20 Awesome Sneakers You've Never Heard Of

Year: 1986

Vans made running shoes? Yup, good ones, too - even serious magazines like Runner's World thought so. But extending into the running market took resources that the company just didn't have, so the whole Serio effort wound up becoming a footnote rather than a new beginning. Shame.

Year: 1998

Nike hit hard with the color fade thing in the late '90s, most prominently on Tuned Air shoes like the Air Max Plus and the Air Garnett III. The Air Max 120 was more under the radar - and is even moreso now - but it should have a special place in people's hearts (other than just Peter Parker).

Year: 1987

The adidas ZX series is rightly celebrated, but with so many models to choose from it's no wonder some slip through the cracks. 1987's ZX 710 didn't look nearly as tech as the previous year's ZX 800, but the subtle use of Dellinger webbing and dual-layer stripes made for a hot shoe.

Year: 1993

If you can't keep all the adidas EQT runners straight, that's OK - neither can anyone else. The bridge between the ZX series and Feet You Wear, the EQT line was highly technical but also among the more aesthetically pleasing adi runners. Made up in tons of incarnations for different needs, each EQT shoe is a work of supremely functional art.

Year: N/A

The Puma Suede's literal big brother, the occasionally retroed Stepper is still overshadowed by the Suede and the Clyde. But it shouldn't be. It has a similar silhouette to the Air Jordan III, but a much simpler build - the Beastie Boys would have killed for these in '92.

Year: 1988

A walking shoe on here? Well, yeah - who remembers walking shoes? The Healthwalker Max (a line that is still ongoing) started out as essentially an all-leather cross between the Air Max 1 and the Air Windrunner, with a little Air Ace thrown in for stability. If you had a pair of these now, you wouldn't just walk, you'd floss.

Year: 1985

Between the Pro Leather and the Weapon was the Maverick, a Converse basketball shoe that featured their "Y-bar" support system (which also worked wonders for colorblocking). The vertical "CONVERSE" lettering down the sides gave you untold swagger, even if you weren't Magic Johnson or Dr. J.

Year: 1977

The Converse World Class Trainer is one of those shoes that you never knew existed one second, then desperately want the next. Or maybe that's just us. That suede overlay over the nylon upper makes for a mean reversed Star Chevron logo that needs to return. Pronto.

Year: 1995

Nike has mined their Trainer line pretty deeply over the past couple of years, bringing back much of Bo Jackson's line. The Air Trainer Patrol is an outlier, though, with that classic mid-'90s upper on the traditional Trainer sole. A shoe that isn't connected to anyone in particular, it's hard to imagine it would be revived - but you never know.

Year: N/A

"CSI" might evoke the image of David Caruso whipping off his shades now, but back when the 586csi dropped it was all about the BMW 633 and 635 - elegant luxury sports cars that looked fast standing still. An odd image to tie to an indoor soccer shoe perhaps, but one that happened to be perfectly right.

Year: 1984

The adidas Strider has been retroed - adidas has dug in the crates deeper than most - but it still hasn't received its proper due. Contrary to popular belief, the mid-cut basketball shoe didn't start with the Air Jordan III, and many of the mid-'80s models went hard. The Strider is one of the best.

Year: 1989

The GEL Lyte III and the GEL Saga dominate the ASICS retro roster, but those weren't their only running classics in the '80s. The GEL Epirus was a super-clean silhouette with great colorblocking and a traditional tongue. It's amazing that these haven't been brought back yet.

Year: 1984

Maybe you have heard of this one - the Jordan obsessives have anyway. Before the Air Jordan was produced, rookie Mike took to the court in the Air Ship, a Bruce Kilgore designed successor to the Air Force 1 that did away with the Velcro strap and added a cantilevered heel. Of course the Air Force 1 got the last laugh, but the Air Ship is still king amongst those who know.

Year: 1982

The Challenge Court and the Mac Attack are the 3/4 height Nike tennis shoes that people remember best, but the Impulse may have been the best shoe of the three. Sitting on a lightweight PU midsole, the Impulse is still a striking silhouette 30 years on.

Year: 1986

Ralph Sampson wore the Puma Majesty, and if you think that was a mistake, you must not have seen Ralph play before injuries robbed him of his versatility. A classic mid-'80s basketball shoe, the Majesty deserves a proper retro for its name alone.

Year: 1985

Are you listening, Swizz Beatz? The ACT 600 was a pure performance tennis shoe from Reebok that never quite made the same impact on the streets as the Phase Two or the Club Champion. It had that Bally/Fila T1 luxury feel to it, but was marketed as a straightforward tennis shoe. The ACT 600 deserves a second act.

Year: 1992

It was really hard to go wrong with any high-end runner in the late '80s and early '90s. Wild colors, lots of techy materials (and reflective hits) and futuristic designs meant most translated from the track to the street with ease. The Avia 2060 is one of those forgotten gems that was - like many of Avia's other designs - just too ahead of its time.

Year: 1987

On the low, Avia had a serious NBA roster back in the mid-'80s. Clyde Drexler wore them after he stopped messing with Roos, John Stockton ran the pick-and-roll in them, and a young forward from Arkansas by the name of Scottie Pippen laced them up before a certain tongue-wagging teammate got him down with the Swoosh. The 870 came after all three of those guys had moved on, and the super-technical super-hightop was one of their last hurrahs in the L (worn by Robert Parish). It was a good one.

Year: 1986

In the days before Andre Agassi, Wimbledon was a subdued and classy affair - one which Nike respected as much as anyone. The All England was a simple, white Italian-made tennis shoe that featured tiny branding and the official Wimbledon accent colors of purple and green. So official it hurts.

Year: 1986

This was some space-age shit. The Puma RS Computer was a running shoe that plugged directly into your computer - provided it was a Commodore 64, Apple IIE or IBM PC. Heady stuff in the mid '80s. Of course the giant ports on the back may have affected your splits, but hey, just think how light your racing flats would have felt on race day.