UNCHAIN Lacing System laces review

Tired of your laces being too tight? Of those painful pressure points on your instep? Of tying and retying your laces before an event? For running as well as for triathlon, the solution lies in the Unchain Lacing System, silicone laces, knotless and with shape memory. We tested them over nearly 250 km in training and in real conditions during the Ironman France Nice. The verdict? Free at last!

By Pierre-Maxime BRANCHE – Photos: 3bikes.fr

Free your feet! This is the slogan of the Unchain Lacing System, a knotless, precise and customizable lacing that supports the foot and offers more comfort and control. The theory: a durable adjustment and shoes laced once and for all. It must be admitted that the idea is rather appealing when you practice running and even more so triathlon to optimize transitions and foot comfort during effort.

Unchain is a French brand of high-end, ergonomic and innovative sports equipment, intended for all athletes. Objective: to free our body and mind to make us want to surpass ourselves. To “free our feet”, Unchain has created a knotless lacing system that follows the deformations of the foot during effort, which consequently eliminates compression points and improves blood flow. An innovation that sets a new standard, as Velcro or the zipper did in their time.

Unchain Lacing System consists of three elements:

– the Memory Lace (with its integrated Center Pod) designed in abrasion-resistant silicone that follows the shape of the foot without applying pressure. According to Unchain, the mechanical characteristics of this lace are guaranteed for extreme temperatures ranging from -60°C to 220°C.
– the Center Pod (located in the middle of the Memory Lace) which allows the Memory Lace to be perfectly centered during installation;
– the BlocKnot which eliminates the knot and secures the adjustment, without having to redo your lacing. With six openings, it guarantees reliable locking of the Memory Lace and has a curve so as not to exert pressure on the instep.

Made in France

Developed by ultra-trail champions like Sébastien Chaigneau, Émilie Lecomte and manufactured in France, this system is universal, designed for all sports and guaranteed for 3 years or 3,000 kilometers. With its unique size (95 cm) and 17 available colors, it satisfies all tastes. It resists all conditions (rain, snow, sun, mud, etc.) and retains its original properties, particularly in terms of resistance, length and support. But how is it installed?

A few minutes are enough: you must start by sliding the Memory Lace into the first eyelets at the bottom of the shoe and centering the Center Pod. Then, thread the Memory Lace into each eyelet like a classic lace, being careful not to twist it, not to tighten it or stretch it. Starting from the bottom, then adjust the setting between each pair of eyelets, making sure not to create pressure on the instep, i.e. leaving 2 to 3 mm of flexibility between each eyelet. Before moving on to the BlocKnot, take about ten steps and a few jumps to finalize the adjustment to your morphology, check and adjust the Memory Lace if necessary.

Finally comes the installation of the BlocKnot: pass the two ends of the Memory Lace through the two outer openings (from the front) of the BlocKnot and pull gently to center it. Continue through the two upper openings from the inside (from the back) then through the two oval openings at the bottom (from the front).

The Memory Lace must extend at least 2 cm beyond the BlocKnot. You can therefore cut off the excess at an angle to facilitate any future assembly/disassembly. That’s it: you can put on and take off your shoes in the blink of an eye!

Knowing how to take your time

In practice, installation is not as easy as it seems because it requires precision and meticulousness. While it is simple to center the Memory Lace from the start thanks to the Center Pod, you must pay attention not to twist it (which happens very quickly) between each eyelet and remember not to stretch it. The ends are also profiled to facilitate passage between the eyelets. Once the Memory Lace is in place, the few steps and small jumps to perform allow you to realize if you have tightened it too much or not enough.

If too tight, the pressure on the instep is significant, even immediately painful. You then have to review the adjustment eyelet by eyelet. When the right balance is found, the placement of the BlockNot also requires some attention to center it and not to overtighten it either. For all of this manipulation, you should count at best 15 minutes. That said, it is important to take your time and try several times if necessary because, once cut, the ends of the Memory Lace will leave you little room for maneuver to make a new adjustment. By the way, the brand does not necessarily recommend it, but when installing our second lace, we positioned the foot inside the shoe, which facilitated its installation.

Free at last

With these ULS, your shoes offer a new look. An aesthetic detail perhaps for you, but for some, it means a lot. Moreover, on the style side, the 17 colors offer many possibilities to match the colors of your outfits and accessories or, on the contrary, to break the codes.

The first sensations with these laces are simple: flexibility in the tightening, but very good support. Putting them on is easy, quick, with a lace that stretches to let the foot pass, then the tongue repositions itself on the instep, adopting the desired tightening during installation. You truly feel no pressure points, neither at the top on the BlocKnot, nor on the Center Pod, nor even on the eyelets.

Unchain talks about freedom and that is indeed the sensation it gives when running, at any intensity and on any profile, uphill as well as downhill. After several sessions, and therefore several putting on/taking off, the tightening has not moved, no compression to note and comfort always the same. You completely forget about it! Also note that the Memory Lace does not twist during sessions, it remains perfectly in place, as does the BlocKnot which does not move an inch. During 250 km of tests, we never needed to readjust the tightening, the position of the BlocKnot or that of the Center Pod. The Lace shows no cuts, no abrasion and remains very clean, despite a few slightly rainy sessions.

The Unchain Lacing System offers absolute comfort and real practicality, for running and even more so for triathlon. The sensations of freedom and support are constant, you forget their presence and the shape memory of the silicone has never failed throughout this test.

The transition test

I was also waiting for the ULS to be revealed at the Ironman France Nice in T2. After 150 km of cycling in stifling heat, after having abundantly sprayed my legs and feet and despite significant sweating in the transition area, putting on my running shoes was ultra fast thanks to this tightening. In the heatwave and on the melting asphalt of the Promenade des Anglais where we had 30 km to cover, my foot was able to swell without being bothered and without encountering any compression point. The tightening remained comfortable throughout the race and I did not feel an urgent desire to take off my shoes after the finish line as can be the case after an event with classic lacing.

100% adopted! The Unchain Lacing System offers absolute comfort and real practicality, for running and even more so for triathlon. The sensations of freedom and support are constant, you forget their presence and the shape memory of the silicone has never failed throughout this test. Some will point out the price of 20 euros for laces. Granted. But when you are ready to spend nearly 200 euros for shoes, several hundred euros for a wetsuit or for a watch whose capabilities you only use 30%, and several thousand euros for a bike, you can still shell out 20 euros for simple laces. Except that these “simple” laces offer impeccable comfort and support, they allow an undeniable time saving for triathletes in transition and are durable. Because you can very well consider positioning them on several pairs of running shoes in a row.

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