Wednesday, March 11, 2009

New Balance - MT576S / FRAT x mita sneakers



WOW...WOOOOOOWWWW!!!!!

21 years ago, New Balance set the standards for trail running footwear with its M576 sneaker. Since then, it has gone through several renditions, including the exalted “Made in U.S.A.” & “Made in England” collections, as well as the exclusive “Japan Project”. It was from the latter that M576 went through one of its many metamorphosis. The result was MT576, a model exclusively for Tokyo’s retailer mita sneakers.

Building upon its heritage, the MT576 is still a trail running sneaker. Except the trail is no longer in the wilderness, but instead, the urban terrain of a metropolis. By adding elements from the sole of another New Balance classic, MT580, along with the patented ROLL BAR system, the MT576 is able to provide stability among the toughest urban environment. 2 different yet equally important cushion systems, C-CAP and ENCAP, guarantee performances found on other trail running sneakers, at fraction of the weight. Elastic bands along the tongue enable the MT580 to be worn without laces. A semi-secure shoe tongue prevents it from sliding out of position.

Apart from the MT576V – Raijin Edition in 2007, mita sneaker is scheduled to launch the next variant in this popular line, the MT576S – FRAT Edition. The new release took its name from FRAT, a well-known creative collective in Tokyo’s Ueno neighborhood. In this latest MT576, mita’s principle designer who goes by the name Sneaker Wolf, was able to introduce various icons the Ueno neighborhood is known for. This includes the embroidered ancient “Shi-mei-nawa” rope pattern and a shoe tongue in bamboo rake motif, a symbol of good fortune since the Edo era. The construction also comprised a glow-in-the-dark Ying & Yang symbol, a representation of “day and night” to the FRAT collective.

mita sneakers
4-7-8 Ueno | Map
Taito-ku, Tokyo, Japan
TEL #: +81-3-3832-8346

Release Date: April 4th (Saturday)