Tech Talk: Romes PureFlex Lace System

If you look at the boots on the market there’s a plethora of lacing options out there for you to choose from. Some companies contract out to Boa or share technology like Speed Zone, while others go the do it yourself route and create their own. Rome SDS is no stranger to doing things themselves and has created their own convenience lace system. Two years of meticulous work from the ground up has created their PureFlex lace system.What separates this system the most from every other zonal controlled speed efficient lacing system is that it has 4 zones and combines external and internal lacing. That’s 16 options to choose from when it comes to tightness and allows you to tighten your liner from the outside. The only other company to incorporate something like that is K2 with the Boa Conda technology. Here’s a video of it in action.

So what does that mean for the boot? By getting rid of the internal harness it eliminates the draw string from sitting right over your ankle where it flexes forward. In doing this it gets rid of that plastic digging in and preventing forward motion and creasing. This allows for a more natural flexion of the foot inside the boot and allows you to deliver more power from your ankles into your boot to help control steering.

While still utilizing an upper Velcro closure the rest of the harness is sewn into the liner.

After pulling the internal and lower zones tight there’s a grooved eyelet with teeth to lock off that zone and keep it tight.

The upper zone features typical locking eyelets but has a center point on the tongue that helps pull the sides closer together.

So how effective is this new lacing system? Well having a pair to test out at work this summer was awesome. While the fit is subjective the actual use of this system is flawless. The pull strings fly through the eyelets and it’s easier to use than ones from other companies. The biggest thing that should be noted is how effective that internal zones harness is. It locks you into the boot nice and tightly while allowing you to flex more naturally in a boot. This system rivals what I’ve been using in my K2’s with Boa Conda.

For those curious about the zones it breaks down like this: Zone 1 is the inner cuff (internal), Zone 2 is lower cuff, Zone 3 is the ankle, and Zone 4 is the upper cuff. Now for those that are anal about getting it tight in all the right places let me tell you, yes you can get it tight wherever you want. I cranked down a pair of size 9.5 Libertines with this system and my god was I locked in. Unlike traditional internal harnesses sewn into the back-spine that pulled you back into the heel pocket from the front this one instead pulled the shell inward from the sides and allowed for the tongue to move more naturally. By far one of the most naturally flexing boots I’ve ever bore witness to.

As you can see these laces are designed to fly with ease through those hoops.

Kudos to Rome for creating a new lacing system that goes above and beyond for trying to perfect the age old problem of getting more natural flex while making things easier. PureFlex is just that a pure flexing option for boots.