In 1978, Rick Ridgeway and John Roskelly made history twice on a single expedition. The intrepid American climbers became the first people on the planet to scale all 28,251 feet of Kashmir’s K2—the second-highest mountain on Earth, just 779 feet shorter than Everest—without supplementary oxygen. More importantly for sneakerheads, though, they carried out both the treacherous 130-mile approach to base camp and large swaths of their journey back down the mountain in bright yellow running shoes from an upstart company called Nike. Why? Because the nylon kicks—despite being designed for road running—were perfect for rock-hopping, dried quickly after exposure to the elements, and most importantly, were crazy comfortable.
The LDV’s success on that mission led to Nike taking the outdoors market more seriously, paving the way for one of the most important endeavors in Swoosh history: All-Conditions Gear, better known as ACG, the influential sublabel that brought a sportswear sensibility to performance hiking equipment, gave us all-time classics like the Tinker Hatfield-sketched Air Mowabb, and has become a playground for bold designers like Errolson Hugh to make their mark in the Nike universe. Now, as Nike continues its major push to revitalize ACG this year, it’s bringing back the LDV to honor its contribution to the offshoot’s history.
Unlike retro Jordans, which are often graded on how closely they replicate the original silhouettes Michael Jordan wore on the court, bringing back the LDV as it existed in the ’70s wouldn’t be keeping in the spirit of ACG. Like the Mowabb, which remains one of the most reliable hiking sneakers on the market, the return of the LDV meant kitting it out with some modern innovations to make it as trail-ready as possible. The classic yellow nylon upper remains the same, but the sole is updated with ReactX foam and a modernized waffle sole for improved comfort, energy return, and traction. The sockliner features a cartoon illustration of the ’78 K2 summit team and, for the first time, a pink ACG triangle logo adorns the outside of the heel.
The Nike ACG LDV is available now for $130 via Nike and select stockists. While an early drop at Huckberry has already sold out, the retailer produced a 30-minute documentary on ACG’s origins that’s worth a watch.
See all the photos of the the Original ACG Sneaker.
