During last year’s CPH Open 2023, all eyes were on Ishod as he cruised through the park in a bucket hat and jorts, landing trick after trick while dodging boards and bails. For how hectic the event was, Ishod and his skating almost froze time while he casually backside flipped over the iconic CPH Sunglasses obstacle. It was there he first donned a new silhouette that captured everyone’s attention; front and center amidst a crowd of 500 raging skaters was the first look at an all new Ishod 2 prototype.
His debut pro model from Nike was released just a year prior, so there’s no doubt that the Nike product team was already working on his second model at the time. Upon first glance, the Ishod 2, or Ishod “Wair Max” as it’s officially called, was pretty sporty looking. The shoe looked technical, almost reminiscent of a 90’s basketball shoe with its debut obsidian color way and it somehow worked better on the eyes than a lot of the other shoes that were trying to capture 90’s nostalgia. With that said, if there’s any skater to make a new silhouette look steezy, it’d be Ishod. We got our hands on a pair of the new Ishod Wair Max, and put these to the test! Read on below to see how they fared.
The Nike SB Ishod 2 fits true to size.
The Nike SB Ishod 2 is a shoe built to last and has really good durability for several reasons. Firstly, let’s look at the forefoot section. The first toe box material layer is a stiff leather material that also adds structural rigidity to the toe box. Since this material is front and center to griptape abrasion and doesn’t offer the best flick, Nike SB also added a suede layer around the toebox. One special feature of this panel is that the suede rim is stitch-and-turned which helps to increase the durability and rigidity of the whole panel. Despite first concerns, this construction held up really well in our 10-hour wear test. First signs of wear of the suede panel developed in the kick flip area but with that layered suede, it kept its strength and did not loosen up.
Secondly, although the midfoot section features some overlapping materials and stitched layers, no major signs of wear appeared. Lastly, the sole pattern of the shoe turned out to be very durable as well, especially for how boardfeel-oriented the shoe’s design was. One impressive feature noticed after our 10-hour test is the lace protection reminiscent of 90’s skate shoes, which worked very well and no laces ripped.
Overall, the Nike SB Ishod 2 demonstrated an impressive cushioning performance. The combination of a stable upper and the well-thought-out sole construction resulted in pretty impressive impact protection. The sole construction consists of a vulcanized rim around the upper and is then embedded in a cupsole. Usually the main cushioning elements are hidden, but the Nike SB designers made it visible from the outside through the window in the heel area. As shown in the half-cut picture, the sole itself is thin and the main cushioning element is an drop-in insole with a Nike Air Max element glued into it. It was definitely noticeable to have a very secure and good cushioning feeling and the shoe can absorb medium to high impacts.
The second pro Model from Ishod is a rather technical silhouette inspired by retro skate and basketball designs. The Nike SB designers took inspiration from the AirMax silhouettes but also kept the signature details from Ishod’s first shoe consistent, like the vulc-cupsole mix, the stability strap and the medial ventilation. Looking down, the shoe looks very slim with its heel and midfoot section to run parallel to each other and then narrows down towards the toe to end with an arrow-shaped toebox with a clear peak. When looking in a mirror to see the side, the shoe looks rather big because of its seemingly higher than normal cut.
The sole’s thickness in the front, as well as the overall stability of a shoe, are essential for boardfeel. The thinner sole in the toe-area of the Ishod 2 helps create a good board feel and the feet have a close connection with the board. However, the shoe needed some time breaking in to showcase this. The sole construction felt stiff in the beginning and needed one to two sessions to develop its flexibility but once reached, the shoe had really good boardfeel.
With regards to the grip, the Ishod 2 was below average; there were times where you could feel it become a bit slippery, especially fresh out the box. But in general, the rubber composite used held up well during the 10-hour wear test.
The most important features for a comfortable skate shoe include weight, ventilation and a well-crafted inner shoe area. Overall, the Nike SB Ishod is lightweight and the inner area is crafted very well, featuring lock-in tongue straps that are connected to the heel area and help achieve a comfortable feeling for the feet. A highlight of the Ishod 2 is also its exceptional breathability which is created though a large medial mesh material window.
The stability is definitely an outstanding strength of the Ishod 2. The upper, with its multiple layer construction from toe to heel, maintained its structure very well over the 10-hour test. Nike SB took the stability strap from Ishod’s first shoe to the next level. The lacing system is connected to a midfoot cage which tightens around the foot when tying the laces. The large lace loops not only protect the laces itself, they also make it easy to secure your feet when tying the shoe. In addition, the high cut heel area makes sure that no slipping out occurs and also protects the foot in this area.
Ishod’s second signature model was impressive. Priced at around 100 bucks, this is the shoe to try if you’re looking for a new all terrain model that features a perfect balance between stability, board feel, durability and cushioning. It lacked in grip at first, but over time the composite breaks in and improves.
Fabian
March 29, 2024I would like you to inform me about when it is released