Good evening, family! What’s good. Sykes here! Hope y’all are having a fantastic week so far. Thanks for stopping by for a bit today. Hang out for as long as you want.
Today’s thread is all about our grails. First, I want to know what YOU actually consider a grail? Like, what makes a shoe a grail for you? Second, if you have a grail, what is it?
Alright, so I haven't gone just yet. I won't lie to y'all. I'm not completely sure what to consider a grail — maybe we can debate this. I don't think it has much to do with money, although I think they are naturally expensive. But it's not because they're hyped — it's because they're unavailable. Does that make sense? Lol.
My grail is the Northern Lights low SB's. I have been eyeing this shoe since the day it came out in 2014. Could've bought it MULTIPLE times but never did. Saw them go on StockX for $105 maybe 3 years ago. Wanted to bite, didn't. And now they're, like a billion dollars. And I am still a certified broke boi.
I kept telling myself I was waiting to cop those (though I like the Highs more) until I could go to Iceland and see them myself. Then, I'd cop for my girl too. I'd be so proud of myself! lmao
Grails are shoes that you’ve always wanted but couldn’t easily find. Mine was the Glow in the Dark Nike Blazers. I had to have them for Kanye’s Glow in the Dark Tour. Ended up finding my size on EBay years later
Wow I remember when a homie of mine came up on these in high school. I had never been so jealous in my life lololol. That had to be dope for you to actually cop em.
I agree with most of the folks about not having access to them, but I'd add "time" - I think there needs to be some measure of time since (or before) release to make them at that status? For example I don't think a sneaker dropping this weekend can be a "grail," but that same sneaker in a year can be? Not sure I'm enunciating what I mean exactly, more just thinking out loud.
No I totally get what you're saying about time being part of it. That's an astute point. I don't know if you can call something that drops in 2020 a grail. I'm honestly barely ok with me calling something from 2014 one lol.
For me it’s something I think is cool that’s a bit out of my price range however I’m currently living, but I could buy as a reward when something great happens. Like, in college I really like the Vans Yacht Club Old Skools, but I was broke as hell and couldn’t pull the trigger. Then when I was graduated without a job, I really liked the AJ1 Nothing but Nets. Now that I have a real job, I just bought both of those and my grail is the AJ 11 Concords.
A grail to me is a sneaker that YOU have always wanted and a sneaker that YOU consider one of the greatest of all-time. Doesn’t always have to be crazy expensive or super hard to find, but usually is. Mine would be the New Balance 999 x Concepts “The Kennedy” joints. They’re just perfection to me and the details are stunning.
A grail for me is a shoe you always wanted and have to have in your collection-no matter what. For me there were two. I had to have those Colin Kaepernick “True to 7” AF1’s. I HAD to have those. The other pair is the Flint Jordan 13’s. I just felt those were so smooth, I needed them in my collection.
Think a grail is a shoe you need no matter what. You may even double up or cop multiple times in life. For me i talked about my chrome 8 grail story in the last thread lol. But right now I’m eying the supreme camo 5s. I def need a pair just waiting on the right price for me to pull the trigger on. I grabbed the acronym prestos years later and doubled up on mocha 3s so those are some other grails i have. Currently watching Oreo 4 and Columbia 4s. I was broke in college when those gr lol. But def will cop soon. Also sold a pair of mochas after getting fired in January lol so currently considering a 2nd pair again.
A grail to me is something unobtainable, whether because it's out of your price range at the time or you no longer see it in the marketplace due to limited release or simply age. For me, the Zoo York Dunks were an ultimate grail. They always looked so hard with the torn newspaper look from their ads. When I saw them come available in my size, I knew I had to have them. Same goes for the N.E.R.D. Dunk High's. Being a kid from VA that went to Pharrell's high school, these still hold a lot of sentimental value. Happy to have them both in my collection.
B Mart! This post is high key a big flex lmao. Love that you got both of them! I remember wanting those Zoo Yorks and the Melvins so bad in high school.
See, that's interesting too. There are so many dope designs, especially with Dunks, but I just don't fuck with the concept, so I can't get behind it. Like Melvins, Dunkles, Slayer... just not my thing.
One of my top grails I own are the Raging Bull 5s. Those are my favorite Jordan's of all time! Another grail I own are the Pantone 11s. One grail Im sure im never getting are the galaxy foams lol
Grails.. the one you continually search for. Mine is the Freddy Krueger Dunks.. Im a huge horror fan and these are just beautiful shoes. I know i wont ever have them but it would be beautiful to se them on feet one day!
Like others have said, the grail to me is that shoe you just can’t reach, whether it’s financially or not.
