“Chucks” have been around since 1917 and became linked to basketball player Chuck Taylor after he joined a team sponsored by the company. My Dayton Flyers broadcast partner, Bucky Bockhorn, was a Hall of Fame player at UD wearing Chucks, and for his seven seasons with the NBA’s Cincinnati Royals.
The NBA logo, Jerry West, sports Chucks in his famous silhouette. As a college volleyball player, I remember attending the USVBA Nationals in Dayton in 1979 and watching former San Diego State All-American Chris Marlowe eschew sleek Asics or Puma volleyball shoes for a pair of white high top Converse as he led his team to the championship.
A gift of Chuck Taylors this season for men of a “certain age” will evoke memories of going through lay-up lines on tiled elementary school gym floors. I can vividly remember the day I no longer had to wear sneakers from the bargain bin, held together by a rubber band, and got my first pair of black, low-cut Chucks. I still have a pair, as well as some white high tops.
The air technology of modern sports shoes make them more practical and, really, essential for competitive athletes, but for just knocking around in comfort and a warm feeling of nostalgia, the best shoe ever made was and always will be the Chuck Taylor All-Star.
Larry Hansgen is the radio play-by-play voice of UD football and basketball.
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