Penny Day & The Women's Insanity At The Footaction Outlet

Nike Air Penny II
Black / Varsity Red / Varsity Maize

Since the OG Royal Blue Foamposite One's dropped today decided to wear the a pair of Penny II's in honor of the guy for whom the Foams were made. Penny Hardaway was the original wearer of the Foamposite's when he played for the Orlando Magic and the Dark Royal Blue colorway was the original color to go with the Magic's jersey. But before there were th Foam's there were the Air Max Penny's. This is the second signature model in his series. While not my favorite, this model is still a thing of beauty. It has great lines and the colors in this version work really well together. Those of you who know your shoes will notice the big difference between this colorway and the black / varsity royal colorway. This version has the Penny logo on the side bubble while the black and blue version has the Nike Swoosh on the side. They retailed for $140.00 but I got my pair for $69.99 at the Footaction Outlet last year.

Speaking of the Footaction Outlet, yesterday I put up a bunch of pictures of some of the men's shoes they have up there right now. I planned to put the women's stuff up later that evening but had some things come up so I'm adding them to this post instead. Just like yesterday, just putting up the pics, if you want anymore info on the shoes hit me in the comments section and I promise to get back to you asap.

The Insanity At The Footaction Outlet Mens Edition or Shoes For Days & Days

The Cage at the Footaction Outlet.
Overflow from the full backroom.

Went by the Footaction Outlet here in Columbia today and it is pure insanity over there right now. The sale is 50% off al shoes and 60% off all clothes. I know some of you might think 50% off is still high for the Outlet but there is so much stuff and it's such good stuff you might want to jump on it now because by the time it drops lower the good stuff will be ghost. Just going to throw up pics today. No names or prices. If you really want to know about a shoe leave a comment and I promise I'll get back to you.

Also available in the Black / Metallic Zinc Colorway

Also available in the White / Light Zen Grey / Total Orange / Stealth Colorway

Also available in the White / Blue Colorway

The Return Of SB Friday's - Today's Pair - Nike Dunk Low Premium SB Halloween's

Nike Dunk Low Premium SB "Halloweens"
Green Spark / Hoop Orange

So the weather has cleared and I can return to the schedule of wearing Nike SB's every Friday. Had to take a break last week due to the rain and the fact that I love you readers but not enough to take a chance mucking up a pair of shoes. Today's pair are the "Halloween" Dunk Low SB Premium's from October of 2009 and come in a green spark / hoop orange colorway. Apparently Nike didn't think the black and yellow in the shoe merited mention on the box. Plus they come shipped with purple laces with a secondary pair of yellow laces in the box. I bought them from Bluetile Skateshop here in Columbia (631 Harden St. (803)376-1880) a few months ago in their sale section. They originally retailed for $98.00 (they are a premium) and I paid $39.99 for them. Today is actually the first time I've worn them as I threw them in the SB stack and honestly forget about them until today. To be honest I was looking for the Un-Heavens Gate's to see if the purple in that shoe matched the purple in the sweater I wanted to wear today. When I saw these I realized the laces in them matched the sweater perfectly and the green and orange would really stand out. Of course that meant that I had to do all new research since I was changing the script. These are available on a few different websites with www.pickyourshoes.com having the best price at $79.99. I also found them at www.uptempoair.com and at www.flightclubla.com.

A few other things, don't forget that the OG Royal Blue Nike Foamposite One Retro is dropping tomorrow in most stores with a price of $200.00. In most places these will go very fast so you might want to call your spot today and see if they're opening early. This is the first of about five Foamposite retro's dropping this year. Three are the one version and two will be the pro model. The only difference between the two model is the fact that the pro model has the Swoosh on the side and the one doesn't. Plus the pro is $20 cheaper at $180 instead of $200. But for you newbies or uneducated, this is the most desirable colorway as it is the original colorway. The Eggplants are huge too but nothing beats OG colors. Also want to congratulate ray Allen for setting the 3-point record last night. Respect the hell out of Jesus Shuttlesworth (if you don't know the name Google it) but for my money Reggie Miller is still the best 3-point shooter ever. Dude was just sick and so clutch. Plus he just killed the Knicks every single time. Watching him and Spike Lee go at  in the Garden was magic. Waiting to see what Jordan Brand is going to do to as a tribute to them moment. Ray has been with them forever so they need to do something special and big.

