Guide On: How to Buy Ski Boots

Boots in a shell fit should be no lager than 1" for a rec. skier.

Any experianced / agressive skier looking to get the most performance out of there gear , should be in a 1/2"-3/4" shell fit. I ski in an 1/8"-1/4".

Buckles help sell boots. The shell should fit your foot shape. The first clasp on the brige should be all the pressure needed to try a new boot on.

Socks make a huge difference. Heavy padding in a sock just breaks down over the course of the day. For someone who says they have a narrow heel, that means by the 6th run or so your heel starts to slide around because the thick padding in that sock has broken down expanding the volume in the heel pocket of the boot. More space, more movement, less control.

Some/most boots will need to be modified, stretched, grinded,etc, to fit well. There are only so many boot shapes out there. Sometimes you have to find the best out of the box fit, and get it worked on.

Boots are not complete without footbeds.( if your looking to be comfortable and maximize performance.)

If you are still in that 1080, you should try the heel spacers salomon has for there boots. It will help reduce volume.

Or better yet, get a fitter that can get you in a better boot.
 
to anyone who has dalbello rampages, put the arch things in. it makes them so much more comfortable and stable. i also took out all the stiffeners and little gadgets that were on them to make them softer
 
Would it be better to go to a racer store then say porters for boot fitting skills? Even if it is a race store would they have soft boots?

Btw. is it bad if the boot fitter didn't measure my foot besides the shell fit? Besides that they just asked how the boot felt, and im kind of sick hearing that.
 
race shops will still have softer flexing boots. race fitters are the best because racers need not only a boot that feels good but also a boot the optimizes energy transfer from the foot into the boot,

if he checked your shell fit you're good. if he didn't and only measured your MP size there's a problem.
 
The thing is that he didn't check how wide my foot was. He shell fit me but when it came to the wideness he just asked me how the boots felt.
 
more than likely he knew your foot would fit a specific boot shape. when i'm fitting i rarely check all around a person's foot for the width. the main problems these days is not width as just about every company makes a wide lasted boot. probably the main issue i've seen in the past couple years has been instep height. this is where problems occur since it's usually not noticeable until you've been in the boot for a couple hours and your feet go numb and freeze.

hopefully the shop has a bootfit guarantee. if they do then you should be good. if not, give them shit and go somewhere else from now on.
 
One more thing is it true that the rampage's have a wider toe box then the salomon foils? When i tried the boots on it seemed like the rampages fit better. I think this is because i have a moderately size foot but wide toes.
 
You sure about the foil? I had last years for a bit and the toebox was wayyyy too narrow for me. Maybe the whole boot was too small as well though... I had real size issues with that boot...

A question as well, seeing as some people here really know their stuff. I tried on a pair of SPK's just for shits and giggles because I need a new pair of boots next year, and from what I've heard they sounded like they might actually fit my foot. Now, they were super comfy, and I had one on one foot and my skate shoe on the other, and they felt really really good. But that's not always a good thing is it? They felt like they were tight around my foot, but I really don't know. I have a high instep, so I was worried that they might numb my toes after having them on for a while, but after the half hour my foot felt fine. I'm still going to see a fitter, but does this sound like a typical case of SPK stoke without basis? I did describe my foot in another post on this thread if anyone wants to know what my foot is like...
 
Yup. The Foil is essentially an Impact 7 boot. The Impact line is designed to be comfortable/wider in the forefoot and narrow in the heel to provide good hold. If your foot was too wide for that, you might want to check out the Lange Fluid line (yes I said Lange) since it's a fairly wide fitting boot.

My only caution to you with the SPK is if you are going to ski more outside of the park, you may want a more traditional boot. The SPK was designed to feel more like a skate shoe in that you can make subtle adjustments to your foot placement prior to take-off.

Take any advide on here with a grain of salt seeing as though none of us can actually see your foot to suggest anything. Go to your local shop and talk to a bootfitter about your options. Make sure you let them know everything about your skiing style (ie where you ski, how aggressive, etc...)
 
