Not All Feet Are the Same: How to Choose the Right Pair of Skate Shoes
When we’re talking about skateboarding, there’re two ultimate things you need to succeed: a little bit of love and enthusiasm, and the right set of skateboarding gear. And skateboarding gear being mentioned, a proper set of skate shoes are no exception at all, as they’ll protect your feet from nasty falls and help you grip your board better. However, with the vast of choices on the market, choosing a proper pair of skateboard shoes can become a difficult task.
Contents
Types of Skateboard Shoes
Before you decide to buy skate shoes, it’s important to get to know the different types so you can choose something appropriate. Hence, we can split skateboard shoes into two general categories – cupsole shoes and vulcanized shoes.
Cupsole Skate Shoes
Cupsole shoes are the more preferred type among skaters, as they’re exceptionally durable. Thanks to their single-rubber outsole unit, these shoes are offering great shock absorption and impact protection when harsh landing occurs.
However, due to their durability and stiffness, keep in mind that cupsole shoes aren’t as flexible, making the board feel a little bit “out of the box”. Hence, cupsole skater shoes are more suitable for everyone who wants to perform tricks such as jumping downstairs or off large ledges, as they offer extra cushioning to protect your feet.
Vulcanized Skate Shoes
On the other hand, vulcanized shoes aren’t as durable as cupsole ones, making them more flexible and lightweight. But on account of being comfortable, these shoes won’t offer as great protection for your feet, making them better for skaters that want to cruise around the street and learn skate transitions and flip tricks on flat ground.
When it comes to their construction, vulcanized skateboard shoes feature an upper that is connected to the outsole with foxing tape wrapped around the perimeter and baked in a special oven to melt the pieces together into one unit. And since the baking process degrades the rubber, vulcanized shoes are softer, thinner and more fragile than cupsole ones.
Skateboard Shoes Styles
Whether you decided to go for vulcanized or cupsole shoes, keep in mind that the shoe style also plays a role in your comfort and protection. Hence, skateboard shoes fall into a couple of style categories- high-tops, mid-tops, low-tops and slip-ons.
High-Top Skate Shoes
High-top shoes for skateboarding are ideal for everyone who’s looking for some extra protection and stability in the ankle area. These shoes are intended to provide a rigid feel, and this is why they’re bulkier and heavier than the other types.
Mid-Top Skate Shoes
Mid-top shoes for skateboarding make for an excellent choice for every skater that doesn’t want to commit to a specific type of skating. These shoes also offer decent ankle and overall foot protection, while not being as bulky and hard-to-move as high-top ones.
Low-Top Skate Shoes
The most common style you’ll stumble upon in any shop offering shoes for skateboarding is low-top shoes. These shoes deliver excellent mobility of your ankles, and this is why they’re most commonly chosen by skateboarders embracing versatile styles of skating.
However, due to their low profile, know that low-top shoes won’t provide much ankle protection, which can be terrible if your board accidentally smacks you in the ankle while doing tricks.
Slip-On Skate Shoes
The classic old-school slip-ons look very stylish and feel exceptionally comfortable on every skater’s feet. However, even though they’re the lowest-profile shoes for skating that are very flexible and feel very lightweight, keep in mind that they don’t provide any protection for your ankles.
Pick High-Quality Materials
Probably one of the most important aspects you want to pay attention to are the materials used for manufacturing your skating shoes. Let’s take a closer look at what brands and manufacturers nowadays use for producing skateboard shoes:
Suede
Suede is definitely one of the top materials you can choose for skating shoes. This material is exceptionally durable, abrasion-resistant and breathable to let the air circulate inside the skate shoe. On top of that, suede shoes are the easiest to repair, as you’ll for sure get holes in them from wear and tear, regardless of the material you choose.
The only drawback of suede skating shoes is that they attract dust and can easily get dirty. For this reason, it’s best to buy skate shoes that are covered in suede, at least at the parts that are most exposed when doing various tricks and flips.
Leather
Leather also makes for an excellent choice for skaters, as it’s also exceptionally durable and abrasion-resistant material. Hence, these shoes won’t be affected that easily, even if you do tons of tricks and expose them to damage on a daily basis.
However, on account of their stiffness and sturdiness, know that leather shoes aren’t as breathable as suede ones. Leather won’t let any air circulate inside the shoe and will make your feet feel soggy like they’re melting very quickly.
Canvas
Canvas has been a very popular material for producing skateboarding shoes since the 1970s, the era of the Old Skool Vans and the iconic Chuck Taylor All-Stars. And it’s no wonder, considering that canvas is the ultimate material that is very lightweight, breathable and exceptionally flexible.
However, canvas skateboarding shoes are not the best option for skaters that want to get in “beast mode” and show off their best tricks, as it isn’t durable and breaks down very fast. But this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t get canvas skating shoes if you prefer cruising around and doing easier flips and tricks.
Get the Right Features
Last, but not least, every well-stocked skate shop will offer various types of skateboarding shoes packed with different features and conveniences. So, before you choose the pair that seems like the best option for your adventures, it’s important to take a look at these features that can make or break your entire skating experience.
Heel Protection
Not a skater hasn’t experienced a heel bruise at least once, and this can be a major reason to end the season early. For this reason, many brands and manufacturers are reinforcing their shoes with heel-saving technologies.
For instance, some of them may feature airbag heels, while others may have EVA foam to create a thicker barrier. So, make sure you skip any shoes that don’t feature any type of heel protection to spare yourself from injuries and pain.
Toe Caps
Toe caps are the ultimate protection level you can find in shoes by many reputable brands such as Vans, Nike and Adidas. In fact, toe caps are rubber strips that are responsible for protecting the most high-wear area – the toe area. Hence, some shoes may have external toe caps while some of them may feature rubber below the uppers.
Gusset Tongues
The most annoying part of skating is undoubtedly when your shoe tongue starts sliding from one side to the other, causing annoying pressure in your feet. This is why many skateboarding shoes are produced with elastic gusset tongues. These tongues have the purpose to stay connected to the midsoles, and therefore give you snug enough fit to keep your tongue in place.
Foxing Tape
Foxing tape is a must-have part of every skate footwear, as it’s the part that also gets mostly exposed to wear and tear. For this reason, many manufacturers tend to reinforce their shoes with a second layer of foxing tape, to ensure that the toe and the heel areas will last longer. Now that you know what are the most important factors, it’s time to wrap up your sleeves and explore high-quality skateboard shoes Australia wide online or brick and mortar stores.
