Ian Stonebrook
Nike “History of Air” Pack
“The Nike “History of Air” Pack kicked off on Black Friday of 2005. I remember being in an Indianapolis Finish Line down to see my Swisher side of the family and the whole store was canvassed with White/Red Air Max 1s. They had the whitest mesh I’d ever seen and definitely evoked an “oh sh*t” feeling upon sight.
Surprisingly, I passed. ’05 was right before the blog boom and I was an avid reader and sometimes commentor on NikeTalk. Through passionate insiders and collectors, it was well known by mods, members and readers that Nike would be dropping an iconic Air Max every month starting in ’05 and running into ’06 to build steam for the Air Max 360 — a shoe that had big deal written all over it with some even imagining an all-Air bubble design. Yes, ambitious. While I dug and wanted the AM1s, the “Infrared” 90s in December were the cream of the crop for me. I’d ultimately get them from my mom and dad for Christmas and have to wait til the spring of my senior year of high school to break them out as the Michigan snow melted.
While other shoes I picked up like the Air Jordan 3 Black/Cement — thanks to Greg Grovey and the good folks at the Nice Kicks Shop — remain in rotation, the “History of Air” Pack really impresses me now. They were the hottest Air Maxes — period — and accessible for all. It also didn’t feel like you had to rush or have them all. You had to be in the know to budget ahead and prep to pick them up, but you could have no idea what NikeTalk was and still show up at a Dick’s Sporting Goods and see a full size run for a month. The “Color of the Month” Air Force 1s this year remind me a lot of that, even though I don’t think it’s culminating in a new silo (save the Flyknit Forces). I still have my “Infrared” Air Max 90s from the HOA Pack. They’re cooked, but they still get burn. I had to take out the History of Air timeline midsole because they frayed, but best believe I still kept them.”
