1997 happened over 20 years ago.

1997 年已經是 20 幾年前的事了。

Are you feeling old yet?

你覺得自己老了嗎？

Let me set the scene for you.

我來說給你聽。

In 1997, the film "Titanic" had just released, and Whitney Houston's "My Heart Will Go On" was annoyingly ringing in the ear of everybody and their mom.

1997 年時，《鐵達尼號 》才剛上映、惠妮休斯頓的 My Heart Will Go On 是你和母親的手機鈴聲。

The Teletubbies hit the scene hard, and the very first Harry Potter book was just released.

《天線寶寶》熱播、第一本《哈利波特》發行。

1997 also marks the birth year of one our favorite sneakers, the Nike Air Max 97.

1997 年時我們最喜愛的球鞋之一，Nike Air Max 97 也問世了。

Two years earlier, Nike released the Air Max 95 with the intention of shifting the then basketball sneaker-dominated market back to performance running shoes.

兩年前，為了將主宰籃球鞋的市場轉回跑鞋市場，Nike 發行了 Air Max 95。

The Air Max 95 was a unique approach to runner cushioning by being the first ever shoe to feature the visible air unit in the forefoot.

Air Max 95 的氣墊非常獨特，它是第一雙前腳有可見氣墊的鞋。

It was also the first Air Max model to have a black midsole.

這也是 Air Max 系列第一雙擁有黑色中底的鞋款。

The shoe became a sensation in Japan and Europe.

這雙鞋在日本及歐洲造成風潮。

Nike couldn't keep up with the demand.

Nike 供不應求。

Perhaps that's one of the reasons why the Air Max 96 is so unpopular.

這有可能是 Air Max 96 不太受歡迎的原因之一。

All the promotion and advertisement for the 96 was drowned out by the wild success of its predecessor.

96 的宣傳跟廣告都被上一代的大成功淹沒。

By the time 1997 rolled around, both Sergio Lozano and Tinker Hatfield had left the Air Max series to focus on other Nike flagship designs.

到了 1997 年，Sergio Lozano 和 Tinker Hatfield 離開了 Air Max 系列，轉攻 Nike 的其他旗艦系列設計。

The man they left in charge of our beloved Air Max line was the highly talented, young, ex-Reebok employee, Christian Tresser.

而留下來接管受我們喜愛的 Air Max 系列的是前 Reebok 員工，Christian Tresser ，他年輕又有才華。

In the book "Le Silver" a history of the Air Max 97, Tresser talks about the pressure he was under to deliver a seminal design for Nike.

在 Le Silver 這本紀錄 Air Max 97 歷史的書中，Tresser 提到要為 Nike 設計出一雙開創性的球鞋對他造成了極大的壓力。

When the 97 arrived on my desk, it had already been through two designers before me.

在 97 出現在我面前時，已經有兩位設計師著手設計過了。

The message I was given was, this shoe is going to make your career, don't blow it.

他們是這麼告訴我的：「這雙鞋能使你成功，別搞砸了。」

Ever since the debut of the Air Max 1, Nike's legendary line had raised expectations in more ways than one.

自 Air Max 第一代問世之後，為 Nike 的傳奇生產線帶來了許多期待。

They had brought the runners category to brand new heights.

他們為跑者系列帶來了高標準。

Rather than sitting on retail shelves as niche purchases, running shoes were absorbed by the general public.

比起在架上展示的小眾消費商品，跑鞋是一般大眾都能負擔的。

Nike's marketing showed the world that their shoes were never just shoes.

Nike 的行銷告訴世界：「球鞋不只是球鞋」。

They were what legends wore.

他們傳奇人物腳上的傳奇。

Runners wore them, but celebrities wore them, too.

跑者會穿，名人也會穿。

Every time Nike released an Air Max, it was remarkable, but they also put a feverish note of anticipation on every release.

每次 Nike 發表新的 Air Max ，都很引人注目，但他們每次的發表也都令人非常期待。

Nike designers weren't just expected to release innovative runners, they were expected to outdo their own efforts on a consistent and unending basis.

Nike 的設計師除了發表創新的球鞋，也被期望能持續超越自己。

With all this pressure that Nike was putting on Christian Tresser, he worked hard on the shoe.

因為這些 Nike 給予 Christian Tresser 的壓力，他在這雙鞋下了非常多苦功。

Having to work around a brand new total air version of the visible air unit that spanned the length of the entire mid-sole, something completely new and challenging to implement into the design.

為了創造能讓整個中底加長的全新可見氣墊，他加入了許多創新、充滿挑戰的設計。

Now, you have to keep in mind that in 1997 the world was on the verge of entering a new millennium.

要記得，1997 時世界正準備邁向新的千禧年。

Everyone was looking ahead in both technology and design.

每個人對科技和設計都有所展望。

The futuristic-sounding year of 2000 was right around the corner.

屬於 2000 年的未來世代即將來到。

This optimistic futurism pervaded both industrial and fashion design with sleek curves and metallic chrome accents dominating everything from cars, to CD players, mountain bikes, and of course, sneakers.

樂觀的未來主義遍及工業和時尚產業，線條流暢的曲線和鉻金屬感的裝飾出現在車子、CD 播放器、越野腳踏車和球鞋上。

Christian Tresser took all these influences and used them as inspiration.

