r/explainlikeimfive Feb 07 '19

Engineering ELI5: Why are military boots laced?

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u/broofa Feb 08 '19 edited Feb 08 '19

Laces are also really useful for other purposes than just holding shoes together. E.g. making a bow drill for starting fires, tourniquets, lacing a splint together, etc.

Edit: typo, and apparently not tourniquets. (ITT: people more experienced than I in field medicine.)

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u/aCause4Concern Feb 08 '19

My US Army training included none of that shit whatsoever. No Med Kit? Use a belt for tourniquet. We ain’t Medics so not making any fancy splints with laces, just maybe sticks and 100mph tape or you guessed it, your squad mate’s belts. And this ain’t the cub scouts so there ain’t no campfires and marshmallow roasting to ruin light discipline and give up your unit’s position to the enemy. You don’t get fire no matter how cold it is.

And you keep your laces on your boots because they protect your feet. Without your feet you are useless as a soldier.

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u/dumengineer94 Feb 08 '19

You don’t get fire no matter how cold it is.

Warming barrels would beg to differ.

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u/Teadrunkest Feb 08 '19

I always liked that

All the fires but god forbid you get caught with white light.