013. It’s a pretty casual affair all-round as the ’89-born model comes back in a mildly dumbed-down version sans a few tidbits and knick-knacks including the exclusion of the 3M toe tabs, plastic upper eyestays and ‘GEL’ heel banners. All-round though this is a tidy bring-back that will have Gel-heads smiling. It was released in both mustard/navy and blue/white colourways.
J.Crew x New Balance 1400 “Baywood Green”
One of my favorite collaborations out there is the ongoing one between New Balance and J.Crew. They started out with the New Balance 1400 silhouette and that lead to other models, including the “Made In USA 998″.
This time around, the predominantly suede design of the New Balance 1400 is complimented with bits of mesh. Dressed in grey, the sneaker features one shade of green on the tongue and heel areas, while a much more vibrant green is applied to the “N” branding.
J.Crew x New Balance 998 “Pebble Blue”
Here we’re seeing a new pair of New Balance 998 “Pebble Blue” x J.Crew that the two have crafted.
They introduced it with 2 color-ways in the form of the Dark Military and New Navy.
The “Pebble Blue” comes in an eye pleasing make-up with some tonal browns and blues. This shoe it’s a “Made In USA” New Balance with premium materials and quality workmanship, highly recommended for all New Balance fans or anyone in general.
It’s a clean-looking shoe that’s very wearable in this color-way and the best out of the 3 in my opinion.
New Balance x Concepts 998 “C-Note”
I’m sure not many of you heard of the Boston retailer Concepts. They teamed up with New Balance the past fall to present the New Balance 998 “C-Note”.
These beauties features a unique multicolored upper. The majority of it is done up in off-white suede with a dark green suede heel panel, a white mesh toe box, grey mesh around the collar, copper TPU side inserts, and reflective silver elements on the toe and heel. The midsole is predominantly a vintage light yellow color that switches to white and blue towards the forefoot.
Sneaker Freaker x New Balance 998 “Tassie Devil”
As part of Sneaker Freaker marathon 10 year anniversary celebrations, they’ve jumped back into the cage with New Balance to produce the tough “Tassie Devil”, a sabre-toothed version of the under-appreciated New Balance 998 model.
Proudly named after their native Australian marsupial the Tasmanian Devil (and with a respectful nod to the Solebox series of NB Devils), it’s a sad fact that the chunky little carnivorous critters are suffering from an epidemic of facial tumour disease that threatens their existence. Some estimates suggest up to 50% of the wild population has perished. To that end, they made a healthy donation to the campaign to save these unique animals.
Norse Projects x New Balance 1500 “Danish Weather” Pack
New Balance revealed its second collaboration with Norse Project in August. The package consisted of 2 classic slightly modified Made in UK 1500 models originally designed in 1993. Fans of the silhouette will notice the logo modification. The 1500 always comes with an embroidered side logo, but the logo placement on this latest collaboration was taken from another New Balance classic, the 993 and added to the Norse Projects design. A small detail honouring the aesthetic and heritage of past New Balance models.
The colour schemes for The Danish Weather Pack were inspired by the Danish Autumn season when the green forests and parks around Copenhagen gradually change to a kaleidoscope of brown and burned orange tones leading to the never-ending days with rain, bursting grey skies and the dark waters surrounding the shores of Denmark. Something the Danes must live with almost 8 months a year.
Fingercroxx x New Balance 580 “FXX”
After the success of the West NYC x New Balance MT580 from 2012, the Fingercroxx x New Balance MT580 became another anticipated collaboration of 2013 upon first view. The shoe even made the Nice Kicks list of most anticipated sneakers in 2013.
The camo print in the lining, insole, and on the laces offsets light brown suede and lime green accents on the upper. The sneakers were released in February in limited quantities at select retailers, such as Crooked Tongues.
Adidas ZXZ ADV 80 “COLLEGIATE”
Adidas Originals announced the ‘Run Thru Time’ Collegiate Pack the past fall/winter. A celebration of running over the past 3 decades. The pack features 9 different colourways across 3 silhouettes – An Adizero 2, ZXZ ADV and ZX5000 RSPN.
Here we’re seeing one image of the 80s edition Adidas Originals ZXZ ADV. The shoe comes decked out in a colour palette that reflects the trends of that particular era: shades of grey, while blue, white, and green tones also make appearances. All the while, the sneakers midsole comes fitted with an old skool Dillenger web for better impact absorption.
