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The more accessible tiers in the big-brand forays into skate generally aren't up to much. You're usually stuck with padded versions of classics, while the core skate stores (quite rightly) get the best stuff. Not so with Converse. At the US Open of Surf shindigs, a quick drive from California's Huntington Beach, Converse had a substantial presence, and while their skate program has been a slow burner with a couple of hi-topped missteps in the past, they delivered with their offerings. There's some beautiful designs for the folk who actually might step onto a skateboard that's steeped in the brand's enviable archives, but the BF (Black Flag) collection rises above (sorry, couldn't help it) the usual token offerings.

Pitched somewhere between action sports and lifestyle, this project has got bangers in the pipeline. After the Nom De Guerre version attracted scores of people-who-profess-to-hate-sneakers-but-secretly-still care-about-them, these CVOs are actually just as good. Well-priced and ultra plain, comparisons to Vans Authentics are inevitable. Converse are keen to assert that the Circular Vamp Oxford—their boat and tennis court friendly basic design debuted—in 1961. If we were in research mode, we'd have a hunt to see when PF Flyers and Keds dropped their deck shoe silhouettes too. But we're not. If you're looking for an extra point-of-difference, the mid is particularly mean. Pretty good, and out soon with definite potential for everyday wear in the coming months.