| How to
choose new boots.
The air is crisp and cool. Fall
colors are out and we've caught the first glimpse of snow
in the mountains.
The ski season hasn't started, but ski
gear season has. Time to evaluate the old gear to see
if it will survive another year of loving abuse. Ski boots
are the hardest too replace. Your old dogs are broken
in to every nuance of your feet. But 150+ days of skiing
will take away the elasticity of any shell and turn most
liners to a moldy mess.
The following guide will get you started
on finding a functional, well performing ski boot. Once
this goal is achieved we can continue our search for balanced,
smooth powerful skiing.
They don’t fit properly without
a break in period and a modest amount of boot fitting.
How many other products do we purchase in America that
require so much work? Not many.
The two biggest problems I see with new
ski boot purchases fall into the category; Ski Instructor
Syndrome. Problem one: purchasing the wrong boot on a
pro deal or getting the wrong pair for free. Problem two:
purchasing a boot based on brand preference or a rep/buddies
recommendation. These two problems are a great way to
save money and to support the manufactures who support
us. Unfortunately this is misguided. I can tell you I
have spent hundreds of hours punching, grinding and padding
the wrong boot for the wrong foot.
“Get the right boot,
not the right deal”
If you don’t get the right boot,
you will end up with a boot that doesn't fit or perform
well. This will cause much discomfort and “God forbid”,
bad ski turns, yuck!!!
The solution is finding the right boot
for your foot/leg and performance needs. Not as easy as
it looks.
Some basic guidelines to find the right
boot for you are:
Spend the time
Go to a good ski shop offering as many
different brand as possible and try on all the different
brands and models. Shell fit is your first concern. Remove
the liner and place your foot in side the bare shell.
Slide your toes forward until they touch the front; flex
your shin until it touches the plastic cuff. Have an experienced
boot fitter measure the distance between your heel and
the back of the shell, two fingers should fit snuggly
in this space. (The space in inches 3/4" race fit
to 1 1/4"comfort fit.) Be sure to repeat this process
on your other foot as one foot may be longer and narrower,
and the other shorter and wider. Reassemble the boots
and try them on. The toes should feel too tight. Take
5 min. to flex the boots aggressively. This will allow
the liner to loosen and the foot to seat properly in the
boot. While standing upright in the boot you're toes should
be tight to the front of the liner, flexing forward into
your skiing stance should relieve most of the toe pressure.
Now evaluate the boot's fit in these zones; the cuff,
heel/ankle area, instep, sides of the foot, toe joints
and toes. You are looking for a snug/firm handshake feel.
Keep in mind the boot you now have on is going to stretch,
compress and grow 10 to 20% over the first couple of weeks
you ski in them. Proper fitting boots should feel 80 to
90% right, the other 10 to 20% is going to come from custom
fitting. This consists of custom foot beds, liner break-in
and liner/shell modifications.
" It is fairly easy to make a small
boot fit bigger, it is nearly impossible to get a to big
boot smaller."
Stance is the next vital consideration
when purchasing a new boot. Strong skiers stack their
skeletal system on top of its self for optimal balance
over the skis. Make sure the new boots accommodates your
body's ability to balance effectively. Too much or too
little ramp angle of the lower boot, and forward lean
of the upper cuff can greatly affect your fore aft balance.
The cant angle of the lower boot and upper cuff can greatly
affect your side-to-side balance. Be sure you find
boots that allow you to center your balance with a long
leg over the rear of your arch, not the ball or the toes
and side to side over the inside edge of the downhill
ski. Not all ski boots are created equally. Some newer
boots on the market have a trend towards to much forward
lean and some towards to much outward cant. Have the boots
measured by a qualified boot fitter. Some high-end race
boots have no cuff adjustment features. This can be a
key to good ski boot alignment. Make sure you’ve
found the boots for all your needs.
Avoiding the two major pit falls will
allow you to find a boot that optimizes your skiing abilities
while being warm and comfortable. Now that you have found
the right boots, install a custom foot bed, have the cuffs
adjusted, your alignment checked and allow the liner a
5-10 day break in period be fore any major shell or liner
modifications. Good luck and think snow, it will be hear
before you know it.
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