Adidas Tech Super “Original”
Originally released in 1992, the Adidas Tech Super returned for the first time in nearly two decades.
The Tech Super symbolises everything that was great about running shoes in the early 1990s; clean, bold silhouettes that were sleek yet bulky in their own special way.
These two ORIGINAL colourways stink of 90s greatness as well, with their predominately light uppers complimented with cream panelling and hits of neon in all the right places. The Running White/Vivid Pink/Bliss colourway has the most eye-catching power and proved to be an instant success, but it’s the more subtle Haze Yellow/Running White/Collegiate Silver colourway that I’m predicting will be breaking necks for years to come, especially in the sunshine like this.
Puma RS 100 “Animal”
In 1985 PUMA debuted the quaintly named RS Computer, a cutting-edge running shoe with a built-in pedometer that measured distance, time and calories burned. After a run, users could download the pertinent data with an actual cable on your Apple IIe or Commodore 64!
Decades later, PUMA ditched the hardware and reintroduced the Luddite-friendly version of the shoe as the RS 100.
Detailed with vibrant colors and animal print is the Puma RS 100 “Animal” model. This classic 80s runner is dressed up with leopard, croc and zebra prints mixed with a variety of colors throughout the upper.
Puma X Sneaker Freaker “Blaze of Glory”
Almost six years ago Sneaker Freaker teamed up with PUMA on a highly limited edition pair of sneakers. Dubbed the Great White and Black Beast, both kicks were handcrafted from premium sharkskin and were only given to Sneaker Freaker friends and family. However, since PUMA agreed to stop using exotic animal materials, we will most likely never see such exquisite kicks again.
After five years the two brands have found together again to launch a reissue. Though they stick close to the original ones, the new release features subtle improvements such as a color-coded lining and a performance inner sole. To round things out and as a nod to the ORIGINAL sharkskin version, they come with a lightly wrinkled nubuck leather upper.
The futuristic looking Blaze of Glory with its unique design comes in the two original colorways from its first release in 2007 in lightgrey and black. Both models come with the typical red and lightblue / teal details. The toebox consists of strong mesh while mudguard and surface consist of high-quality premium leather. Not only the shoes themselves but also the box is very special: quadratic, with the classic triangle-pattern printed on it and filled with some acoustic-panel-formed kind of foam the box looks very spectacular.
The international release was in November. Cologne-based retailer The Good will Out celebrated the release with a pre-release-party together with PUMA and Sneaker Freaker.
PUMA Disc Blaze “Original 1993″
Having already dished out a slew of enticing colors for its 20th anniversary, PUMA announced in the past fall the release of the Disc Blaze OG 1993 in its original colorway and construction.
The iconic PUMA runner from 1993 arrives 20 years later built to the exact specifications as the original with its laceless DISC system for custom fitting and Trinomic cushioning.
Once heralded for its innovation, the Disc Blaze is now revered for its unique design that points to a certain futuristic irreverence from the early ‘90s. The ORIGINAL 1993 version maintains its overall silhouette with a multi-material upper in a white, blue, grey black and green colorway.
Nike “Flyknit Racer” Winter
In searching for the best alternative to the available materials today, Nike went on a four-year endeavor with a team of material engineers, bio-mechanical specialists, designers and runners. The result became the foundation of Nike Flyknit – a sock-like knit upper which incorporate both structure forms and comfort.
Nike introduced the first new innovation for the first time back in 2012.
Nike introduced two new colorways of the Flyknit Racer to end off 2013. A shoe that was seen in virtually every context from performance to fashion, Atomic Purple and Neo Turquoise versions are two further iterations that should be well-received for the holiday season. First up the Atomic Purple version features a bold orange Swoosh as contrast while the Neo Turquoise is no slouch with its own hits of red branding to provide a visual break.
Nike Flyknit Racer “Special Limited Edition”
Nike unveiled this special edition colorway of the Flyknit Racer in the past spring/summer season. Reminiscent of previous HTM offerings, this special edition boasts a unique, multicolored knit yarn upper that brings to mind tie-dye effects. The trippy upper contrasts nicely with the black tongue and laces, Swoosh and outsole. Finished with a clean white midsole housing a forefoot Zoom Air unit, this latest Flyknit is a great combination of performance and style.
