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If I told you guys that I had boycotted adidas hardbody during my detente with the brand then that would be a lie. I still copp adidas from time to time and I still rock them too.

It’s hard to break up with something that you have a long and intimate history with, except my ex-girlfriends, but they have changed phone numbers and filed for restraining orders so that keeps me at bay. My tennis shoe game is a love supreme. That’s the midwesterner in me speaking when I say “tennis shoes”. That’s what midwest people call EVERY sneaker no matter what activity it was created for.

My heart for adidas lies in their legacy tennis sneakers. I’ve spoken so affectionately about the Rod Lavers at the expense of some other styles that I feel deserve Holy Grail consideration if you can come up on them. The first one that I have been checking for this summer will be the Grand Prix. The Grand Prix should be a driving shoe since it is so clean and isn’t over detailed. I’m a big fan of premium materials and the Grand Prix always features a toebox made of suede or nubuck. The other feature that I love the Grand Prix for is the elevated arch support (peep that chisel in the outsole).

I definitely don’t talk enough about the adidas Trimm-Trab. This is another premium leather tennis shoe that adidas crafted back in the 70’s but it wasn’t really popular here in the states because it cost so much at the time. The construction of the shoe is what made it so cost prohibitive. You see how adidas has the integrated plastic lace eyelets in the upper. That shit costs wild paper back in them days.

On my last trip to Paris I came up on a pair of the Trimm-Trab in a dusty flea market in Cligancourt. I copped the joints even tho’ they weren’t even my size. I ended up bumping them on the eBay system but for a few weeks I was the owner. The next time I go overseas I am going in hardbody for the hard to find kicks.