Mine, without a doubt, is the Bred 1. Every time they’ve retroed it’s been one thing or another that prevents me from getting them. In high school, I was broke. In college, I was broke. Once I graduated high school and was working a few jobs at a time- I couldn’t justify paying 300 or so for them. Looking at the prices now, I wish I had lol. Now when JB releases literally any pair of 1s with the red/black/ white color way I am low key salty that it isn’t the breds. Y’all, I was so upset at that midtop that leaked this week. It’s literally just a few color placements from being the bred 😭.
Aside from that, my other grail was always the Black Ray Guns. I was so stoked they got ~ sort of ~ retroed at the end of last year. I paid resale, but thankfully that was before the dunk hype fully exploded.
MAN I lucked up getting those Ray Guns for retail on SNKRS. I still can't believe it. The Raygun OG's are still a grail of mine but these definitely work.
Also, the Bred 1 is the grail of grails lol. If you'd paid 300 for em back in the day you'd probably still be flipping the joints now.
Grails are shoes that you always want and have the ability to obtain. Mine was the air Jordan 11 concord from 2000 that i paid with my own money from Popeyes lol
A grail to me is a shoe I covet a lot. It doesn’t necessarily mean a hard shoe to find but a lot of the time it does mean that haha.
My grail is the Slam Dunk 6s. I’ve loved manga and basketball my entire life and when I realized the main character wears 6s a duration of the comic it awoke a realization that I wanted to start getting into shoes. Albeit this would be a while (really have issues about money/spending it). The manga is cool, you’ll see a bunch of kicks from that era that people loved/love.
Grail is just something that I didn't have access to once released that I REALLY REALLY wanted. The only ones I have in recent memory are those Fossil Stussy x Nike Spiridons. Still kicking myself for not paying $250 on Goat before they released. Idk why I thought I would get a pair.
Previous grailw were the KD 5 Weathermans, but I do have those babies now :)
It was such crap. And all the lady sizes are INSANE prices now. TBH, I feel like influencers are part of the problem. It's not like they're into sneakers, just into a trend, and resellers KNOW that and now us unsponsored folks have to pay $650 for some shoes that retailed for a fifth of that if we want em. I just remember the simpler times when kids sizes were essentially always available at retail.... 😭
Super subjective. General framework for me is: 1.) classics you couldn’t get at the time and now can, 2.) something really personal to you, and 3.) something new that’s just hittin’ and you know will be a classic in the future.
As an example, I love J’s and that’s pretty much my collection but those Dominican AF1’s are everything. Not Jordan’s, not classics per se, but as a person of Dominican ethnicity, they do it for me. Grail.
There’s two pairs of shoes that are my grails - they’re both juuuust outta reach for me on the resale market but I think I could cop one of em by the end of the year if I save right. They might not be head turners like some of the off-white or gucci joints but I love the way these look!
For me, grail just means it's hard to find, regardless of cost. But that probably just means I'm cheap for not wanting to pay (significantly) over retail for something. The only shoe I can immediately think of that I want that I don't have / haven't had is the Miami Nights LeBron 11, I hesitated when it came out and it's been running from me ever since. I could get it on stockx or something, but...
😂 Nothing wrong with being cheap yo. I know that feeling w the LeBron tho. That's how the Cement AJ4's are for me. Had a chance to cop back in 2016 but didn't. It's not even a hard shoe to get — I just won't do it smh.
Alright, so I haven't gone just yet. I won't lie to y'all. I'm not completely sure what to consider a grail — maybe we can debate this. I don't think it has much to do with money, although I think they are naturally expensive. But it's not because they're hyped — it's because they're unavailable. Does that make sense? Lol.
My grail is the Northern Lights low SB's. I have been eyeing this shoe since the day it came out in 2014. Could've bought it MULTIPLE times but never did. Saw them go on StockX for $105 maybe 3 years ago. Wanted to bite, didn't. And now they're, like a billion dollars. And I am still a certified broke boi.
Go figure.
I kept telling myself I was waiting to cop those (though I like the Highs more) until I could go to Iceland and see them myself. Then, I'd cop for my girl too. I'd be so proud of myself! lmao
lmao nah that is a VIBE dude. i'm stealing this.
Grails are shoes that you’ve always wanted but couldn’t easily find. Mine was the Glow in the Dark Nike Blazers. I had to have them for Kanye’s Glow in the Dark Tour. Ended up finding my size on EBay years later
Wow I remember when a homie of mine came up on these in high school. I had never been so jealous in my life lololol. That had to be dope for you to actually cop em.
I agree with most of the folks about not having access to them, but I'd add "time" - I think there needs to be some measure of time since (or before) release to make them at that status? For example I don't think a sneaker dropping this weekend can be a "grail," but that same sneaker in a year can be? Not sure I'm enunciating what I mean exactly, more just thinking out loud.
