Slimline sneakers now trending with the style set

Slim sneakers - I have photographed and written about so many foot traffic races over five decades that it would be understandable if I were a foot fetishist in need of an intervention. But I’m stuck in the Nike waffle trainer innovative era and have worn wide-width New Balance for so long that they have become cool. I read a July 24 article by Leah Dolan on the CNN website stating “Slimline running-inspired trainers have emerged as 2025’s biggest sneaker trend.” There are sneakers that cost as much as $1,100 worn by a demographic called the style set. I never wore shoes during my teaching career, always sneakers, or as we call them in Philly – sneaks. Once I was teaching a class at Cape wearing soccer shoes I had bought from the Athletic Attic on Rehoboth Avenue for $15. A girl pointed at my feet and screamed, “That man has two different shoes on!” before she dove onto the floor and rolled in laughter. I honestly thought they were different by design, as the kicking shoe would obviously be different. I went to the Athletic Attic to get the other mismatched pair but they had been sold to a guy who installed clam shell driveways for a living, so he didn’t care. I took a photo of runner Jack Edwards' feet last Saturday morning. He was repping the sandal sneaker with colorful socks that looked like gloves for the feet. He had seen a photo I took of Mike Wardian’s feet and was modeling the ultramarathoner’s choice for comfort. 

Separation anxiety - Like a radio ham operator under headphones from the 1940s, I pick up discordant information on the chatter channel, sometimes known as social media. I’m hearing the quality of travel baseball has taken a hit because everyone wants to be a travel player, and if you have the money, there is a uniform waiting for you. I even read a suggestion that “daddy ball” has moved from Little League (town ball) to travel teams. I don’t know if any of this is true, but I suspect there’s an element of truth to it. The same goes for academics. Do you think every student in an honors class deserves to be there? If you create separation through privilege, there will be gate crashers. 

Preseason all-conference - I’m not sure when it started for college and even high school conferences, but the phrase dumbing down seems to apply. I assume it is done to create interest where there is little to none before actual games are played.  

Shot blocker - A young man with a great smile broke 30 minutes in the 5k. He’s just starting to train and came up to say hello to me as I continued to snap photos. “I'm going to get faster and get better at this with more training,” he said. "I'm more used to basketball." I never said his name because in the moment, my old dog self didn't realize it was Trent Batson, who canceled more checks than the teller in the drive-in window. "Don't bring the weak stuff in here!" All-time Cape shot blocker and great kid. I wrote this in 2017: “Good guys - Josh Hackney and Trent Batson, a pair of 6-foot-4 friends and former Cape basketball players, were at the Smyrna at Cape basketball game Jan. 6. The two of them smile a lot, which comes from doing the right thing in their young lives. Josh graduated in 2016 from Delaware State University with a degree in criminal justice, and he is going through the application process hoping to become a Delaware State Police officer. He currently works as a para for the Sussex Consortium. Trent is a 2014 graduate of Virginia Wesleyan with a degree in environmental science. He works for Envirotech. Both Josh and Trent also work at The Factory with Pat Woods, where they coach basketball so they can help kids. These two guys are great role models for our young men, examples of how to do it right.”

Snippets - Jayden Mifflin (Sussex Tech), 6-foot-2, 275 pounds, is a redshirt junior for the Delaware State football team. Jayden is listed as an offensive lineman. The Hornets, under head coach DeSean Jackson, open the season at 7 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 28, at the University of Delaware. I have dubbed and slugged the game “The Battle of the Bypass.” Breck Vanderwende, 52, ran the Dam Mill 5K July 27 in 23:50. Breck has run the race in four different decades. Geoff Klopp got a hole in one on the 111-yard eighth hole at Baywood using a pitching wedge. Terri Klopp, married to Spangler “Buzz,” also is credited with a hole in one. Go on now, git!