Classics Revisited: Nike Air Max ’98 (1998)
August 2nd, 2012 by John K. | 7 comments
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Believe it or not, 1998 might be one of the best years of Air Max in Nike’s history. Aside from the introduction of Tuned Air with the Nike Air Max Plus, there was a wide variety of can’t-miss models that dropped in ’98; including the Air Max ’98 (tonight’s focus of Classics Revisited), there was another ’97-based model also referred to as the Air Max ’98, the Air Max Tailwind III, the Air Max Triax Plus, a plethora of flagship model re-designs like the Triax, Perseus, and Structure, and who can forget the first official Retro of the Air Max ’95? Looking back, 1998 deserves much more respect than it gets, so let’s take a look at the highest priced and possibly hardest-to-find model of that year.
The Nike Air Max ’98 picked up on the full-length Max Air technology that debuted with the Air Max ’97, using a synthetic leather and mesh upper for weight reduction. The external lace overlay system (the two lace loops at the forefoot) provided optimal fit, while the Max Air cushion we alluded to before utilized the BRS 1000 Nike Regrind outsole. A swift look at original colorways: the most recognized of the bunch is likely the Royal/Red colorway (above) that is commonly referred to as the ‘Gundam’ for its resemblance to the protagonist of the Gundam series. A slew of others followed that year, like the popular ‘Atlantic Blue’ and Navy/Yellow, and again in 2000 in two Cool Grey-based releases and even a sick JD Sports Exclusive. We’ve got a quick overview of the Air Max ’98 releases below – which of the bunch can you call your own?
Nike Air Max ’98
1998
Varsity Royal/Comet Red-Obsidian
104111-462
1998
White/Deep Orange-Black-Varsity Maize
104111-181
1998
Cement Grey/Citron-Obsidian
104111-071
1998
Metallic Silver/Atlantic Blue-Black-White
104111-042
1998
Cool Grey/Varsity Royal
604181-041
2000
Cool Grey/Varsity Red
604181-061
2000
JD Sports Exclusive
2000
Photos: dirtysoles
...the development of the "MAX AIR SOLE" has truly come a long way.
Awesome, I hope that someone at Nike sees this and makes a true to form retro happen. This is a cult classic of the air max line. Please bring these back in their original style, no upgrades, no changes, no air max 360 units, just regular AM97 full length air max units and synthetic materials as they were originally.
can you tell this is my favorite Nike ever? thanks for the proper credit for the pics
Lot of nice cw's. I like the 1st, 4th and 6th pair the most.
always wanted these! if nike was to release them again id make sure to get them!
PLEASE NIKE !!!! I have no more wearable pairs left..By far the most comfortable shoe in the air max line..I hope they don't butcher them when they finally do re release..
Fantastic sneaker - still have the top one- retro THAT!
NEVER liked these