Skate shoes are shoes made specifically for skaters. This means they have additional features such as flat, vulcanized rubber soles, air pockets in the heels, shoe lace protectors, asymmetric stabilizers, and thermoplastic toe reinforcements, among others, to enhance the feet’s grip on the board and maximize balance. Most skate shoes are designed to allow you to feel the board and the road much better than ordinary shoes. This way, skate shoes make mastering new tricks made easier for you. Skate shoes also come with double or triple stitching to enhance the shoes’ durability. Most skate shoes are also made of a combination of rubber or polyurethane and leather composition.

Tips when buying skate shoes

Buying skate shoes requires you to take into consideration other features you would not normally consider when buying regular shoes. For one, you need to consider reinforced soles, an extra strong grip that you can get from the wideness of the shoe and the thick soles, as well as extra-durable shoe laces because these are often the first to fall apart.

Your skate shoes need to have a strong and thick sole as this is gets the brunt of the beating. Most skater shoes have Ollie pads, which are designed to extend the life of your sole and the shoe. Thick soles also serve as good brakes, making skate shoes the perfect footwear even for BMX riders.

Caring for skate shoes

• Skate shoes can be machine-washed, especially canvas skate shoes. Use cool to warm water during when washing, and never use bleach or laundry detergents with chlorine additives when washing colored skate shoes, for this can lead to discolorations.
• You can clean leather skate shoes with a damp cloth. Spot clean hard-to-remove stains using a damp cloth with a detergent. Test the cleaner on a small area before using it on the whole shoe.
• If you have suede skate shoes, start by cleaning them by applying a bit of waterproofing product. Brush the surface with a wire brush, and clean spots with a cleaning solution after testing it on a little area. After which, place the cleaned shoe away from a heat source.
• The dryness of the shoe is one crucial part of the maintenance of skate shoes. It is important that you do not blow dry the shoes to dry them. Instead of using a blow dyer or placing the skate shoes near a heater, just air dry them.
• When having the shoe repaired, make sure that the stitching goes through the original holes. To ensure this, go to a repair shop that specializes in skate shoe repairs.