The CiclaValley Karate Kid Shoe

I don’t know if you call this saving the best for last (I only have two feet), but I’m super giddy to finally reveal the CiclaValley Karate Kid Shoe.

The 818 shoe has a much wider range of emotions attached to it because there are so many ways to represent the Valley and each has a separate meaning.

For the opposite foot, I wanted something far more specific and I can’t think of anything else representing my childhood more than the movie the Karate Kid.

Whether the year 1984 was truly Camelot for the San Fernando Valley or it was still a time of innocence in my life, this film captured the look and feel of growing up in suburbanization at its peak.

Mind you, I thought Daniel LaRusso was a little bit of a jerk (which I’m glad they pursued in Cobra Kai), but the feel of adjusting to an expansive and isolating environment was something I could relate to.

Cobra Kai Profile

As some people know, the slogan to CiclaValley has been “Daniel LaRusso is going to bike!” replacing the fighting words at the end.

The funny part is from time to time I get contacted by this Karate Kid namesake since the movie is old enough to be out of the lexicon of a significant demographic.

While I had been mulling over this shoe idea for quite sometime, committing to this plan hit a hitch three years ago.

At that time, a new neighbor moved in across the street that took me a few weeks in processing in being Martin Kove or as Karate Kid fans would know as the evil Sensei John Kreese.

Strike hard. Strike first. No MERCY!!!

I avoided him for quite sometime for the fear of triggering the ultimate fanboy in me.

A couple of years ago, we chose to show a movie in the backyard which the moms picked Karate Kid (no complaints from me).

It’s not easy to sign a shoe..

When the other parents learned that he lived across the street, they knew we had to invite him, but I kept my distance until the day of with me leaving a note with the commitment of a junior high schooler asking someone to a dance.

The movie rolled and everyone hoped for a surprise appearance, but since there were a bunch of five-year olds on hand, we promptly wrapped up the evening right after the movie ended.

The most iconic image from the Karate Kid

The next morning, I was doing some clean up when he spotted me leading to our first encounter leading to a myriad of scary scenarios playing out in my head.

Was he bitter at the movie and wanted to distance himself from it? Was he pissed I left something on his car? Would he Sweep the Leg and carry on from there?