BAPE x adidas Superskate “Super Ape Skate”

  • MODEL: ADIDAS SUPERSKATE
  • DESIGNED BY: A Bathing Ape (BAPE)
  • MADE IN: CHINA
  • MADE ON: --/03
  • LIMITED TO 500 PAIRS
  • ART.NO: 040049

Clean, green, and extremely limited, the Super Ape Skate olive is one of four very special skate shoes from BAPE and the trefoil. Limited to only 500 pairs worldwide, these olive green Superskate’s are only one of the nine treasures BAPE have dropped with adidas Originals in their collaborations together since 2003. This total number includes a variety of Superstars, as well as three other Superskate colorways: black and grey, as well as black snake skin - both of which are also limited to 500 pairs – and then the elusive black and iridescent snake skin’s made for staff and family only, which (same as the Super Ape Star staff version) were limited to 100 pairs worldwide.

This pair is saturated with design, and it’s the kind of design that isn’t so obvious when seen. It’s minimal, it’s concise, and it’s so damn yummy. Olive green suede wrapped around patches of animal skin textured white leather that’s in turn covered with smoother black leather stripes. Gold highlights flash a BAPE face in the form of a lace jewel as well as the model name across the side wall. “1 of 500″ is delicately printed in white on both heel strips. Zoom out and these are a pleasure to look at, and due to the durability of the Superskate model itself, more than likely they’re a pleasure to shred as well (though we can hardly imagine someone rippin’ a pair of these baby gorillas across their grip tape to pull off a kick flip anytime soon).

Even the packaging pushes the limits. Sure there’s some fancy tissue wrapping paper (seen that before), and yeah there’s a big plastic badge hanging from a keychain (nothing new here), and I admit it’s cool that we’ve got three replacement laces (white, green camo, and grey blue camo) all printed up with a peppering of BAPE face logos, but the box takes the cake. Some sort of fold-up briefcase meets cardboard lunch box with simply the sexiest three stripe design we’ve seen in ages spilling across its broadsize. If you’re not sold on the sneakers themselves (you’re crazy) than it’s highly possibly you’d lay down money for the packaging and presentation alone.

written by Dylan Cromwell

photography by errol

shoes contributed by Ross Macwaters