I'll add on to this:
My all time grails are the Red Octobers. They're the only shoe I've ever bought reps for (and probably the only shoe I ever will).
I literally just found out about the Jordan 1 Vachetta Tan last week - https://www.goat.com/sneakers/air-jordan-1-pinnacle-vachetta-tan-705075-201 - and now they're probably my number 2.
No I totally get what you're saying about time being part of it. That's an astute point. I don't know if you can call something that drops in 2020 a grail. I'm honestly barely ok with me calling something from 2014 one lol.
For me it’s something I think is cool that’s a bit out of my price range however I’m currently living, but I could buy as a reward when something great happens. Like, in college I really like the Vans Yacht Club Old Skools, but I was broke as hell and couldn’t pull the trigger. Then when I was graduated without a job, I really liked the AJ1 Nothing but Nets. Now that I have a real job, I just bought both of those and my grail is the AJ 11 Concords.
I definitely believe in buying a pair of kicks to celebrate a moment. When you wear them, you'll always think back to that time in your life.
Absolutely! I second this haha. You definitely have to double back sometimes for the kicks you couldn't have. That's how you know you've made it lol.
Mama, I made it! Just look at my shoooooes!
A grail to me is a sneaker that YOU have always wanted and a sneaker that YOU consider one of the greatest of all-time. Doesn’t always have to be crazy expensive or super hard to find, but usually is. Mine would be the New Balance 999 x Concepts “The Kennedy” joints. They’re just perfection to me and the details are stunning.
Fam I totally agree with your concept of a grail. I hate it when we let how expensive a shoe is determine how we think about it.
A grail for me is honestly just something I really like that is waaaaaay out of my price range because of the hype or limited release around it. My number one grail is the moon landing air max Lunar 90s https://www.stadiumgoods.com/nike-air-max-lunar90-sp-moon-landing-700098-007?flow_enabled=false&gclid=CjwKCAjwm_P5BRAhEiwAwRzSOxZhrKs-DmfXnfxHdY5sIBS7juZWBbSryUV9xCouPzQqumSPwykXHhoC04MQAvD_BwE
Good god these shoes rule. I hope one day you get em
A size 13 is $10,000 per StockX. That’s just insane
But it’s such a unique shoe, it commemorates a historic event, and it’s just so well done. All in all, that’s what makes a grail for me
Man, the details on that joint are SO good. They tried to do the same with the Mars Landing 90's but it just didn't hit the same to me.
A grail for me is a shoe you always wanted and have to have in your collection-no matter what. For me there were two. I had to have those Colin Kaepernick “True to 7” AF1’s. I HAD to have those. The other pair is the Flint Jordan 13’s. I just felt those were so smooth, I needed them in my collection.
YO we need pics of those Kap joints! They gotta be fire
I got you fam.
Think a grail is a shoe you need no matter what. You may even double up or cop multiple times in life. For me i talked about my chrome 8 grail story in the last thread lol. But right now I’m eying the supreme camo 5s. I def need a pair just waiting on the right price for me to pull the trigger on. I grabbed the acronym prestos years later and doubled up on mocha 3s so those are some other grails i have. Currently watching Oreo 4 and Columbia 4s. I was broke in college when those gr lol. But def will cop soon. Also sold a pair of mochas after getting fired in January lol so currently considering a 2nd pair again.
Just checked the price on the supreme joints and it's not as bad as I thought lol. It was just about $600 — I figured it'd at least be double that.
A grail to me is something unobtainable, whether because it's out of your price range at the time or you no longer see it in the marketplace due to limited release or simply age. For me, the Zoo York Dunks were an ultimate grail. They always looked so hard with the torn newspaper look from their ads. When I saw them come available in my size, I knew I had to have them. Same goes for the N.E.R.D. Dunk High's. Being a kid from VA that went to Pharrell's high school, these still hold a lot of sentimental value. Happy to have them both in my collection.
B Mart! This post is high key a big flex lmao. Love that you got both of them! I remember wanting those Zoo Yorks and the Melvins so bad in high school.
See, that's interesting too. There are so many dope designs, especially with Dunks, but I just don't fuck with the concept, so I can't get behind it. Like Melvins, Dunkles, Slayer... just not my thing.
One of my top grails I own are the Raging Bull 5s. Those are my favorite Jordan's of all time! Another grail I own are the Pantone 11s. One grail Im sure im never getting are the galaxy foams lol
Nah you gotta get them Galaxies bro lol. Foam king.
Grails.. the one you continually search for. Mine is the Freddy Krueger Dunks.. Im a huge horror fan and these are just beautiful shoes. I know i wont ever have them but it would be beautiful to se them on feet one day!
They are CLASSICS bro. Joints are heat.
Be careful on the after-market. So many fakes flying around!
I will never buy these to be honest
Never say never!