About to head out to check DTLR, the Footaction Outlet, and Bluetile so check back tonight for the updates, Cheapsoles

Lightest Boots Ever or Today's Pair - Nike Lunarpath ETW

Nike Lunarpath ETW
Deep Burgundy / Stone / Black

Today was supposed to be snowy, wet, and nasty outside so when I got dressed this morning I grabbed these Nike ACG Lunarpath ETW boots before I bothered to look outside and realize that the weatherman was wrong. It's now 12:30 in the afternoon and sunny as can be outside and I wasted a great rainy day shoe I'll probably need later in the year. But since I've got them on I might as well extol the virtues of these things. Whoever developed this lunarlon technology at Nike is a genius. This is the lightest stuff I've ever seen used for any shoes. Everybody I know who has held this boot is amazed at how light weight it is. Nike is using this stuff in all kind of shoes but their boots and running shoes appear to be the products they are focusing on and it makes a huge difference. Their running shoes are now some of the lightest, most flexible, and comfortable shoes on the market.

As far as these boots go, they were a great buy at DTLR as they retailed for $125.00 and I got them for $49.99. They are now sold out at the stores here in Columbia SC but they do still have the black and blue pairs in stock and those are on sale for $39.99 still. I put a picture of them in a earlier post (1/20/11) if you want to check them out. This pair's colorway is listed as deep burgundy / stone / black and they are part of the ACG collection. The burgundy is really deep making them almost brown in color while the touches of black makes it quite easy to match them up with any black shirt or most of Nike's all black jackets, hoodies, and pullovers. Plus the hard leather makes them very easy to keep clean. This is a shoe I highly recommend, especially for the price. It's just a great all around boot you can stomp through the wet woods in or rock at the club with your grown man gear on. Till tomorrow, Cheapsoles

Wearing Something Ugly Because Nobody Else Will or Today's Nike Blazer High

Nike Blazer High
Black / Black / Cherrywood Red / Varsity Purple

We've all been there, you go into the sneaker spot and see some insanely ugly shoe and think there is no way anybody will ever buy those. Then the next time you see them they don't look quite as ugly, and then they start looking kind of hot plus you know that nobody has bought a pair so you'll be the only person with them. Then you start telling yourself that you know how to set them off, that the reason nobody has bought them is because they just don't know how rock them. And that is how you end up owning a ugly, weird looking pair of Blazer High's that nobody else would touch. The upside is that you got them on sale for a great price because they sat on the shelves so long they got sent to the clearance store. That is the story behind the Blazers I'm rocking today. I kept seeing these at Foot Locker every time I went to see friends or to pick up the latest release and they just kept growing on me. As a Blazer fan I guess I saw more potential in them then other people who kept telling me I was crazy. I knew they weren't selling so I just kept waiting and waiting and eventually they ended up at the Footaction Outlet where I picked them up for only $20.00 as opposed to the retail price of $78.00.

The purple in this shoe is what kept pulling me in, probably a by product of growing up in Prince's heyday and being a huge fan. Purple Rain is both my favorite movie and Cd so when I come across a sneaker with purple in it I usually end up with it. Of course, Nike tends to use purple mainly in women's and children's shoes so my choices are limited. They did manage to release the new Penny 1's in a black and purple colorway this year, the year I'm taking off of course. Little FYI, whenever I have worn these I have gotten compliments on the uniqueness of them and the way I matched them up.

I did manage to get by the Footaction Outlet and the DTLR store here in town and do have a little news. First, they have plenty of new stuff in at the Outlet including several new Rock Smith shirts, Flightposite II's and Air Max Up Tempo's. The big news from DTLR is the fact that they will have the "Entourage" LeBron 8 V2's on March 4th. These things are nasty, if you haven't seen them you need to check out www.sneakerfiles.com or www.nicekicks.com and do a search for them. Nike is really going all out with the LeBron this year and the response has been very positive from everyone I've spoken too. Well enough for today, till tomorrow, Cheapsoles

At Least It Was Live or Today's Pair - Jordan Retro 13 (Colleizone Pack)

Jordan Retro 13 (Colleizone / Countdown Pack 13 /10)
White / Black / True Red

So I'll be honest, the last couple of posts haven't been all that great. Just been a little busy so kind of rushed them plus the shoes just didn't really excite me (or probably anybody else for that matter). Also there hasn't been any new info on sales at the Footaction Outlet or DTLR lately so haven't written a sales post in awhile. Plan on going by both spots later today so hopefully things will pick up soon.

