Nike Country Plate Buckle Belt - Size S (2003)

- replacement dustbag included

- stamped US men's size S, fits a 25" to 31" (63.5cm to 78.8cm) waist

- 9.5/10 condition: fully intact with a negligible wear spot near the tip of the belt; in excellent lightly worn vintage condition for being 20 years old

- features a hand-tooled, raw-edged top grain leather strap, a two-tone laser engraved zinc alloy buckle, and rivets stamped "nike, inc. 72" and "BVRTN,OR"; made in china

- unheard of by most and long gone by this point, the nike country apparel line & typeface tapped into the culture of the wild american northwest that athletes phil knight, bill bowerman, & geoff hollister all called home and set the aesthetic framework for the revolutionary endeavor that was nike's athletics west running club; with strategies developed by hiring some of the most talented coaches & athletes on the west coast, the running team dominated across a series of track & field events throughout the nation and ultimately popularized the idea of running & road racing as a hobby within the united states

- despite having no practical use in any running application whatsoever, this ornate (and heavy!) belt is essentially nike's love letter to the natural beauty of western oregon countryside when taking into account that every square inch of it goes out of its way to pay homage to either its geological landmarks or its distinctive flora - it depicts stunning panoramic renditions of the mount hood stratovolcano, cannon beach's haystack rock, towering western hemlock trees, black oak foliage & acorns throughout the length of the strap, with "OREGON" tooled into the middle section in an appropriately old-timey font; some of my personal favorite details are the 3 individual nike cortezes that have been functionally integrated into the bale & prong on the rear side of the buckle

- while i'm unsure of how many of these belts exist or how/where they were distributed, i can assure you that they are very, very rare; i think it goes without saying that this obscure piece will not be reissued at any point in the future