一篇來自美國編輯同事的稿件

編者按：七月初，我們迎來了一位新同事，無論是燦爛陽光的笑容還是外向開朗的精神，當時的感覺就是很「California」。

沒錯，Kenneth 是一位就讀於 UCSB （加州大學聖芭芭拉分校）的美籍華人，在今年暑期來到我們 SNEAKERHEAD 進行一段實習，而當在美國出生並成長，同時一樣喜愛籃球與球鞋的 Kenneth 來到中國時，看到中國如今的球鞋以及街球文化，他會有如何感受？

我們帶著他一同前往了上個月的球鞋足跡西安站，並且期待在他眼中的所見所感。於是今天，以下，是來自他的分享，我們儘可能地幫他將原意翻譯過來，且看：

當很多人提起西安時，首先想到的可能就是兵馬俑。然而，在西安市中心，一個幾乎隱藏著很難尋找到的籃球館裡，有著眾多鞋頭聚集，看上去他們希望在這個地方尋覓到一些限量的特別的球鞋。

來到中國後，我目前的旅程包括從上海飛往西安的三小時航程，然後在西安的前兩天充滿了美食探險和觀光，當然少不了籃球和球鞋收藏家的採訪。然而，在今天這個早晨，我們一行人終於徒步於炎熱的太陽下，穿過西安的老舊街道前往我們的西安旅程的最主要目標：球鞋足跡。

Kenneth

有趣的是，這個展覽的位置真的很難找，雖然聽同事們講在宣傳信息上標記著「易於尋找」，但實際上我們的滴滴司機都無法準確地告訴我們展覽的位置。

幾分鐘後，沿著泥濘的小路步行，我們到達了看上去非常不起眼的建築。拉開門帘，我驚訝地發現自己進入另一個空間，一個充滿了如今最 Hype 的球鞋以及籃球狂熱者，這兩件事總是很好地融合在一起，無論中美。

環顧四周，我不僅注意到不同類型的鞋子，還注意到不同類型的人。

我喜愛並且關注球鞋已經很長一段時間了，但像這樣的展覽已經許久沒去。走進這個場館，看到各個展位前後的攤主與參展鞋頭的互動與交流，這份熱絡氣氛讓我一下子想起開始這趟行程最初的目的。

無論你是富人還是窮人，無論年輕還是年老，你都在那裡，因為你是一個狂熱的球鞋愛好者。

雖然我看到很多看上去就比較富有的人，從攤位到攤位間四處尋找最新或最罕見的球鞋，但大多數（主要是高中生）會因為每一次拍賣和現場的福利贈送活動中去擠在一起。

其實我是非常希望自己能夠在這裡的拍賣中完成一筆交易的，我非常關注這次球鞋足跡中的拍賣環節，因為球鞋都是來自中國各個品牌的球鞋，包括匹克，安踏和李寧，最終都被非常喜愛他們的鞋頭拍中。不幸的是，沒有一雙鞋符合我的鞋碼，沒能如願。

每隔幾個小時左右，活動組織者還會舉辦從衣服到鞋子的福利贈送環節，許多人聚集在球場中央，希望有機會搶奪他們喜歡的東西。除了拍賣和贈品外，各式各樣的展位也為球鞋足跡帶來了獨特性。

引起我注意的其中一個攤位是中國最著名的球鞋定製組織。

當我在看著他們的設計和創意時，我對他們所呈現的前瞻思維和設計理念感到驚訝，這絕對令人嘆為觀止。穿上原本已經深受全球鞋頭喜愛的鞋子，然後再客製成無論是色彩更豐富的中國印花，還是用真正 LV 皮革所改造的鞋面，都為原本就已經很火的球鞋增添了可玩性。

但是看著現場每一位的上腳，我的眼睛裡到處都是不同配色的 YEEZY 和Air Jordan，這當然再度凸現了兩個主導當前球鞋市場的品牌與鞋型。

然而，在所有這些球鞋上腳中，幾乎沒有一雙會讓我感覺到驚艷……

雖然球鞋展位佔據了現場的一大半，但是有一個半場讓現場的人們在罰球比賽中進行投籃然後以他們的成績去贏得一些獎品。

到了下午，這片球場的重中之重是中國一些著名的街球運動員參賽的 3v3 比賽。

比賽的節奏一開始比較慢，但是仍然有很多籃球狂熱愛好者在尋找機會去證明自己。

不得不提的是，當下午街球賽開始時，來自觀眾人數所產生的熱量和以及沒有空調的事實開始讓我感到非常不舒服，並且很懷疑這場比賽是否值得觀看。我開始有點犯困……突然，當第一個非常有名的街球手上場時，現場傳來了非常大的歡呼聲。

我環顧四周，突然發現自己已經被一大群觀眾所包圍，他們都等待著這位球員的精彩表現，對了據我同事的介紹，他叫「洋蔥哥」。

一個個幾乎「殺」死比賽的超級三分球，一些不可思議的晃動，我一度感覺如果是我在防他，他肯定也會終結我的腳踝。

並且，他不僅用動作贏得了滿堂喝彩，他還贏得了最終的勝利，在一場身高明顯有劣勢的比賽中。依然記得在當時，我幾乎情不自禁地為他歡呼，並且不斷向前挪動我坐的位置，幾乎只挨著座位的邊緣，也讓我忘了自己身處一間「大熔爐」里。

當另外一名球手，在為了一個邊線球而飛身撲到場邊觀眾身上時，這場比賽的熱度達到了一個頂峰，雖然那位球迷不幸有一些小擦傷，但是工作人員立刻注意到了她的傷勢，在確認嚴重與否後還立刻送來了一些獎品作為關心。也正是那個球開始，我知道這場比賽絕對不是開玩笑的。

