Behind Those Sneakers

image: http://www.downtownexpress.com

Around my neighborhood, there are several places where you can see a pair of sneakers hanging from a wire over the street. I was told that it signifies that someone in the neighborhood has moved away.

However, this ancient (by Internet standards) article offers other, intriguing explanations, summarized here:

• I heard tennis shoes hanging over a power line meant you could buy crack there.
• It's a time-honored tradition to throw your sneakers over the power lines on the last day of school.
• When I was a lad of 13 in Nashua, New Hampshire, we used to steal pairs of shoes that had been carelessly left on the sidewalk by kids who had popped open a fireplug. At this point we would play "over the wire keep away" until (a) the kid's mother, brother, father, or a passing police officer put a stop to the game, or (b) shoes went up but didn't come down.
• When I was in the military and guys were getting ready to get out and go back to a "regular" life they would take their combat boots and paint them up all funky before tying the laces together and throwing them over a wire.
• Either they're meant to increase visibility for low-flying aircraft, frighten rattlesnakes away, or just for the hell of it.
• I read in the newspaper that shoes would be thrown over the power lines to serve as a reminder/warning of a murder that occurred nearby.
• Depending on what part of the country you are from, one shoe from a light post or sign represents the death of a gang member. Usually seen in the inner city.
• When I was a kid (late 60s, early 70s) the boys would tie together (1) their own sneakers that they hated or (2) sneakers of the weak and/or overweight kids and toss them over the telephone wires for fun. It usually took a number of tosses to get them up there, so the boys took this as a challenge.
• I'll admit to being a former shoe thrower. After getting a new pair of sneakers, it was a common ritual in my neighborhood to tie the shoelaces of your old pair together and throw them up on the telephone wires. What else are you going to do with your old pair of sneakers?
• There is no solid cause-effect going on here. Just your everyday kid hijinks. I suppose you could say it's a way of marking territory. Shoes can be seen hanging all over the beach area here in San Diego, over lampposts, power lines, trees, etc. It's as pointless as jamming gum in water fountains or throwing water balloons at cars. Just one of the things kids do.