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SPEED LACES®, is a revolutionary new lacing system which replaces
ordinary laces in minutes and provides runners with amazing advantages.
Exceptional Comfort
Superior Support
& Stability
Instant tension adjustment
Never tie your laces again
Shoes go on & off effortlessly
As marketed, these laces seem perfect. Plus they got the nod
of Triathlete magazine and Runners world, two authorities which are pretty much bibles when it comes to their fields.
Given the fact that I was happy with my current lacing system, I wondered what was the fuss all about, until I found out by
myself.
I recently acquired a new pair of trainers, and as with old habits,
new shoes get new laces. When I took the shoe out for a short moderate paced run, I could feel something a bit different
with my foot. I let it go at first, thinking that it was because of the shoes. The following day, I did the same
run. But this time, my feet felt sore right after I stopped, and felt even worse when I took off my shoes. Particularly
in the top arch of my foot (right under the tongue of the shoe), and at the inner and outer heel, the pain was in both feet.
I immediately proceeded to put some therapeutic ice on the said areas. I never had any problems with my feet before,
so I began to wonder what was the culprit, and I had a theory. So when I was given the opportunity to test out the renowned
Speed Laces, I wondered if it was the answer to my questions. And I needed to find out the answer fast, because by the
third day, no matter how much I wanted to wear the shoes, my feet was so sore that I could not stand having them on for more
than 5 seconds.
Once opening the package, I was surprised that there was going to
be a lot of work involved into installing the said friction-free laces. You didnt really need the skills of McGyver,
but I found it amusing that I had to use a Philips screwdriver just for a pair of laces, even if installing it took 3 times
longer than my regular laces. As for their key selling points, Ill try to look at them one by one.
Exceptional Comfort. On the comfort point, they did the job.
The pain I felt on my feet were gone by the time I was starting my second run, so my theory was correct, the lacing for my
shoe was too tight and cut off some circulation into my feet.
Superior Support & Stability. I cant really say that they
are all that superior, because the shoe I was testing them on, needed to be laced until the top to prevent heel-slip.
So I had to do the same, since it was friction-free it felt like it was constantly adjusting, not giving me the firmness on
the heel strike that I was used to.
Instant tension adjustment. The tension can easily be adjusted
to fit your need. But one thing that I found out to work is that to just pull it once as tight as you need, and let
it work by itself.
Never tie your laces again. Duh, Sherlock. You got that
right. But you do have to lock and unlock them for each use. The ones I tested didnt have bungee laces, hence
once they were locked, youd be damaging your shoe if you tried pulling them off the same way you do it with bungee laces.
Shoes go on & off effortlessly. Effortlessly wouldnt be
a word that Id use, because for me, effortless means I can take them off while lying down and just using my feet. And
put them on by just one tug of the tongue and the shoe. As I said above, youd still have to lock and unlock them.
One point that I think they miss out on though, is that you dont
get to use the built-in lace guides for the tongue or the shoe. They were put there for a reason and the laces restrict
their use. The result is a loose shoe tongue needing constant adjustment while putting it on. And the color dye
of the laces rub off on the shoe, giving your shoe marks of the lace color, especially on white shoes.
Bottom line: The Speed Laces took away the pain I was feeling in
my feet due to improper lace tension. I got to try out the non-elastic laces. But I conducted an experiment on
my own with bungee laces on the current system, and for now, Ill keep the results to myself. I guess wed just have to
wait until they come out with the elastic Speed Laces here. Dont forget to insert the end of the laces though the loops,
not unless you want to hear and feel annoying taps on your shoe. And Speed Laces only work with standard shoe lacing
systems. Hence, I dont think they work with all shoe types and lasts. But Id try them out again on another pair
just to make sure that what Speed Laces did for me isnt a fluke.
BOA Shoe Pocket
Last year, I was searching on-line where I could source elastic laces. And
as if on cue, BOA Sports came into the scene with the Constrictors. Since then, almost all my training and racing shoes
are equipped with matching BOA Constrictor elastic laces. I just wonder if they would work as well on my Kenneth Coles?
It's no secret that the people behind BOA Sports are athletes themselves. This year, they continue to make the urban
athlete's life a lot easier with the BOA Shoe Pocket.
Personally, I hate having to drive to somewhere just so I can get a decent long run into my schedule. Next to that
on my hate list is trying to figure out where in the world to put my blasted car keys? The people from BOA handed me
the Shoe Pocket right before I set out on my Sunday long run. The premise of the Shoe Pocket was that it was a convenient
carry case for your keys and small bills. Perfect timing again, I normally ran in tights or shorts without pockets,
so notch one up for the Shoe Pocket. The Velcro attachment was pretty idiot-proof, so as soon as I had them on, I was
on my way.
During my run, I had to stop at my car twice to change water bottles. Access to the Shoe Pocket was easy and quick,
making my stops shorter than they normally were, a big plus when you're getting a nice rhythm going. And after 2hrs
and 30min, I hardly noticed that the Shoe Pocket was attached to my shoe. It didn't add too much weight to distract
me from my running. And a nice feature for the Shoe Pocket was the reflectorized stripe across the length of the strap,
giving runners out there additional visibility on those late afternoon or evening romps.
Bottom line: convenient for those who need a non-distracting key and money holder on the run. During my test
I inserted only 1 car key and keychain, leaving enough space for some bills. I suggest that if you get a Shoe Pocket,
put only your main key or trunk key in the Shoe Pocket and all your 'abubot' keys in your bag. Currently, I heard that
this is available at some Toby's and Olympic Village outlets, but trust that you can find this soon wherever you can get BOA
Constrictors. I got my Shoe Pocket in Black, but there will be more colors to be made available soon.
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