Now as far as the Super Bowl and my thoughts, I said in the title at least it was live and I was referring to Christina Aguilera and her National Anthem debacle. Yes she flubbed the words, forgot a line, and changed the words but at least it proved she was actually singing it live.And yes that is a shot at Whitney Houston and her anthem performance from 1991. I hate how everybody acts like it was the greatest anthem performance ever and goes on and on about it but nobody ever mentions that it was lip synced. She went in the studio before the game and recorded the anthem then just lip synced it for her performance. I'm not saying it didn't sound amazing but it's easy to sound that amazing (for her and other singers not us mortals) when you can record it over and over and edit the best parts of each take into one track. So yeah Christina screwed up,  but at least she had the nerve to do it for real. By the way, am I the only person who thought Christina looked like Cyndi Lauper up there? And I don't mean "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" Cyndi but current right now Cyndi. Not sure if that's an insult to Christina for looking like a 50+ year old woman or a compliment to Cyndi for looking like a 30 year old woman. Maybe it's a little of both.

Cyndi Lauper
57 years old

Christina Aguilera
30 years old

Now as for the other musical performance that night, that was one of the worst halftime shows I can remember since those old MTV spectacular crapfests back in the day. Full disclosure, I hate the Black Eyed Peas so I might be a little biased but I'm not the only person who thought it was bad. I haven't read a glowing review of the show yet. Now when I say I hate BEP I guess I should clarify, I hate the Fergie version of BEP. Their first two Cd's when some true hip hop albums from the non gangsta set of West Coast MCs. Then they said the hell with respect, added Fergie and began the downward slope in being complete corporate sellouts. Most of their current fans have no idea the first 2 Cd's even exist. So yeah I didn't expect much and wasn't looking forward to the show but even I wasn't ready for that pile of turds they put on the stage. They  did the same shctick we've seen from them on every award show, and they've been on EVERY award show. Plus flashing lights and people with light bulb outfits don't make up for talent.

Now as for today's shoes, these are the Retro 13's from the Colliezone (Countdown) Package. The 13 / 10 was the first Countdown Pack released and is the only one I own. I thought the idea for the packages was pretty good, (the numer of the 2 pairs in the pack add together to equal 23, for those of who don't know the idea) but the execution wasn't that impressive. Seriously, how many pairs of white, black, and red Jordans can somebody have? The package retailed for $310 when it first dropped in January 2008 and are in the $450 to $500 range on eBay at this moment. Flightclub.com also has just the 13's from the pack for $313 and the 10's going for $210. Personally I hate when people who break packages, just seems wrong to me. It just takes away from the entire point of the package. I can't respect any so called sneakerheads who would do that, just seems disrespectful. These 13's are pretty nice quality especially when compared to some of the later packages released later on. White leather upper with a combination of black nubuck and black leather along the bottom and some red accents placed on the tounge and sole. Nice little colorway and I don't mind the white leather on the upper, I am not a fan of the black leather upper on the 13's at all. It just looks fake to me, prefer the mesh like Jordan used on the recent "Altitude" Retro 13 release. I know it's not the most popular opinion but I'm used to having unpopular opinions.  Such as my opinion that the 13 is the second most overated and over hyped Jordan after the 11. Yes I said it, the 11 is overated. It's nice but it's not the greatest shoe ever. It's just the main shoe that Jordan limits so it seems even more important then it is. And I can't lie, I run out and get them ever December when they drop so I guess I'm part of that crowd too. Oh well, time to get out of the house and see what's new for today. Till tomorrow, Cheapsoles

Non-Nike Monday's - Adidas Superstar II PT (Def Jam) or Now What Do I Do On Sunday

