Here’s Why Your Shoes Have That Extra Shoelace Hole

Ever wondered why your running, workout or hiking shoes always seem to have that extra shoelace hole at the top of the shoe that you never use? There's actually a handy reason it's there...

I'm a novice runner (and a novice shoe-tyer, too, come to think of it), but was looking at the shoes I wear when I hit the treadmill or the Cascade Lake Trail. I noticed they're starting to wear out and probably need to be replaced. But then I noticed there's that extra shoelace hole at the top of the show that I never use. Turns out, it's there for a reason-- so you can do something called the 'lace-lock,' which, according to this story on sun-gazing.com, can help prevent blisters on your heels and stop your feet from cramming forward into the front of the shoe. Here's how it works...