在接下來的一個小時里，這個 3v3 街球賽越來越激烈，而一個名為 Sky （葉天）和 Spaceman （賴宇航）的街球手上場時，再一次引起全場的歡呼，並且同樣帶來了一場令人印象很深刻的比賽。

當我得知我們即將離開現場時，我不情願地從觀眾看台上起身。

在那一刻，我發現自己已經沉浸在這個氛圍中，並且希望能夠與中國的球鞋愛好者和籃球愛好者有更多的接觸與交流，我希望自己能夠在中國待更長的時間。

這篇文章會是我在 2019 年這趟旅程中的一個紀念，雖然這次的球鞋足跡並不是一個特別巨型的展覽，但它所帶來的熱度和溫度令我印象深刻。

我開始期待我下一次的中國之行，以及下一次在中國球鞋展中的收穫。

-END-

以下是 Kenneth 撰寫原文

When many people think of Xi』an, the first thing that comes to mind is probably the terra cotta warriors. However, deep towards the middle of Xi』an, on a basketball court that was nearly hidden to outsiders, was a bustling community of sneakerheads looking to buy and sell their rare sneakers. My current journey consisted of a three hour flight from Shanghai to Xi』an and then two days filled with food adventures and sightseeing.

However, on this very morning I was finally trekking through the hot sun making my way through the streets of Xi』an heading towards my main objective of this whole trip: the Sneaker Footprint sneakercon. The location while labeled 「easy to find」 proved to be quite difficult as even our didi driver (chinese uber) couldn』t exactly tell us where the location was. A couple minutes walking along a dirt path later, we arrived at what seemed to be a sign tacked on a random building located in the middle of nowhere. Pulling back the curtains, I was amazed to find myself surely entering another dimension, one filled to the brim with rare sneakers and basketball fanatics, two things that simply always mesh well together.

Looking around, I noticed not only the different types of shoes, but also the different types of people. It had been a while since I had been to a sneakercon, but stepping on to the hardwood floor and seeing stall after stall of sneakers as well as the people gathered at each stall enjoying these sneakers made me feel a connection to them and reminded me of why I chose to come in the first place.

No matter whether you were rich or poor, young or old, you were there because you were an avid sneakerhead. While I saw the wealthy slink around from stall to stall looking to get their hands on the latest or most rare versions of sneakers, the majority (mainly high school kids) crowded together at various auctions and giveaways held throughout the day.

Looking to catch a good deal myself, I stood at the auctions and looked on as pair after pair of shoes from various chinese brands including Peak, Anta, and Li-Ning were handed off to very happy sneakerheads. Unfortunately, none of the shoes came in my size. Every couple hours or so, the event organizers would also hold a giveaway of anything from clothes to shoes with many people gathering in the center of the court hoping for a chance to snatch something that they like.

Besides the auctions and giveaways, the stalls brought their own uniqueness to Sneaker Footprint. One of the stalls that drew my attention was China"s most famous custom shoe company. As I looked through sneakers, I was astonished by the forward thinkingness and design concepts presented. It was absolutely breathtaking. Taking shoes that were already loved by audiences worldwide, anything from colorful chinese prints to parts of a real Louis Vuitton bag were added to provide a beautiful aesthetic to an already beautiful shoe.

Looking towards the floor, my eyes were met with a sea of different colored Yeezys and Jordans, highlighting the two shoes that have dominated the current hype sneaker market. However, in the midst of all this some very special sneakers caught my attention…

While the sneaker stalls took up half of the basketball court, the other half was left open for people to shoot around or test their skills in a free throw contest in order to win some prizes. The main event of the day, however, was a three on three basketball tournament highlighted by some famous streetballers across china.

The tournament started off kind of slow, with a few basketball fanatics looking for a chance to prove their worth on the court. The heat from the amount of people and the fact that there was no air conditioning started to make me feel uncomfortable and wonder whether the basketball tournament was worth watching. I started to doze off just a little… when suddenly I was brought to my senses and awakened to loud cheers as the first of the famous streetballers entered the court.

I looked around and suddenly found myself surrounded by a large audience waiting to explode at the first bucket scored. First up was a man nicknamed 「Green Onion Head」.

With a killer three point shot and handles that would most definitely break my own ankles, he brought the crowd to its feet weaving his way through traffic before tossing the ball high off the backboard for an and-one. The quickened pace and heightened competitiveness of the tournament brought me to the edge of my seat and for a moment, I forgot that I was sitting in a melting pot of a gym.

The basketball game reached a pinnacle point when one of the famous streetballers dived into the crowd in an attempt to save the ball. He ended up crashing into a fan sitting in the front row slightly injuring her. While the staff quickly attended to her injuries, the fact that he would lay his body on the line showed that this tournament was no joke. The razzle dazzle continued on for the next hour and when another two streetball legends nicknamed Sky and Spaceboy entered onto the court I was ready. Disappointed, I was not. I quickly found myself cheering alongside the rest of the Chinese audience and before I knew it, it was time for me to leave.

Reluctantly I stepped down from the bleachers, and found myself wanting to stay longer, to be able to vibe with the chinese basketball and sneaker audience some more. Alas, I had this article to write and an empty belly to fill so I left, my basketball and sneaker cravings satisfied by the day』s event. While one of the smaller conventions I had been to, it certainly was very welcoming and made me hopeful and excited to attend other sneaker cons throughout China.

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