This model was available for sale exclusively at the Nike Stadium Milano and some London stores.
Nike Flyknit Lunar 1+ Holiday
The most popular sneaker in the Nike Flyknit range, the Nike Flyknit Lunar 1+ returned in a wide selection of colorways for Holiday 2013. The running shoe has also made a strong entry into the lifestyle market in the past months, combining two of the brand’s most successful innovations in recent years with the Flyknit upper and Lunarlon outer sole. For Holiday 2013 the sneaker returned in a series of colorways, including classic black/white, stronger volt and pink versions, as well as some interesting mixed color uppers, making best use of the knitted upper structure.
Nike “Roshe Run Metric”
Nike Roshe Run debuted back in 2012 and garnered attention through word of mouth. Many stores did not carry the model until late 2012, making it somewhat of a sleeper hit. With the style, price and comfort, the Roshe Run was on its way in becoming one of the more popular Nike runners.
Fast forward to today, the Roshe Run is as strong as ever. The Roshe style has expanded into different variations and editions, and from the looks of it was set to see an abundance of colorways in 2013.
The abundance of colorways is interesting for what seemed to be a very quiet model when it first released. The releases for the Roshe Run are like the snowball effect, with more and more colorways and variations coming as we move forward.
The Roshe Run may be one of Nike‘s simplest silhouettes, but the popular lifestyle sneaker has been released last year in a head-spinning variety of colors and forms. The greatest in a flurry of Roshe drops came in the form of the Nike Roshe Run Metric – a fragmented, geometric version of the minimalist shoe.
With blacked-out uppers in a cracked, mosaic tile-like makeup, the Metric turns the Roshe Run’s simple lines into a finely detailed, almost futuristic pair of kicks. The rest of the silhouette is a little more familiar — a standard black sole complete with Nike’s much-loved Solarsoft cushioning, a setup that should provide the all-day comfort.
Nike Free Flyknit
The Nike Free Flyknit was released in 2013 and marked one of the first times that the Flyknit technology was marrying with another performance oriented group from Nike. The result was this super sock-like between the lightweight nature of the knit and the intended barefoot feel of the Free nubbing.
The Free Flyknit brings together several key Nike innovations including Flyknit, Free and Flywire.
The shoe’s minimal upper is designed to mold to the wearer’s foot over time for a second-skin feel. The single-layer upper sits atop a Free 5.0 outsole with strategically placed solid rubber for enhanced traction and durability. The molded sockliner mimics the curvature of the foot for a comfortable fit. The initial launch collection consisted of six colorways: volt/wolf grey, black/white, black/white/dark grey, electric green/white/bright crimson, game royal/white and bright crimson/white.
Nike Free Inneva Woven “Armory Navy” & “Grey/Laser Orange”
First introduced in 2000, the original Nike Air Woven shoe flipped the convention of shoe making to create a new aesthetic that spawned a faithful fan contingent. The introduction of the Nike Free Inneva Woven in 2012 bringed the woven technique to a whole new level, with precision weave that featured varied strand widths for support, flexibility and breathability.
The Nike Free Inneva Woven merges craftsmanship and performance innovation to form a design that is as beautiful as its benefits.
Nike served us in 2013 other amazing colorways of its coveted Free Inneva sneaker. Some of the greatest make-up boasts a dark navy blue woven upper set against a slightly faded grey suede heel quarter, beside eye-popping contrast-colored laces and a speckled 5.0 Free outsole.
Another amazing drop of the 2013 it comes with a silver woven upper and laser orange suede heel panels, and is topped off with a speckled midsole and tri-colored rope laces. Cool, right?
Nike Mayfly Woven “QS Summer”
Nike Sportswear’s Premium Woven edition of the minimalist Mayfly runner returned as the subject of a Summer 2013 Quickstrike release from the Beaverton crew. Originally intended as an inexpensive and lightweight runner meant to last just 100km thanks to its simple ripstop nylon upper and Phylite midsole/outsole combo, this luxurious update to the sneaker gets Nike’s Woven treatment as a tonal suede upper sports a breathable, woven design that stretches from the heel around the entirety of the upper. Finished with waxed cotton laces and a leather footbed, last summer’s Mayfly Woven QS was due out in Black, Bronze and Midnight Navy colorways.