Shoes

[grunewar]

As you are finding out, trial and error are unfortunately your best way to find out what is best for you....and your feet. Glad you had them checked!

We've had these discussions on the Forum many times before. What court shoe you are most comfortable with depends very much on your body type (large, small, tall, skinny) feet, (flat, arch, pronation, etc.) how many games you do, types of courts, etc. How a shoe looks is not as important as how they feel - and how they make you feel.

Knowing what you don't like is part of the process - as you found out.

I am 5'8" (on a good day) and an overpronator. I wear Asics to run in because they make a shoe I finally found useful (after much trial and error).

I tried a great many court shoes (NB, Nike, Addidas, etc.) and had foot and leg problems several times. Last year I bought a pair of patent leather Official's Choice shoes. Unfortunately, when trying them on, I didn't realize the severe arch they had. First couple of times I used them I was in terrible PAIN! Then, I went to an Orthopedic Surgeon who provided me custom made inserts and now I love the OC's and my feet never felt better!

Good luck in your search, continue to rotate your stock, and have a great year!

[GoodwillRef]

Is this what you are looking for?

Nike Men's Air Max 2009 Leather Running Shoe*Black/Silver/Anthracite *| FinishLine.com

[rockchalk jhawk]

Originally Posted by GoodwillRef

Is this what you are looking for?

Nike Men's Air Max 2009 Leather Running Shoe*Black/Silver/Anthracite *| FinishLine.com

Hands down the most comfortable shoe I've ever worn to referee in. They're a little on the heavy side, but my joints have never felt better when wearing this shoe. They're definitely pricey, but the nice thing about Nike shoes is that they have a 2 yr warranty on them. Apparently I drag my inside left toe quite a bit (I've tried to catch myself doing this and fix whatever it is I'm doing, but I never seem to notice it) and last season I wore the inside sole of my shoe at the left toe area all the way down to where it eventually got to the air pocket and it went flat during a camp early last summer. I got on the phone, got the RMA #, mailed the shoes back, and two weeks later had a voucher for $160 sitting in the mailbox for use on nike.com. Previously I'd done the same thing with with a pair of Shox that failed on me.

Unfortunately, I still have the voucher sitting on my desk as I have been looking for another pair of these shoes ever since then and just finally found that they were back in stock at Finish Line. Apparently they don't offer last year's models on nike.com. I talked to the FL manager as I was checking out and he said these shoes are flying off the shelves. I said I was a basketball referee and he said that he thought that's where 90% of them were going. I was going to buy 2 pair, but I got the last pair of 11.5's they had in stock. So theoretically, this pair of shoes was free, but I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the $160 voucher. Christmas gifts maybe.

[hawkeyegb]

Yes...this is the shoe I was talking about. Glad to hear positive comments!

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by GoodwillRef

Is this what you are looking for?

Nike Men's Air Max 2009 Leather Running Shoe*Black/Silver/Anthracite *| FinishLine.com

I just bought a pair of those shoes. I have heard nothing but good things about them. Might be buying a second pair.

Peace

[Upward ref]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

I just bought a pair of those shoes. I have heard nothing but good things about them. Might be buying a second pair.

Peace

so i guess the little bit of white detailing isnt a problem ?

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by Upward ref

so i guess the little bit of white detailing isnt a problem ?

Not for me and where I work. But if you want you can just use a permanent marker or go over them with black shoe polish. The problem is you are not going to find many black shoes where everything is black on them. Almost impossible to find on your own. You could custom make a shoe with some of the big retailers, but those will cost you even more money.

Peace

[CaRef5]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

Not for me and where I work. But if you want you can just use a permanent marker or go over them with black shoe polish. The problem is you are not going to find many black shoes where everything is black on them. Almost impossible to find on your own. You could custom make a shoe with some of the big retailers, but those will cost you even more money.

Peace

You are definitely right about the custom all black shoes, you can get yourself an all black pair of air max's on nikeid, however, it'll run you around $185+.

I'd take the $160 with a little marker anyday!

[Judtech]

GRUN - Asics also makes an all black running shoe that I wore for several years. I do to my 'funky feet' I switched this past year to Brooks Adrenaline (sp) because they were wider and fit my orthodics better.

As for the light grey or any 'non black' I too use a permanent marker. Early in the shoes life I have to mark them every game but after about 3 or 4 the marker sticks and it doesnt matter. As a 'hard runner' I blow out any Nike prodcut within a game or two.
My final point is to find a specialty running store in your area. They will usually put you through a whole process to help find the best shoe for you. It takes awhile initially, but after they have all of your foot requirments they keep them on file and you can ask them to keep an eye out for all black shoes that 'fit your feet". Hope that helps

[BLydic]

Originally Posted by Upward ref

so i guess the little bit of white detailing isnt a problem ?

Your assigner/supervisor can answer that question better than anyone here.

[hawkeyegb]

Well, I went and tried on the Air Max tonight and the all leather are a little tight and Finish Line told me that they don't make it in a wide width. Then I tried on the other Air Max but it was the one that is the more stretchy material...not leather. Not sure if this shoe will be as stable as the leather. They look very similar though.

[BLydic]

Originally Posted by hawkeyegb

Well, I went and tried on the Air Max tonight and the all leather are a little tight ...

I have tightness even with the wider Nike shoe, which led me to New Balance. Although I've been wearing their mid-cut basketball shoe the past several years, they are a bit heavy. I'm looking at this shoe for this year.

Amazon.com: New Balance MR993LBK Mens Running Shoe: Shoes

[26 Year Gap]

Just don't buy any from that spammer that shows up here from time to time.

[Texas Aggie]

trial and error are unfortunately your best way to find out what is best for you.

Not true. You need to be evaluated for your foot pronation type. If you don't know what that means, then go to a running shoe store and ask them to look at the way you walk -- probably without shoes -- and give you an evaluation. If you overpronate, the inside of your foot turns inward as you walk. If you are neutral, it pretty much stays straight. Most people are some form of the former -- they have some inward movement, ranging from a little to severe. That's good news for officials since most of the basketball shoes sold by the Honigs of the world are cross-trainer type shoes that usually work fine for those that over pronate a little or a lot. The problem comes in for guys like me that are neutral -- we need cushioning and usually, a running shoe is the only way to get it.

That's what I wear and it takes a lot of effort to find black running shoes. I've found a couple and just buy several when I've found them. You may have to compromise a little.

Getting other's GENERAL advice on shoes is like asking if you can wear my pants or my shirt. Sure, but its probably not going to fit, just like the shoes I wear might not work for you. If you want to start getting a taste for what I'm talking about, google running shoe and pronate.

[grunewar]

Originally Posted by Texas Aggie

Not true.

I agree with what you said (hence why I made similar comments in post #5), except the trial and error part.

I believe even when you know what type of foot you have - neutral striker, over pronator, under pronator, etc., you still may go through a trial and error period with brands and models until you find the shoe that's best for you.

All of the major shoe manufacturers make shoes for all the different foot types. That doesn't mean the width, comfort, support, style, insole, cushion is good or comfortable for you. Just because the shoe “type” is appropriate for your foot type, doesn’t mean the make/model is best for your feet.

Even though I knew my foot-type, it still took me quite a while of what I would call “trial and error,” and I went through allot of the major brands, (Adidas, Nike, Brooks, Saucony, etc.) before I settled on my Asics many yrs ago.

JMO