I've heard a lot of people taking out the inner lace on the slingshot driver bindings because it is uncomfortable. Did they fix this in the 08's, cause I am thinking about getting some.

I wore the 08s with the liner. They are comfortable until you start riding them. But its not just slingshot closed toes, every brand of closed toe has killed me feet.

well, I rode the shanes all last season and never had a problem. They were a lot more comfortable that the liquid force ultras I had before them. in fact, I had to ride the ultras last week because I sent back my shanes for warranty, and they killed my feet. I guess I just love the shanes closed toe.

I guess demo them if you can. Im wondering if my wide feet make closed toes a pain.

Absolutely demo them. The board especially.

i really like the inner lacing system, its modeled after the lace up style ankle braces. so if you got bad ankles definately keep em, that and it sucks the liner into the shell and reduces the heel lift youve prolly read about

i cut out my inner laces and honestly cant even tell the difference. i cut off the big lace pulls and just knotted them. they are just as easy and fast as any comparable binding and no more annoying clips flopping around when they come unclipped.

Since 08's have been cleaned up and slimed down you might want to try a larger size if your toes hurt. I have an 11 foot but the 12 fits ME well. Once you cook the liners they are like a glove.

I think most people were taking the inner lace out because it makes them harder to get in and out of, not for comfort issues. For 08 the inner lace system is optional, so you don't have to cut the laces out, you can just remove the harness.