Mine came laced like that too. Frankly, it didn't work that well for me, and I could tell that if I laced mine tightly enough, I would risk the stock lacing wearing into the leather. Hard to get a good shot with the saddle mounted, but hopefully this illustrates:




With this set-up, I can adjust the tension by pinching the spring release on the barrel, and either pulling in, or letting out tension to get it how I want, and then letting go of the barrel. The adjustment process takes about 3 seconds. Also, the cord is elastic, and it doesn't chew into the leather.