`I can't explain it; it's just in my soul,' says leader in line
By Jennifer Lebovich
Chicago Tribune staff reporter
Dominique Thomas, 20, sat outside the Niketown store for more than three days, determined to be the first person to get a limited edition LeBron James shoe.
He flew in from Denver Sunday night, took a nap at the airport and then went straight to Michigan Avenue, equipped with a lawn chair, a tent, an umbrella and lots of layers.
By 9 a.m. Thursday, nearly 100 other sneaker aficionados joined Thomas, forming a line that snaked around the corner, as people waited for the Nike Air Force 1 Chamber of Fear LeBron James shoe. About 150 pairs of the $90 special edition, gray suede shoes were up for sale. The shoes were part of an ad campaign in which the Cleveland Cavalier faces five fears, each fear represented by a unique shoe.
"This is basically a holiday for shoe fans," Thomas said, most of his face covered by the hood of his jacket. "You can talk with other shoe fans. I can't explain it. Shoes are my passion. It's in my soul."
Thomas, who has more than 75 pairs of Nike shoes, started collecting them because he admired Michael Jordan. Though this is the longest Thomas has waited in line, he spent three days at the front of the line for the release of the shoes in Denver.
"I just take pride in being the first person in line to buy shoes," Thomas said. "I'll be the first person to get it. It's real worth it."
The shoes, which did not go on sale until 9 p.m., were only available in the Chicago store. Different versions of the shoe were unveiled in San Francisco, New York, Denver and Cleveland.
Bryan Lorenzana, 28, sat next to Thomas, rubbing hand warmers in the pockets of his sweatshirts. Lorenzana, who drove an hour to get to the store, is intent on adding to his shoe collection and will sacrifice comfort to have the latest model.
"Depending how bad I want the shoe, I can wear an 11 with no socks and no insole or a 14 with two pairs of socks," he said. "I'll do whatever it takes."
As Lorenzana discussed his shoe collection, a passerby asked what he was waiting in line for. The answer, "shoes," got a look of confusion.
"A lot of people just don't understand, they say, Oh, that's crazy," he said. "We collect sneakers, so we're out here for these."
Some people in line wore Air Jordans; others sported Air Force 1s, while some who were most devoted to their collections wore boots, unwilling to subject rare shoes to the weather. They sat in lawn chairs, on inflatable couches, and one person rested on the removable seats from a mini-van.
Lisa von Drehle walked past the line around the corner on Erie Street, stopping to ask why everyone was waiting.
"I saw them last night, and it was starting to rain, and when I saw them again this morning, I just had to ask," she said. "I think it's crazy."
One man got out of line to show von Drehle a picture of the shoe, which was stored on his cell phone. After looking carefully at the image, she said, "That's a cool shoe."
To get the one-of-a-kind shoe, Tyler Mansour, 15, and his mother, Margaret, coordinated their trip from Charleston, S.C., to arrive in Chicago before the models went on sale.
"Collecting them is a hobby," he said. "I mostly started because of Michael Jordan. The shoes have some kind of history."
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