Battle of the Kicks

Kickin' it

As with most things organized by teenagers and twenty-somethings, Tuesday night’s Battle of the Kicks at Buck 15 started with a flurry of last minute phone calls to figure out the grand prize and tie up loose ends.

Miami’s sneaker fiends lined up outside wearing their flashiest kicks. Once the doors opened at 9:30, the small and stylish club filled up with vintage and limited release sneakers attached to owners, who clearly coordinate their entire evening outfit around their shoes.

Tuesday’s competition, hosted by Philly Mike and the yet-to-be-opened store Miami Sole, was a battle of Nike Air Force Ones. Before the sneaker throw down began, people walked around with their digital cameras taking pictures of everyone’s footwear. The most excitement came from a pair of limited edition Air Force Ones that were specially designed for Jay-Z’s Black Album.

My personal favorite of the night was a pair of Nikes with a gold and black pattern designed for “Turtle” on Entourage. The winner of the competition, sporting a pair of old school Air-Force Ones with a thin grey pattern along the bottom of the shoe, took home one of only 100 pairs of black and orange $500 Huffs that were only released in San Francisco.

Fat Joe showed up at last month’s battle as a guest judge, but this time around he only made it for the tail end of the competition, just as the under-21s were being kicked out and the after-party (with DJ Keen One, DJ Safe Stadic, and DJ Induce) was kicking off. --Tovin Lapan