YES! thank you for bringing that up.....custom footbeds are amazing especially if you have wonky shaped foot. I have never been happier with my boots since i got custom footbeds a couple years ago. they are definitley worthwhile
 
So i just want to offer my two cents on going to a qualified boot-fitter. Do it! I noticed a couple of things wrong with my skiing this past season (left turns much stronger than right, uphill edge doing waaay more work than it should, not being able to quickly turn). I knew the problem was more than likely the boots so I went to hunter this past weekend and stopped at The Pro Si N' Ride on 32 right before hunter mountain. Keith Holquist is a Pedorthist and boot fitter and knows his shit inside and out. Instead of dropping $500 on a new pair of boots he made orthotics for me (around $200-250 i reckon...got a discount so i'm not sure what they list for).

I only stood in the boots with the orthotics for a few mins and The difference is night and day. My entire foot is now in contact with my boot so I would imagine I will be skiing much better once the season starts (i'll post again once i really try them).

If you feel super fatigued after skiing all day (especially your feet) I highly recommend getting a professional to look at your feet/boot.

If you're in the ny/nj/vt/ct area check him out: www.theproskiandride.com.

 
I'd like to add a little more info here if I may, even though I just skimmed through the other pages.

Shell Fit:

When you're getting a pair of boots, I don't care how experienced the boot fitter is, if he doesn't shell fit you run like hell!

While length in the boot is extremely important, so is width. Checking this is just as easy as checking length. Slide your heel so it is barely touching the back of the shell and slide your foot to the outside of the shell so the widest point (1st metatarsal) is touching the shell. Once you're there, you should have about a finger's width along the inside.

Repeat this step with the inside of your foot touching. Same rules apply.

Not only will this make sure that you have enough width in the shell, but it will also ensure that the shell is the right shape for your foot.

Punching and stretching the shell should be a last resort in every boot fit.

Another important thing that most people fitting boots rarely do is look at the ankle position in the boot. When your foot is centered inside the shell, you should have a little less than a finger on either side of your medial ankle or ankle bone. Believe it or not, for 99% of the people out there, you need a little ankle articulation in order to ski efficiently. A lot of our balance comes from minor tweaking in our ankles.

Try this. Stand on one foot and force yourself to lean a little bit, then correct yourself and stand upright. Where was all of that correction of balance coming from?

Otherwise, there isn't any control over how you want to engage a turn. It's either full gas or none at all. With a little ankle articulation, you can fine tune your skiing. A tough concept to grasp, but once you have a pair of boots that fits, you'll see what i mean.

 
K, I'm wondering something about boot terms.

Last. What does the number mean? Is it the width of the toebox? I'm trying to get a basic idea of all the potential boots by stats, but are there any stats that can actually help judge how well a boot will fit? I know you guys have given me some recommendations based on what I've said about my feet, but I'm wondering if there's any actual number to help me pick them out.
I've only seen numbers of the last of 98 to 104mm. Doesn't sound like much, being only half a cm. Does that little of a number make that much difference?
 
the last means roughly how much room is in the boot. when someone says something like "the last is 98mm" that baically means the the boot is 98mm wide in the forefoot. be careful about this though. companies base that off their "sample size" some companies use at 26.5 as a sample while others use a 27.5 in mens boots.

we can go off and say everything we know about boots but in the end, the person to give you the best recomendation is the bootfitter at your local shop
 
It does make a difference but like Pipemunky said, they are usually reffering to a sample size 26.5. A proper shell fit will answer your question, or have your bootfitter measure your forefoot. Once you have it measured though, you can narrow the possibilites down to 4-5 boots out of 30 without sticking your foot in every single one.. That in and of itself is huge.

Keep in mind that stretching, punching and grinding are always options. So if you're between boots, say one has a perfect toebox and the other has a perfect ankle pocket, I would push you towards the one with the better ankle. Toeboxes and forefoot problems are by far the easiest to fix on a ski boot. It really helps to buy from a shop that has a lot of the equipment needed to perform this work, as well as a competent bootfitter.
 
