There are few things better than the feeling of unboxing some new heat.
You know how it goes.
The notification hits, you got ’em! Then you wait anxiously for the order confirmation email, then the message telling you your order has shipped.
Then you spend the next few days refreshing that tracking link, trying to anticipate the courier company’s next move. Then finally, FINALLY, they’re out for delivery.
Once that box is in your hands, the tape is ripped off, the shoebox pulled out, then that lid comes off. The moment of truth.
You fold the tissue paper back and there they are. You might even get hit with that “fresh-leather-and-shoe-glue” smell, you know the one. Phew.
But the cold reality of the sneaker game is, there are some pairs that most of us will never get to unbox for ourselves.
Never fear, though. You can still do it vicariously through one of my new favorite weekly programs, Special Delivery from USA Today Sports.
Dropping Fridays at 12pm ET, Special Delivery is hosted by Mike D. Sykes: sportswriter, bonafide sneakerhead, author of The Kicks You Wear and friend of the #FNLFam.
And if, for some reason, you had even a single doubt about Sykes’s credentials, look no further than the Nike Air Zoom G.T. Cut episode.
This man literally stopped in the middle of recording the episode for a shock drop of the Nike Kobe 6 Protro ‘Grinch.’ Spoiler: He took an L, right on camera. He’s one of us, folks.
Every week, Sykes pops the top on a fresh shoebox to take a closer look at the newest heat on the market.
Special Delivery shares the love, too. Hypebeasts in 2021 might be focused on just a couple of brands, but the program doesn’t just stick to the latest Jordan shoe.
Among others, Sykes has covered the Concepts x Converse Chuck 70 ‘Southern Flame,’ the Nike ISPA Road Warrior, PUMA’s basketball shoe collab with J. Cole and even FootJoy’s new HyperFlex golf shoe line. Talk about variety.
The show is a lot more than just unboxing the shoes on-camera, though. Sykes goes deep on narrative, the history of the models he’s unboxing, and the significance of these releases in the wider sneaker market.
If all this isn’t enough to get you psyched about tuning in every Friday at noon, I don’t know what else to tell you other than to check it out for your own eyes below. Subscribe to USA Today Sports’ YouTube channel and follow Sykes on Twitter to make sure you never miss an episode.
