XC-09 A Serious Article About A Serious Shoe, No Jokes Allowed!

If you delve into the lore of nineties fashion, you might come across the story of how Martin Margiela discovered the German Army Trainer in a military surplus store, and immediately decided to include them in his S/S 99 show. He would go on to customize pairs with lettering, paint, and the Margiela stamp, resulting in a product that is still sold by the brand today. But, In the twenty-first century, the Bundeswehr (German Federal Defense) began updating their training shoes, the GATs that Margiela was so inspired by, to have more durability, support, and grip. Thus, the Geländeschuhe XC-09 was issued in 2008. Translating to “off road shoes”, these sneakers are just that. In contrast to the GAT’s smooth sole and minimal support, the XC-09 is made for any terrain. Despite GATs being far more well-known, the XC-09’s are just as, if not more influential in the fashion world.

Bundeswehr Geländeschuhe XC-09 2008

Understanding the origin of fashion’s fascination with this German off-road sneaker required a professional, so I spoke with the head of the department of military uniforms and military insignia at the Bundeswehr Military History Museum in Dresden, Dr. Gerhard Bauer, about the fashion world’s appropriation of military footwear. Dr. Bauer explained that the fascination with both military and technical footwear came from civilian desire for a durable and capable product, which could be adapted to their individual lifestyles. He also claimed, however, that versions of the shoe made by non-military fashion houses are less capable than the original, ultimately missing the point of owning a military-grade shoe.

Dr. Bauer’s warning about lower quality knock-offs can be seen in the first major appropriation of the XC-09, done by Raf Simons for FW09. Before his many collaborations with Adidas, Raf worked with Asics to create the technical trainer, which took clear design elements from the XC-09. The neon-colored technical trainer was not received well by consumers, partially due to the poor construction of the shoe. In FW12, Raf would again release the shoe, this time without an official Asics collaboration. The shoe now featured muted tones, much like the XC-09, but unfortunately did not reflect the quality of its inspiration. The shoes were again factory-made through Asics, and fell apart after minimal wear, proving Dr. Bauer correct in his assumption of homages being low-quality. It was after these unsuccessful dealings with Asics that Raf switched over to Adidas, creating the Raf Simons x Adidas Ozweego 1 in 2013.

Raf Simons X Asics tech trainer 2009 Raf Simons tech trainer 2012

The start of Raf’s techwear shoe creations was directly inspired by his fascination with the XC-09. Over the years Raf slowly branched stylistically away from the shoe as he experimented with his designs, but his first steps were clear. The XC-09 led to the technical trainer with Asics, the tech trainer led to his Ozweego collaborations, and Ozweegos have led to the trend of chunky and technical shoes in the past few years. Chunky shoes, while retaining certain elements of tech wear, primarily do so for aesthetic purposes rather than the quality of performance, featuring exaggerated details of tech shoes such as heavily paneled uppers and multi-layered soles. Shoes such as the New Balance 990 grew exhausting in 2017 due to their rampant popularity. Comparing the paneling on the XC-09 to the 990 shows a clear design language has carried over. It is apparent that the design shifted from previous models of the 990 in 2012 and 2016 when the v3 and v4 were released, respectively. Smoother panels were replaced with triangular sections to reflect that XC-09 influence.

Raf Simons x Adidas Ozweego 1 2013 New Balance 990v4 2016

In the middle of 2017, a subset of chunky shoe enthusiasts began to appreciate the sneaker’s roots, and a rediscovered fascination with technical outdoor footwear reemerged. Larger shoes were now being worn for their performance. Brands like Salomon, Merrel, and Hoka One One were suddenly accepted as fashionable. During SS17 Boris Bidjan Saberi began a collaboration with Salomon through their mainline as well as 11 by Boris Bidjan Saberi. The partnership represents the most interesting project to come from the influx of tech footwear in recent years, and the two brands continue to collaborate each season. Other brands such as Palace and Opening Ceremony have plastered their logos on shoes like the Salomon Speedcross 4 and the Hoka One One Tor boot. But even non-collaborations of these tech footwear brands have been picked up by retailers such as SSense and Dover Street Market.

Boris Bidjan Saberi X Salomon 2017 Palace X Salomon 2019

Suddenly tech footwear was seen on the feet of everyone, from adults going to their graphic design jobs to Ralph Lauren attending the CFDA Fashion Awards. Every brand has a chunky or tech-adjacent sneaker. Just a few weeks ago Alyx unveiled their indivisible sneaker, which looks like they spent 10 minutes moving some paneling around on the XC-09 and then placed it in a vibram sole. The market for tech wear sneakers crescendoed over the last few years, and finally became overrun mid 2019. I hope that when people look back on this trend in footwear they will recognize the Bundeswehr Geländeschuhe XC-09 as the source.

Photos:

Courtesy of FreshnessMag

Courtesy of Hypebeast