Christian Tresser 將這些影響當作靈感。

Tresser's genius allowed him to combine the futuristic elements with things in nature, like the ripple of waves on a pond, or a rain drop.

Tresser 以他的才智將這些未來元素和大自然結合，例如池塘裡的漣漪或是雨滴。

When you look at the Air Max 97, the design flows from a seamless, yet powerful motion of water.

看看 Air Max 97，他的設計從水無縫但充滿力量的波動出發。

A nod to silver bullet trains inspires its beloved metallic finish and conjures up imagery of the future and the past.

子彈列車也激發他的金屬潤飾，也使人能夠想像到所有的未來和過去。

All of this created a remarkable shoe that resonated with everyone from rappers, like Big Pun, and everyone's favorite Spice Girl, Mel C.

這全都造就了這雙具紀念價值的鞋，讓所有人包括饒舌歌手 Big Pun、大家最愛的辣妹合唱團裡的 Mel C 都為之瘋狂。

The Nike Air Max 97 was ground-breaking in many ways.

Nike Air Max 97 在很多方面都具有突破性。

It was the first Nike Air Max to be fully foamless.

這是第一雙沒有橡膠的 Nike Air Max。

It was the first Nike, maybe first sneaker ever, to feature the hidden lace-up system.

這是 Nike，甚至是全部的球鞋中第一雙將鞋帶部分隱藏起來的鞋。

And just like today, it came at a premium price.

而到現在，這都是一雙價格較高的鞋。

The Air Max 97 cost more than its predecessors by a substantial margin, marking the first time the Air Max have changed prices between models.

Air Max 97 跟前幾代相比，成本大幅提高，這是 Air Max 第一次在代與代之間改變價格。

It may not sound like much, but that is the equivalent of $225 in 2019, the price that we still believe is above the average cost of most sneakers.

聽起來可能不多，但這在 2019 年相當於 225 美金，確實比一般球鞋還要昂貴。

Would you pay $225 for sneakers?

你會花 225 美金買雙鞋嗎？

Leave a comment below.

在下方留言告訴我們！

The release of the Air Max 97 couldn't have been more timely.

Air Max 97 的發行來得剛好。

The $150 price tag was of no concern to consumers in 1997.

1997 年時，150 美金對消費者沒有太大負擔。

The shoe enjoyed wild success, but unfortunately for the U.S. market, the hype only lasted a year.

這雙鞋出奇地成功，但很不幸地，這股風潮只在美國帶來了一年的旋風。

If there is one thing that Nike is known for, it is turning out new versions of the same shoe in different colorways with small design tweaks.

要說 Nike 以什麼出名，就是發行不同配色的同一鞋款，可能有些許的設計改變。

Not only did this allow them to always have an exciting new shoe to sell, but also allowed them to make tweaks and designs that were noted as undesirable to the public.

這雖然讓他們能持續地有新產品可銷售，也讓這些微小的設計變動變得不那麼吸引人。

Naturally, Nike wanted to maximize their profits that were coming in from the Air Max boom that was happening in countries like Japan and Italy.

通常 Nike 會想利用在日本和義大利造成的 Air Max 風潮大賺一筆。

Unfortunately, the Air Max 97 was superseded by the Air Max 98.

不幸的是， Air Max 97 被 Air Max 98 取代了。

It didn't quite garner the attention of a trend-setting phenomenon.

它並沒有在潮流界得到太多關注。

Though it sold well enough to justify all the work put into its design and production, it just felt like it was missing something.

雖然它的銷售足夠平衡大家為設計和生產付出的努力，但感覺還是少了點什麼。

If it wasn't for Italy's subculture celebrating the shoe the way they did, and still do, the Air Max 97 could have very well ended up in a much less prominent place in sneaker culture right now.

若不是義大利的次文化者如此熱愛這雙鞋，Air Max 97 可能早就失去球鞋市場中的主導地位了。

Luckily, like all old Nike favorites, it has found its way back to the shelves in different variations.

幸運的是，就像許多 Nike 的經典鞋款，它也因為不同的鞋款變化重回架上。

Thanks to the constant retroing of classics, we can now look forward to new and improved versions of the Air Max 97.

多虧了經典鞋款的不斷改良，我們現在還能期待全新且有所進步的Air Max 97。

Thanks to the amazing colorways of the shoe, the Nike Air Max 97 has been rekindled as a favorite amongst sneakerheads today.

多虧了令人驚豔的配色，Air Max 97 是現在球鞋控們的最愛之一。

Question for you guys.

有個問題想請教大家。

What do you guys think about the gold and silver colorways?

你們喜歡金銀配色的 97 嗎？

I think they look so dope.

我覺得這看起來超酷。

If you're thinking about copping a pair of 97s, I've placed some links in the description box for you to check out.

如果你也想入手一雙 97，我在下方放了一些連結給各位參考。

Anyways, guys, thank you guys so much for watching.

好的各位，跟以往一樣，謝謝你們的收看。

If you like this video, please consider subscribing to the channel, and again, it means the world to me that you took the time out of your day to check this video out.

如果你喜歡這支影片，考慮訂閱一下頻道，還有你們能撥出時間收看我的影片對我來說意義重大。

So drop me a comment.

請留言給我。

Have a great rest of your day, and see you on the next one.

今天也好好休息吧！我們下次見。