Now that laced shoes have been out for some time I am curious for those that put miles on them, if you stuck with them? Loved them then changed your mind and went BOA? What are your long term thoughts....

I prefer the boa. You can reach down and adjust it while riding if you need to. No possibility of them coming untied. Some shoes have multiple so you can make finer grained adjustments to the fit.

First two pairs of cycling shoes were laced. Every pair since has been BOA. If you're deadset on laces, check out Giro Techlace. Laces and BOA.

I currently own both laced Shimano SPD with 17,000+ miles and Five-Ten Boa, also SPD.

The Shimano needed to have the sole glued back on with Shoe-Goo. First the heel to the cleat, then a year later, the toe to the cleat. 17,000 miles on these shoes & it's etting time for insoles. Not bad for $12 shoes of unknown age & mileage found at a Goodwill Industries retail outlet. I think they needed laces a few years ago.

The Five-Ten's needed replacement Boa cables & dial on the 3rd use. After fitting a free warranty replacement mechanism they seem fine. I think they need to be tightened a few clicks mid-ride, every ride. But I never thought much of it. Boa offers replacement hardware forever, indefinitely. So that's a positive as far as I'm concerned.

I think the thought provoking thing is: Neither provokes much thought.

"Now that laced shoes have been out for some time" Hard for me to read that with a straight face. Pros were wearing laced cycling shoes 120 years ago. When I raced in the '70s. that was all there was. The best of those shoes were really good. Not as stiff as the stiffest now (except the Duegi (sp) shoes which were as stiff as any shoe ever made) but plenty stiff enough to race. My feet loved laces. In the '00s, I had worn out my last laced pair and pedals had moved on. '12 I started having foot issues (either blisters from too loose or infections from too tight or often both as I would have to adjust the straps from one to the other just to survive hard days. After several doctor's trips and antibiotic routines I cut the straps of my best fitting shoes and spent $20 on laces, grommets and a grommet tool from Tandy Leather. Instant relief. I've now done this to my two most often worn shoes and use them almost exclusively. I rarely adjust the laces mid-ride. Happy feet.

Yes, they take longer to lace up. I use different lacing pattern right and left because my feet are very different. Looks odd but I rarely even think of my feet while riding. U se quality knots. There are two bow knots, One is a square knot with loops, The other I was taught when I was 5, A dance between my left and right fingers. But it makes a better knot. I then tie the loops, (Double bow.) That doesn't come undone. I suspect any library has a book of knots for kids that has that bow knot. (Never looked. I have my dad to thank. But I did have to re-teach myself at 24 years old after my head injury. My left still knew how, but all it ever did was hold what my right gave it.)

When I get the time, more of my shoes are going to get laced. Laces rule!

Ben

Laces may look cool and retro, but they are a potential hazard. I started with laced shoes, which were the only option, back in the days of toeclips and straps and cleats that you hammered into your leather soles. The stupid laces, if they ever came loose, had a tendency to get caught between the chain and big ring, more often than not bring the moving parts to a halt with your foot tangled up in the mess.

When velcro strap shoes came out I switched and never went back (later followed by ratchet-buckles à la early Sidi, then Boa).

Boas are too heavy and unaero. Laces or straps all the way for maximum speed.

FWIW, the elastic keeper that holds your lace ends on the tongue, at least on Giro's shoes, have never yet let the laces get loose. That said, if I still used caged toeclips, I might be worried that they could worry the laces loose.

I use Bontrager Classiques (laces), and I love them. Never had any problem with the laces coming undone. If you lace properly, using a loop to lock them down - look up "heel lock", runners use this method to avoid blisters - you won't have a problem; as an added measure, the Bontragers have a snap-shut flap on the tongue that covers the tie.

If you have wide feet, laces make things much more adjustable and comfortable.

You can put some speed laces in so you don't have to tie each time.

My track shoes are laced. It's fantastic how snug and secure I can make them, so my foot stays locked in the shoe when pulling up on the pedals.

