Remember Lenny Henry when he was funny? No honestly he was once. Way back in the seventies he was a regular on a punk rock Saturday morning kid’s show called Tiswas and he used to wear a massive Rasta hat and run round shouting KATANGA! Anyway, this new release from the mighty Red Wing has fuck all to do with Lenny Henry or Seventies TV but it’s equally as ace and it’s name (Kangatan) reminds me of Lenny’s old catchphrase.
This particular green coloured beauty pays homage to the classic Red Wing 888 style (see below) which was first made back in 1963 as a superior sport boot originally called the SuperSetter and made for former Red Sox left fielder Ted Williams. Can you imagine playing any kind of sport in them, hardcore or what? They’re definitely more suited to attempting a School run rather than a Home run this day and age me thinks. The design and construction of this new Kangatan style (christened style number 8180) is a real global team effort using Australian kangaroo hide leather, a Scottish zug leather vamp, an English overlay pac toe, German speed laces, Norwegian reverse water-repellent welting, Swiss Vibram lug soles and Red Wing, Minnesota, construction. If these boots could speak any language it would be esperanto. In fact I wonder if Kangatan means anything in that language?*
*I’ve just checked and it means ‘proper good boots that will make all the mums fancy you in the playground’.
redwingheritage.eu
