The Converse Blog's Weapon Wednesday: Weapons and Pro Leathers on Converse One

It's taken years, but today I am happy to announce that the Converse Weapon will be available on Converse One. If you don't know, Converse One is the program in which Converse shoes can be customized. You'll find that the page works the same as Nike Id. The Weapons won't be available until the fall, but they went ahead and put up the option so people will know. Which is why I am telling you today. You will be able to customize both the mid and ox versions of the Weapons.

However, that's not all. The Pro Leathers will also be up on Converse One. They will be for sale sometime this summer, in hi and low versions. Also there will be limited edition Chuck prints, double upper Chucks, seasonal chuck prints, and another Chevron and Star shoe called the Premiere Player.





I can't tell you how excited I am about these developments. I had heard that there would be a classic basketball shoe up soon, but I had no idea there would be both Weapons and Pro Leathers. Thanks for checking out the blog. I am out early today, for some reason I decided not to sleep last night. Don't forget to vote in the poll, only a few days left.

The Converse Blog: Open Gym Philly

This past year Converse started operating the Open Gym concept. They went to Miami, Chicago, Philly, and New Orleans and ran Open Gyms. They rented a gym and had people come in and play. Basketball, just playing basketball. I look forward to increase of this program to reach more communities and more kids. Recently Mr. Tony Brown emailed me some pictures of the event. DJ. Truuf was in the spot keeping things loud and proud. You can visit his myspace, linked above for more pictures.

These events look like a lot of fun. It is a great concept and it can be applied to large cities and small towns. Hopefully this concept will grow in the coming years. Thanks to stopping in, come back tomorrow for an exciting Weapon Wednesday. There is some really exciting news out there for the Converse Weapons. I am going to sit on it for a day and see if anyone can find it.

The Converse Blog: My Chucks Design Contest and Samaritan's Feet.

Friday right before I went to post the flashback, I got this email about the My Chucks design contest. The grand prize winner gets their shoe made, which is amazing. However, they also get to go to Converse HQ and work with the design team. Talk about a dream come true, I couldn't think of anything I'd like to do more. Hopefully I can get my design finalized soon, and then we'll see what happens. Here is the press release.

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. (May 9, 2008) – Converse, with an assist from Utah Jazz star Kyle Korver, today announced the launch of MyChucks, a contest inviting participants to design a Chuck Taylor® All Star® shoe with the chance to win the ultimate prize of having their shoe produced by Converse and sold exclusively by Eastbay.

The Chuck Taylor® All Star® shoe is one of pop culture’s great blank canvases and has been worn by icons and originals spanning from music, sports, art and fashion who have been scribbling their expressions on the shoe for decades. MyChucks gives contestants the chance to bring their own creativity to the Converse canvas and showcase their design to the world.

As part of the contest, Kyle Korver submitted his own design of the Chuck Taylor All Star shoe which will be featured online, along with a video of him designing his shoe and explaining the process. Korver’s shoe features pinstripes to represent all of the people in his life, and a red stripe to represent himself and his desire to be an original. Converse will produce 226 pairs of the shoe, which pays homage to Korver’s jersey number 26, and will be donated to the Kyle Korver Foundation, whose mission is to make a positive impact on the lives of under-privileged children by improving the quality of life for disadvantaged youth and their families.

“My grandmother was an art teacher and she helped begin my interest in design at a young age. I enjoyed it so much that I majored in visual communications in college, and I’ve had a passion for art and design ever since,” said Utah Jazz forward Kyle Korver. “I’m known as a basketball player but basketball isn’t everything that defines me, and I’ve always looked for opportunities to express myself off the court. I’m very excited for the MyChucks contest because it gives people the opportunity to express themselves by using the most iconic shoe of all time.”

To enter, contestants can visit mychucks.eastbay.com to download the entry kit which contains a silhouette of the Chuck Taylor All Star shoe and contest instructions. Participants need to submit a scanned image of their design and a 20-30 second video explaining their entry. Submissions will be placed in an online, public gallery where visitors can vote on each design. Visitors to the website can also register for a chance to win a new pair of Chuck Taylor All Star shoes every day between April 28 and July 6.

The top five designs with the most votes will enter the final round of judging which is determined by the total number of votes, and the judging of artistic ability, creative expression and overall design by a panel from Converse and Eastbay. The Grand Prize will be announced on or about July 11, 2008 on mychucks.eastbay.com. The winner will be flown to Converse headquarters to work with designers and developers and create the final version of the shoe, which will be produced and sold on Eastbay.com beginning in January 2009. To be eligible for the MyChucks contests, participants must be at least 18 years of age, a U.S. resident and enter their design by June 8, 2008.

Above is a shot of Kyle Korver from yesterday's game rocking the Converse Hops. Kyle's kicks made another appearance on TNT last night. Converse continued to support the Samaritan's Feet effort, along with Adidas, Nike, and Protege. The showed some up coming shoes from the brands, and for the first time publicly Converse showed off the new 0100 design. I tried to capture a picture of them, but it didn't work. So check out the video on NBA.com.

Also please check out Samaritan's Feet and make a donation today. Every day more than 300,000,000 kids wake up without shoes. Something I take for granted ever day, is out of the reach for so many. I made a donation in my Mother's name as a Mother's Day gift. Thank you for checking out the blog. I'll be back tomorrow for a special Tuesday edition of the Converse Blog.

