Nike Air Max 1 '86 "Big Bubble"

Nike is celebrating Air Max Day 2023 by turning the clock back to 1986, the year the Air Max 1 prototype came to light. This shoe would eventually become the original Air Max we’ve come to love, debuting in 1987 and earning its spot in the Mount Rushmore of sneakers. It’s hard to ignore that since its launch, the Air unit on the One began its shrinkage from “Big Bubble” status. This reduction in size wasn’t limited to just the Nike Air Max 1 as the Swoosh decided to retool all of the visible Air units of the 1980s/1990s for longevity. Up until 2005, Air Max units — including the 93, 95, 97, and so on — featured a distinct seam that cut across the bubble. It was presumably where the upper and lower portions of the Air Max unit were fused together — and also where the Max began its disintegration. Air Max collectors have far too many deflated Air bubbles in their collections, and although the pairs from 2006 and beyond have distinctively smaller Air units, they do have a longer shelf life. The smaller Air unit was hardly the lone complaint; there was a lot to be perturbed about the Air Max 1 until the mid-late 2010s. The toe-box, mesh, tongue length, heel shape — nothing was hidden from nit-picking. That is, until Nike introduced the “Anniversary” edition of the Air Max 1 in 2017, delivering the OG “Sport Red” among several other OG and modern colorways.