One of the latest and most popular skateboarding shoes in the past two years has been the Eric Koston professional model, which boasts one of the biggest names in skateboarding. The shoe itself boasts a very impressive lineup of modern technology, most importantly its Lunarlon insoles. Apart from all the hype, I will review the shoes from a subjective point of view and talk about their practicality on and off the board.
I am sure that you already know some about this shoe if you are looking up this review. I will not explain all the technology as you can definitely do just that on the Nike SB website. I will explain the shoe in simple terms and display pictures of one of the two pairs I have already owned. I will review the overall looks, comfort, durability, grip, and overall impression.
Looks
First of all, the looks of this shoe are simple, very simple. The shoe has a low profile that is consistent with most popular skate shoes of today. The one piece toe cap, which aids in durability, also adds to the simplicity of the shoes. This low profiled toe cap also allows for the laces to sit low, which decreases abrasion with grip tape. The Swooshes on both sides of the shoe tie the tip of the shoe together along with stitching that follows through to the front of the shoe. The cup sol of the shoe has a great duel color design. One main color with another contrasting colored rubber on the outside, where the pinky toe typically sits. Overall, solid look. Almost painful to skate because they were so clean.
Comfort
This shoe is in my top 5 of most comfortable skate shoes of all time. The shoes are stiff to begin with, as with most shoes, but within a week they begin to feel like socks. I had a black and grey pair a year ago that felt like socks after wearing them for walking around a year. Sadly, the soles of the shoes broke through to the Lunarlon soles within a few hours of skating. Point being, these shoes have ultimate comfort with support from the Soles, bendable cups, and neoprene collar. Neoprene is a polymerized synthetic rubber. Lastly, the breath ability was lacking without any air holes, but this does not really matter when your trying to tre down a 6 stair.
Durability
My first pair of Kostons took up the wear and tear of walking, occasional running, and casual skating (without ollies) for around a year and a half. They skated fine until the bottom of the soles gave out, but this was due to walking not to skating. With my newer pair of Kostons, it is apparent that they have good durability. The cup soles are still intact with little to no suede laceration. The problem areas with both pairs of Kostons have been related to the laces and the collar. Laces seem to get destroyed on any shoe, so there is nothing too serious to complain with for laces. They lasted me a solid lot of hours before they broke. The collar filled with neoprene was opened up soon after the first week as the containing fabric is thin. The nollie foot got the worse part of the bargain as nollie tricks typically slide more horizontally. The cushion still exists as it is glued in, which is what matters.
Grip
The Kostons had mediocre grip. They got the job done when it came to skating. After around two of casual skating, they lost much of their grip on the bottom. Secondly, these shoes did sometimes roll off the feet (where the sole of the foot would be placed on the side wall) if I did not land correctly. This was rare, but it did occur.
Overall Impression
The Eric Koston 1's are a great investment. They have all the qualities of a great skate shoe. They look great when wearing board shorts, shorts, and any type of pant. They skate great and you will definitely receive compliments on them. Try to buy these on CCS or other large skate distributors as they usually have discounts for their shoes. My current pair of grey and red Kostons were only 60 dollars compared to their 80 dollar sale price. GET THESE SHOES
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