The Adidas Samba is an indoor soccer shoe that is widely beloved by the skate community. However, are the Adidas Samba shoes actually good for skating?
Are Adidas Sambas skate shoes?
The original Adidas Samba is not a skate shoe. Rather, it is an athletic trainer inspired by soccer. Currently, the original Adidas Samba is mostly worn as a fashion sneaker.
However, the Adidas Samba ADV is a skating shoe. The shoe features an upgraded T-toe design with two layers of Adituff toe reinforcement, allowing feel, flick, and durability.
It is also equipped with a molded sock liner and signature tongue wings that help stabilize the wearer while skateboarding, while the grippy cupsole ensures optimal feel and board control.
Are Adidas Sambas ADV good for skating?
We’ve already established that the original Adidas Samba is not for skating.
However, we will explore the Adidas Samba ADV, which is the tweaked iteration of the classic Adidas Samba silhouette improved for skateboarding.
Initial impressions
The Adidas Samba ADV is the first pair of Adidas that I’ve ever skated in.
I’ve been skating in the Adidas Samba ADV for about three weeks. I was really hyped by the look of the shoe, mainly because it looks like the typical skate shoe.
When I first put them on, the Adidas Samba ADV felt really tight, but I like it because both of my feet are narrow. If I were to compare it to any other shoe, it would be the Dorado Boost.
It definitely felt stiff in the heel area, but it was surprisingly soft in the toe box area.
When I started wearing the shoe, the sole was really stiff at first. It was tough and rigid. However, it took only a couple of skating sessions to break the shoe in.
Once both shoes are broken in, I can really feel the board and feel comfortable doing tricks (I’m not a skateboarding savant, so when I mean tricks I mean simple ollies and flips).
While the Adidas Samba ADV is not the softest right out of the box, the shoe does feel comfortable and hugs the arch of your foot supremely well as time goes by.
The high-heel cup definitely holds your foot in. It’s super solid. There is no chance that you’re going to pop the heel out when both shoes are completely broken in.
My favorite thing about the shoe by far is the tongue. It’s completely stitched down to the shoe. As a result, the tongue does not move at all and provides amazing foot security.
The entire time I skated, I never needed to adjust the tongue. I hate it when I have to adjust the shoe tongue when it’s sliding, but I don’t have this problem with the Adidas Samba ADV.
Excellent board feel
I like the Adidas Samba ADV for skating because it has a good flick.
The Adidas Samba ADV features a leather upper with suede overlays on the eyelets and toe. While the leather is quite thin, it does provide an amazing board feel.
Despite having the majority of the upper covered in leather, the small part of the suede at the front of the Adidas Samba ADV makes it just like any other suede skating shoe.
Compared to the original design, the improvements include reinforced high impact areas, a non-slip mesh tongue, exposed Bounce cushioning in the midsole, and a Geoflex outsole.
Sturdy cupsole shoes usually provide less board feel than vulcanized shoes. However, this is not the case with the Adidas Samba ADV. The shoe allows you to feel your board very well.
In my opinion, the shoe strikes a delicate balance. It’s thin enough that it allows you to feel the board and pull off technical tricks, yet thick enough that it protects your feet.
While the insole is very thin, it does provide enough support and absorbs most of the impact when I land after doing jumps with the skateboard.
Sadly, it is not durable as traditional skating shoes
While the Adidas Samba ADV has an excellent board feel, it is sadly not durable. Mine lasted about a month and I don’t consider myself a skater who skates often (once per week at most).
When I was buying the shoe, the store employee told me to super glue around the suede toe cap by the first outer stripe on my front foot.
I didn’t listen, and that’s exactly where the shoe blew out.
In my opinion, the T-toe design creates a weak spot in the flicking area. If you flick a lot while skating, you’ll probably blow out the seam, leaving a sizable hole at the front.
Final Verdict
Now you know whether the Adidas Samba is good for skating or not. While the original Adidas Samba is not good for skating, the Adidas Samba ADV is a solid skate shoe.
It features the classic tan gum sole which is vulcanized to deliver a good ground grip.
Skaters praise the Adidas Samba ADV for its solid support and natural board feel. It’s good enough for casual skateboarding, but don’t expect the shoe to last a long time.
The suede overlay is thin and would probably blow out sooner than you’d expect. Buy the Adidas Samba ADV if you like to skate mostly transition, ledges, or rails without focusing on flip tricks.
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