The Beacon Bmx

To me, looking for a pair of shoes is like looking for a woman. It’s something you want to last you a while. Unfortunately for us bmx’ers finding a woman or a pair of shoes that will last us for more than a month or two is a challenge. But Orchid romanced me with these fantastic shoes for 8 months…

My relationship with these shoes started about 8 months ago. My pair of Etnies just weren’t treating me right, and my foot was constantly sore from the paper thin sole and lack of padding. They were like riding in a pair of moccasins. What finally convinced me to retire them was when I fell on a gap and severely rolled my ankle because of these flimsy shoes,  which had me off the bike for a month. So i started my shoe shopping with a few criteria in mind:

• Mid top for ankle protection
• Thick padding, again for more protection
• Thick sole for foot support
• Long lasting cause I hate buying shoes
• And finally, I wanted them reasonable priced

I settled upon the Orchids because they met all the criteria i was looking for, and i wanted to support a company putting money back into bmx.

When i got them the first thing i noticed was that they are some beastly-ass shoes. The sole was really thick and stiff and there was tons of padding around your foot. There was no way my foot would be in harms way. I know some people like a thin, light shoe, but if you are like me and prefer or need the the stiffness and padding, these bad boys feel really great. They are definitely the most padded shoe I’ve ever worn. I even took a few laps around the back yard on my dirt bike and was confident enough to drag my foot around cornering.  They definitely kept by bum ankle and foot from getting bashed around.

I ride 90 percent street, mostly high speed gaps off stairs and roofs and anything to flat. The soles on these are awesome because they are really thick and keep my feet from flexing or blowing off the pedals when landing hard. They gripped great to my trailmixes,  and as you can see in the pictures the rubber lasted pretty well after 8 months. They didn’t get to torn up from the pins or just riding in general. The only thing i wasnt a huge fan of was the upper material. I just prefer suede myself, it seems to wear better and keep its classy good looks a little longer. The material used did hold up great though, it didn’t rip apart or get separated from the sole. It just starts to look worn more quickly than suede. The new versions for 2010 are the suede material. *happiness*

I put an pretty nasty beating on shoes and any bmx related parts, so i was super happy with the way these shoes held up for 8 months. I’ve been wearing these shoes every day since last June, and have done everything in them from jumping off roofs to shoveling hay to fencing my pasture.  The pictures deffinately show the wear they’ve gathered, but you’ll notice that they are also in one piece, the stitching hasn’t come undone, and there is still plenty of rubber left on the soles. The padding and sole are starting to get worn down, but seeing as these shoes have been so loyal, and the 2010 version is looking even better, I’m really tempted to get another pair knowing they will be great.

Overall I’d give em a 9/10, my only complaint being the upper material. But the new versions are suede so its been fixed.

Hit up http://orchidfootwear.com/ for some radiculous radness.