The Elby, from Brooklyn Workshop, fit that description – not only do they stand out in quality, but they are the first skate shoes to be designed for longboard skateboarding.
You read that right – these shoes were made especially for longboarding! They have incredible board feel, have a comfortable fit, and look great.
There are drawbacks to this much feel, but I’ll talk more about that later! The Elby is a high quality skate shoe, and worth the money.
Brooklyn Workshop Elby Construction. The Brooklyn Workshop Elby was designed by Michael Ditullo, a veteran shoe designer who has worked with Nike, Jordan and Converse. Teamed up with Brooklyn Workshop, they set out to make a skate shoe designed specifically for longboarding.
The shoe they came up wit
h is highly technical, with features such as:
- High abrasion sole, designed to withstand abuse while also gripping
- Edges reinforced with leather and stitched
- Strong rubber underlayer toe cap
- Highly grippy rubber overlayer toe cap “drag patch”
- Metal lace eyelets and metal lace tips
- Double stitched suede overlay protects lowest lace loops, providing strength and style Thin padded insole
At a glance, it’s easy to see that the Elby is well made. It’s an obviously high quality shoe. One of the biggest selling points of the Brooklyn Workshop Elby is the board feel, and they aren’t exaggerating. You can feel EVERYTHING through these shoes! Easily, the Brooklyn Workshop Elby is one of the most comfortable skate shoes I’ve worn!
While skating, board feel is extremely important for subtle shifts and being aware of what’s going on. With the Elbys, you’ll feel the grip on the board, where you’ve holding it and where you aren’t – these shoes give the clearest board feel I’ve felt yet, next to barefoot (which can actually work with longboards… though I don’t recommend it!).