Thanks. I guess that number won't help much then, so I'll do what I was going to do: just trust the bootfitter at my shop. Too bad they already kinda messed up in that department last season...
 
im rocken some old head boots did thier thing well but in the park there not performing as well as id like them to. are there any go park boots which would be good for the odd time i get to ryde pow out in bc

im fine with any brand but some feed back would be sick
 
since iv been teaching at 16 years old, i have allways gotten my boots fited and boy does it ever make a difference. my last pare of boots i have had for 3 seasons now and they are the most confterable boot i have ever had, i also spent about a week to get them fitted with custom foot beds and foot bed platform.
 
great thread! just wanted to comment and stress the imporance of having a THIN SOCK while skiing. A thin sock will wick away all moisture, keeping your feet dry and therefore warm. The most common reason for having cold toes and feet is actually a result of wearing the wrong pair of socks.

Also wanted to comment on custom fitting boots. In order for custom fitting to actually be successful you must have the best fit possible already. If you have a boot that just isn't your fit, it never will be. The cheapest way to custom fit is to use footbeds (i.e. superfeet, downunders, Aline, etc.) The next step would be some sort of custom molded footbed.

 
Great thread! I'm getting ready to go through the process and I'm so glad I saw this thread before I got started! Thanks once again NS!
 
word

There so sick- lol

cant wait till they expand to a ski line too. Maybe they can make a ski thats good in the powda and the bumps
 
2 things:

whats the best way to have your boots adjusted to prevent shinbang?

and has anyone who had knockknees or whatever, ever changed their canting? cuz my knees tend to go in
 
1) replace your power strap with a Booster Strap and add an Eliminator tongue to the inside of your boot.

2) if you are park skiing, do not cant your boots. it will give you no benefit and will most likely be the weirdest feeling you've ever had on skis. racers have their boots canted to allow them to run a flatter ski and equalize the power in each turn.
 
question,

so, im not very rich with money but my brother skied and he gave me his older boots, there race boots, (atomic titanium B race 750lc) i'm not sure how old they are.. but since i dont really have experience with boots. but i guess ppl are saying the more flexible the better they are for freestyle? idk if mine are very flexible or not.

and when lydon was talkin bout the angle of the boot. "/" "I" back and forward etc. which is a better position for freestyle. i think i might change mine since its more of a raceing boot...?

another problem is that i think my boots made a bone come out of my heal so its poking out. i think from landing switch... and my dad doesnt want me to ski anymore because of it and i'll most likely have to get surgery because of my F$%@ing boots!!!

and sometimes when i land switch and land forward it pulls the bottom (floor) of the boots up and my heal goes up...

PLEASE HELP

thanks
 
you have two choices:

1) take the boots to a boot fitter and have him take care of your issues. i have to emphasize that this will more than likely cost you a fair bit after breaking down your problems. from my experiance, softening, uprighting and taking up volume in a boot is expensive and someone that knows what they're doing will charge you a lot.

2) buy new boots! yes i know you have a little cash issue but that is unfortunately the real solution. this may end up being cheaper than having your boots worked on. if infact you do have to get surgury to remove the bone spur on your heel, do not and I repeat DO NOT BUY BOOTS UNTILL YOU HAVE FULLY RECOVERED. if you do, you'll be in a lot of pain.

hopefully this helps. welcome to the world of ski boots!
 
imo, no matter what boot you buy, as long as you put full tilt super plush liners in them, you will have yourself a winner.
just threw some in my dalbello kryptons and i couldnt be happier.
 
Should my boots be tilted like this l or like / for park/ all mountain skiing? When they're tilted really far forward, it stars to hurt after awhile, and i feel weird when skiing.
 
Either:Step 1. look at boots of favorite pro skierStep 2. figure out what boot it is. Or.Step 1. Ask people on networking website what boots are the bestStep 2. go with which ever is in caps or repeated the most.Then:Step 3: Buy which ever boot you decided on from either of the processes above and order it online, guessing what mondo size would be about right based on the size of your skate shoe.
 
nordica supercharger enforcer vs Dalbello Krypton Pro.

Both say they are 98mm wide. Which has more room and where? I thought nordicas were meant to be super wide, but 98mm is pretty narrow. Thats the same as FT which is apparently super narrow...

anyone???
 
sorry if this is a noobish question, i have pretty small calves and only weigh about 120 pounds, and my feet are pretty narrow. What would be the best companies to fit my feet, and are there thicker liners for narrow feet?
 
lange would be a good bet.
but ultimately you'll go to get a boot fitting and your boot fitter will make these sort of calls for you.
 
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