One of the things that has always fascinated me about the multisport community is the sheer amount of ridiculous crap that gets peddled to triathletes. From ridiculous hydration systems (yes, that's $110 for what amounts to a water bottle and a few feet of tubing) to Bento Boxes to compression socks to slightly less ridiculous (but still dorky) hydration systems there seems to be no end to the amount of crap that companies are trying to put on triathlete's bikes or bodies.
Which is probably the reason that I never even gave a thought to Yankz! laces. They look like something you would have used in third grade and seemed to be yet another solution to yet another problem that didn't exist. In fact, I worked in a shop that stocked and (about once a year) sold Yankz! yet I never even took a pair out of the package to see how they worked. However, after checking out my dismal transition times in my first duathlon I figured maybe there was some benefit to Yankz! so on a recent trip to God's Country I dropped $8 on a pair at my local running store of choice.
Let me first say that figuring Yankz! out was a little confusing at first. I was under the impression that the laces were left loose and that you somehow "yanked" the long center loop to tighten them, then hooked in on the little black retaining clip down by the toe box. After carefully reading the instructions two or three times, however, I realized that no actual yanking is involved. Instead, you lace up your Yankz! (a process that took about 5 minutes per shoe), adjust them to desired tightness, and leave them be. The laces themselves are elastic, and that stretchyness allows you enough give to slide the shoes on and off without unlocking the system.
I was skeptical if Yankz! would work for me as I like my shoes to be very tight (probably a little too tight) due to my narrow feet. I figured the give in the laces
would translate into a floppy or insecure fit. One quick run, however, revealed that if anything the Yankz! provided just as secure a fit without the flopping and inconvenience of traditional laces. If anything the Yankz! system proved more comfortable since the elasticity of the lacing allowed tension to be spread more equally over the top of my foot than did traditional, non-elastic laces.
Which is probably the reason that I never even gave a thought to Yankz! laces. They look like something you would have used in third grade and seemed to be yet another solution to yet another problem that didn't exist. In fact, I worked in a shop that stocked and (about once a year) sold Yankz! yet I never even took a pair out of the package to see how they worked. However, after checking out my dismal transition times in my first duathlon I figured maybe there was some benefit to Yankz! so on a recent trip to God's Country I dropped $8 on a pair at my local running store of choice.
Let me first say that figuring Yankz! out was a little confusing at first. I was under the impression that the laces were left loose and that you somehow "yanked" the long center loop to tighten them, then hooked in on the little black retaining clip down by the toe box. After carefully reading the instructions two or three times, however, I realized that no actual yanking is involved. Instead, you lace up your Yankz! (a process that took about 5 minutes per shoe), adjust them to desired tightness, and leave them be. The laces themselves are elastic, and that stretchyness allows you enough give to slide the shoes on and off without unlocking the system.
I was skeptical if Yankz! would work for me as I like my shoes to be very tight (probably a little too tight) due to my narrow feet. I figured the give in the laces
would translate into a floppy or insecure fit. One quick run, however, revealed that if anything the Yankz! provided just as secure a fit without the flopping and inconvenience of traditional laces. If anything the Yankz! system proved more comfortable since the elasticity of the lacing allowed tension to be spread more equally over the top of my foot than did traditional, non-elastic laces.Will the Yankz! speed up my transition times? That remains to be seen. The level of "snugness" I prefer means it still takes a little finageling to slide my shoe on and orient everything the right way, which is a little more complicated than just yanking laces and tying them up. I have talked to several multisporters who have said that they wouldn't want to race without Yankz! and even if the time to put my shoes on hasn't diminished with them I'll still use them for the increased comfort they offer. Since they retail for less than $10 a pair and can presumably be reused as long as they're not cut too short for your next pair of shoes, Yankz! are definitely worth trying out.
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