On my road bikes, I would hate laced shoes. I like to be able to tinker with my fit as I ride.

How they fasten won't matter for the riding I do. So I just look at the entire picture.... how well do the shoes fit me.

Laces just take more time up front to "get right" before you ride. Boa is like the lazy alternative of slipping into something fast then having to phuff with it after the fact.

If doing an outdoor ride or race, laces. Indoors trainer, boa.

With laces also, you get that perfect foot shape/squeeze/fit. With boa, no matter how many boas or steel wires it has........it's not the same number of pull points on the shoe's upper to enclose your feet as are the numerous crossings of the laces.

I had them in the 80's. It wasn't new back then, it's not new now. I don't like them anymore.

Then:




Now:



Light, aero, comfortable, durable.

I had one pair with boas- lumpy and seemed like they were always about to break.

I have wide feet. I get wide shoes. Don't need or want laces.

Fine tuning adjustments are pros for BOA...OTOH if they break or get clogged with grime they suck to find/replace, with shipping costing more than the BOA part. And of course, you have to figure out which of 30x different BOA SKUs you need for your specific show and whether it is a righty or a lefty.

After having SIDI ratchet buckles, and BOAs...I'm back to laces. Can get laces at any store in NoWhere and they'll never clog with mud.

Used lace-up shoes happily for 15 or 20 years. They have the retro appeal of vinyl records, carburetors, and other obsolete systems. They are definitely inferior to anything you can adjust without getting off the bike

See my post about tying proper bow knots and doubling. Done right with good non-slippery laces (available at any department store and many other places; plain old cotton laces work really well and they don't untie. That said, I like the synthetic laces that get a little fuzzy because you can cut them to length and melt the cut end with a lighter. I do this with nearly all of my cycling shoes so the doubled bows have nothing that can extend far enough to to more than just brush the crank. (Getting a lace caught in a fix gear chainring always turns out badly.)

Tying proper knots is becoming a lost art. But the right knots for the job is something you can trust your life to. Sailors, mountain climbers, loggers, fisherman, construction workers, cowboys, etc,. have been using knots where they matter forever, (In many of these activities, having knots that can be untied as surely as they will stay tied can also be life and death.

There's a hilarious video out there of a cowboy who rides to a Walmart (Utah maybe?) As he's walking out, a woman screams "he stole my bike" and points to a young man riding off on her steed, Cowboy jumps on his horse, catches up, lassos and ties the culprit to a tree just using his basic cowboy skills with a steer, I'm a sailor. But we could sit down and have a fun discussion of the knots we use, (Very different knots, but of equal importance.)

Some of my bikes have sported knots, sometimes for years. I had leather wrap on the Mooney's handlebars for about 15 years, I ripped it a couple of times (a crash and another incident). I loved the leather. Loved the feel. So to "save" it, I wrapped it with waxed polyester twine with a standard sailor;s whip used to keep rope from unraveling. Those whips went 10 years and were still perfect when I replaced the bars.

Good knots are good knots. There are good knots for tying shoes. And they allow the sweetest adjustment to shoe fit out there. Happy feet (and no need to adjust mid-ride). Now the part that bugs me - we often have to pay more for laces. What! It costs $20 to grommet your first pair. $10 of that was the tool. After that it is about $8 a pair, most of which is the laces. And if you had a machine, it would take two minutes a pair to grommet and another two to lace.. No stitching,

Ben

You know what would be nice, though? Knit shoes a la Merrell. Probably with webbing connecting the CF bottom to wrap around your foot for security. Those are extremely breathable and the most comfortable shoes I own.

Did you use a serving mallet?

What advantage is there to laces?

I had to look up serving mallet, No. That dates back to pre-synthetic rope. I was born into the age of Dacron.

I love Solomon's speed laces. They work just as well as the traditional ones. Quicker and better looking though.

I was born pre-dacron and so was my boat but they are still commonly available and used.

SERVING MALLETS