Like others have said, the grail to me is that shoe you just can’t reach, whether it’s financially or not.
Mine, without a doubt, is the Bred 1. Every time they’ve retroed it’s been one thing or another that prevents me from getting them. In high school, I was broke. In college, I was broke. Once I graduated high school and was working a few jobs at a time- I couldn’t justify paying 300 or so for them. Looking at the prices now, I wish I had lol. Now when JB releases literally any pair of 1s with the red/black/ white color way I am low key salty that it isn’t the breds. Y’all, I was so upset at that midtop that leaked this week. It’s literally just a few color placements from being the bred 😭.
Aside from that, my other grail was always the Black Ray Guns. I was so stoked they got ~ sort of ~ retroed at the end of last year. I paid resale, but thankfully that was before the dunk hype fully exploded.
MAN I lucked up getting those Ray Guns for retail on SNKRS. I still can't believe it. The Raygun OG's are still a grail of mine but these definitely work.
Also, the Bred 1 is the grail of grails lol. If you'd paid 300 for em back in the day you'd probably still be flipping the joints now.
Right? I just want them to retro every 5 years. It’s only the most classic shoe! Is that too much to ask? Lol
Grails are shoes that you always want and have the ability to obtain. Mine was the air Jordan 11 concord from 2000 that i paid with my own money from Popeyes lol
Lmao that chicken was clearly hitting back then. I remember mowing lawns for those aqua 8's smh.
Aqua 8s so cold i love my pair. They never seem to age either weirdly.
Supreme air uptempos! So bonkers!
Man those are IMPOSSIBLE to get lol
A grail to me is a shoe I covet a lot. It doesn’t necessarily mean a hard shoe to find but a lot of the time it does mean that haha.
My grail is the Slam Dunk 6s. I’ve loved manga and basketball my entire life and when I realized the main character wears 6s a duration of the comic it awoke a realization that I wanted to start getting into shoes. Albeit this would be a while (really have issues about money/spending it). The manga is cool, you’ll see a bunch of kicks from that era that people loved/love.
http://www.sneakersdog.com/the-air-jordan-vi-retro-x-slam-dunk-will-debut-in-special-packaging/
YO Ruben I did not know that these shoes actually existed in real life WTF
YES DUDE. I WANT THEM SO BAD but they’re 500 on resale sites Lmao
Grail is just something that I didn't have access to once released that I REALLY REALLY wanted. The only ones I have in recent memory are those Fossil Stussy x Nike Spiridons. Still kicking myself for not paying $250 on Goat before they released. Idk why I thought I would get a pair.
Previous grailw were the KD 5 Weathermans, but I do have those babies now :)
MAN I feel you on the Stussy joints, Kayla. I thought I'd be able to pay retail for them. HA. No.
It was such crap. And all the lady sizes are INSANE prices now. TBH, I feel like influencers are part of the problem. It's not like they're into sneakers, just into a trend, and resellers KNOW that and now us unsponsored folks have to pay $650 for some shoes that retailed for a fifth of that if we want em. I just remember the simpler times when kids sizes were essentially always available at retail.... 😭
Weathermans are still crazy!
They are a very lovely shoe.
The unachievable grail for me is the Diamond dunk lows. Those shoes are beautiful but I know I'll never be able to have them.
Grails that are more attainable would be the Shadow 1's and the White Cement 4's. I was unemployed when they dropped last and had to pass on them
Man I passed on those White Cements too and totally regret it. That 2016 version is one of the cleanest joints to drop in the last decade.
Super subjective. General framework for me is: 1.) classics you couldn’t get at the time and now can, 2.) something really personal to you, and 3.) something new that’s just hittin’ and you know will be a classic in the future.
As an example, I love J’s and that’s pretty much my collection but those Dominican AF1’s are everything. Not Jordan’s, not classics per se, but as a person of Dominican ethnicity, they do it for me. Grail.
Couldn't agree more with your framework for your grails.
There’s two pairs of shoes that are my grails - they’re both juuuust outta reach for me on the resale market but I think I could cop one of em by the end of the year if I save right. They might not be head turners like some of the off-white or gucci joints but I love the way these look!
Your grail is your grail, family! Forget them off white joints lol
For me, grail just means it's hard to find, regardless of cost. But that probably just means I'm cheap for not wanting to pay (significantly) over retail for something. The only shoe I can immediately think of that I want that I don't have / haven't had is the Miami Nights LeBron 11, I hesitated when it came out and it's been running from me ever since. I could get it on stockx or something, but...
😂 Nothing wrong with being cheap yo. I know that feeling w the LeBron tho. That's how the Cement AJ4's are for me. Had a chance to cop back in 2016 but didn't. It's not even a hard shoe to get — I just won't do it smh.