Adidas Superstar II PT Def Jam 25th Anniversary

Sorry about throwing this up so late today but had a dentist appointment this year that became way more involved then it was supposed to and still has my mouth numb 4 hours later. Add to that the fact that I didn't get to bed until 3:00 AM last night so didn't put as much thought into today's pair. Just grabbed something that was close and already in the house in a effort to save time. These are the Adidas Superstar II Def Jam 25th Anniversary Edition's. The colorway is metallic silver / cardinal / run white they retailed for $90.00. I got them from the Footaction Outlet in December for $40.00 along with 3 other pairs of Def Jam Adidas that were even less at $30.00 apeice. If you have a keen eye you can see the Def Jam imprint on the heel and the special Def Jam logo tongue. They also have the Def Jam record arm logo on the insole of the shoe. As somebody who grew up during the golden era of Def Jam these shoes were a must have for me. The 1st rap cassette (yes I said cassette, I'm that old) I ever bought was Beastie Boys's "Licensed To Ill" followed by L.L. Cool J's "Bigger and Deffer". The fact that Def Jam has survived 25 years is impressive when you look back at other hip-hop labels  who have come and gone in that time. Throw in the fact that Adidas is the original hip-hop shoe and this is the perfect match.

Now as for last night, karma is alive and well and we all saw it last night. Brett Farve was at home watching after having the worst year of his life while Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers were winning the Super Bowl. Plus Big Ben (not even trying to spell that last name) losing the game after the offseason he had was nice too. The big question is what will I do on Sundays now? I mean I could watch the NBA but the Sunday games are kind of boring compared to what you get during the week with TNT plus nobody really cares about the NBA until the playoffs anyways. Also, am I the only person who catches themselves paying more attention to what's on the players feet then the game sometimes? Especially when it's guys with signature models or players like Gilbert Arenas who has what might be the the meanest sneaker game going right now. He just doesn't care what he's wearing right now. He just grabs whatever is in his closet that catches his eye that day. And his closet runs deep from the looks of it. Maybe I'll let my small town roots come out and watch a little Nascar every once in awhile. Or I could just leave the TV off and do somethings around the house. Guess we'll find out next week. Till tomorrow, Cheapsoles

Are Low's Really Retro's a/k/a Today's Pair - Air Jordan 2 Retro Low



Air Jordan 2 Retro Low

I had planned to wear a pair of Nike Air Diamond Turf's today in honor of Deion Sanders being elected to the Hall Of Fame yesterday but I have no plans to leave the house today so I figured why waste a great pair of shoes on a stay home day. These 2's are kind of an around the house pair to me. I got them for free (well almost free, traded some mix Cd's which cost me next to nothing) so they don't really rate to highly to me. Plus I'm one of those guys who doesn't think that lows count as real retro's. I only have 2 pairs of Jordan retro lows in my entire collection, these 2's and a pair of the white 8 lows. I've already explained why I have the 2's, the 8's were a pair I bought when I was young and didn't know any better.

This topic is actually a big debate among certain sneakerheads. Most think like me, the only Jordans that matter are the Retro's, not Fusions, not lows, not SE's and not Jumpman's (Team Jordans). I have never owned a pair of Fusion's and have no desire too, no matter how cheap I can get them for at the outlet. I will admit to owning a pair of Spiz'ike's (the Nelly's a/k/a Cactus) which I only got due to the high demand and the fact they only coast me $60.00. I also own a pair or Jordan Trunners (DTRT pack) which are a leftover from my shoe selling days. I also have some Melo's and CP's but I consider them to be a signature model along the same lines as the Kobe's, Lebron's and Durant's. But some people don't care, as long as it says Jordan on it they want it. These are the same people who used to buy True Flights from me like the were Retro 7's. They want Fusion's because it comes in a fancy box and has an AF1 bottom. They just don't know any better and I made plenty of cash off their ignorance.

These 2's originally retailed for $100.00 and the official colorway is white / midnight navy / university blue. They've been beaten and worn by me but still hold up pretty well. The Jordan 2 was a very important shoe as it was the first model to not feature the Nike Swoosh. I happen to like the 2 and rank it fairly high on my list of favorites. Those of you with a keen eye will notice the top of the box. It is the older box which had the silver Jordan face on it. Can't remember what year they stopped doing that but I will be very honest and admit that very few of my boxes go back that far. By the way, poster on the way is from Common's "Like Water For Chocolate" CD and is signed. Perks of owning a records store years ago.

Well that's all for today, just going to kick back, clean a little, watch all the pre-game shows, and get ready to watch Green Bay and Aaron Rodgers just make Brett Farve feel even worse and more pathetic then he already does after his flaming pile of crap season this year. Till then, Cheapsoles