The Converse Blog's Friday Flashback: Chany He: Helium Skate Shoe.

There has been all kinds of stuff going on the last few days. I've been emailed pics from the Open Gym in Philly, there is a new Converse contest with Eastbay, plus I am working on something new for the blog. However, all of that will have to wait, at least for today. Why? Because today is Friday, and Friday's are for Flashbacks. Today's Flashback is the Chaney He: These were the only Converse Helium skate shoes that were released, and they were signature shoes for Chany Jeanquenin.


The first colorway, is the black/blue/grey colorway. These actually are in my collection, although I've never been a skateboard. As you can see in the heel area, Converse Helium provided the cushioning for these.

They also featured Converse ABS, which to best of my memory was a technology used make the materials more durable. This was applied to the cage looking material on the outer side of these shoes. Below are the two other colorways that were released. I am extremely jealous of anyone that has the White/Blue colorway. I always thought they looked the best.

You can see the Helium logo on outsole of this shoe here. The logo is combination of C for Converse and He: for the periodic table's symbol for Helium.



Here is a Converse for the Chaney He:
Skate Commercial for Converse featuring Chany, Felix, and Kenny


Before I sign off for today, I want to talk about Converse Helium. This is by far my favorite Converse technology. I still say to this day the best basketball shoe I've ever had was the Converse He:01. Converse Helium really came at a terrible time for Converse, in the 99-01 range in which the company fell into bankruptcy.

To me, Converse Helium had the most potential to take Converse to the next level. At the time when Converse Helium was announced, Basketball, Training, Running, and Skate shoes were promised. I even went as far as to pre-order a pair of the running shoes from Hibbit's. However, the running shoes were all canceled except one pair. The training shoes never came out here in America and the skate team died out shortly after. Basketball was the only catagory to continue on the Helium line. It was two years after the initial release before Helium found its way to a Converse team shoe.

I've always wanted to see a full length Converse Helium shoe would look and perform. Hopefully someday Converse Helium will return. Until then, I'll have to live in the past, and in what could've been. Thanks for stopping in, please take a second to vote on the way out.

The Converse Blog's Weapon Wednesday: Paint Splatter

These Weapons are out of control. I recently saw them on Converse China's website. Recently like yesterday, a research day. For lack of true name, I am going to call these the Weapon Paint Splatter. That's pretty much the best description of what you'll see below. I wish I had better, larger pictures, but these were the only pics I found.

They really could have gone over the top with these. However, they look more like the stuff you'd lay down on the floor when you're painting, which is a nice change of pace. I doubt we'll see these over here, so if you're over in China for the Olympics you might want to pick these up. What? I am just saying.

I am tossing around the idea of doing some personal profiles for Converse fans. I'd need a picture of you wearing Converse and answers to a few questions. I'll try to come up with some more solid by Friday. Thanks for coming over to the Converse blog.

The Converse Blog: Converse, When you're out to beat the world.

As you can probably imagine over the 100 years of Converse there have been a countless numbers of Commercials, Print Ads, Posters, and other advertising tools. I've decided that I am going to feature some of these ads here at the Converse Blog. Today's ad is full of foreshadowing for the future of the Converse All Star. It reads, "Basketball Pro? No. Just a guy who likes the feel of the worlds greatest basketball shoe." That's pretty much where we are for the All Star, the last NBA player to wear a Canvas Converse shoe was Tree Rollins in 1980. This ad came out way before 1980, though I am not sure when. It probably was not in the 70's because there is no Eltra logo anywhere. Which more than likely puts this ad in the 60's.

Below are some close ups, but I couldn't get the last one any bigger, so I typed out what is says and I'll post it below.

Yes, Converse All Stars, both high cuts and oxfords, appear on a lot of famous feet. Most pro, college, and high school basketball players, for instance. Every Olympic team since 1936 (When basketball became an Olympic event). A great many leading club squash, badminton, and handball players, too. In fact, Converse All Stars are specified by more coaches, worn by more players than any other shoe specifically made for basketball. But…there are many other great guys who won’t drive down to the store in anything else but Converse All Stars. Around-the-yard men who like the feel of the great shoe. And leisure time athletes everywhere. So why not get a pair for your closet? Wherever sporting goods are sold. For your nearest dealer call anytime free (800) 243-0355. In Conn. Call collect 325-4336. You’ll also find world-famous Converse tennis shoes and the new NS-1 for yachtsmen. Converse Rubber Co., Malden, Massachusetts 02148

Converse. When you’re out to beat the world.

Over the years the All Stars have become the everyday shoe, for everyone, anywhere. Whoever made this ad could see the future and tried to promote them as a shoe that everyone needs. Well that's just a taste of some of the ads that I am going to bring to you in the near future. Thanks for checking out the blog and remember to vote on the poll on the way out.

The Converse Blog's Friday Flashback: React 2 Team shoe.

Today's Flashback is dedicated to React 2. This was the technology that Converse used between the original react when it sprung a leak and the full implementation of Helium. Below is a team shoe that used React 2. I believe that this is the first shoe that Karl Malone wore when he returned to Converse.

As you can see in the heel, React 2 was an exposed gel and not a juice like gel of the original. I haven't been able to find much info on React 2, at least like I found for Energy Wave and React Juice. There are some more exciting shoes featuring React 2, including the All Star Smooth, but I decided to save them for another day.

Well that's it for today, thanks for checking out the blog and remember to vote on your way out. Enjoy your weekends!