Salomon SPK Boots add your good/bad boot stories

harvolev

harvolev

New member
Hey hey, I've got a pair of SPK boots. Before I start just so people don't flame about it. I went to a local shop and tried on many boots and because of my wide feet we found that the SPK were the best bet. I bought them last year and skied the season on them.

They so far are the best fitting boot I've ever skied. Now because of my funny shaped feet I've had to cut out a piece of the tongue and add some foam on the opposing side to remove some pressure points. And I also found that because of the lack of full boot board, I found this boot was very cold last year. (the liner sits right on top of the shell with the exception of the heel) I decided this year to try and remedy this by adding the front of a sheep's wool foot bed under the liner.

The only problem I have left is that when i tighten them down to keep my foot locked in place my toes go numb after a run or two and i have to loosen the boot all the way off and wait for the blood to return. This is no fun because i can't hike the park when my foot starts to get sore from the numb toes.

Do you guys think I should ride my boots not as tight? or should I be move concerned with having my foot nice and locked and just give my feet breaks? How tight do you guys ride your boots?

Post up any suggestions or your boot stories either good or bad, trials and triumphs
 
I have the same problem with my feet going numb. I just got them this year so I don't know much about them. I'm interested to hear what people have to say.
 
i am going to say my spk kaos' are by the most comfy boot i have ever had i have gone 15 hours without taking them off and my feet didnt hurt the only problem i have had is the straps on both boots came off one of the studs holding them on but they still work great and that doesn't really matter
 
How tight do you tighten your boots? I'm not sure how fussy i should be with how much my foot moves in the boot.

like when you butter does your heel lift up or do u have to flex your foot to keep your heel down? or like me is your boot so tight that all you have to do is lean and your tails come up?
 
Alright i have ridden my SPK kreations only about 4 weekends this season. But i have a pretty descent review:

I rode my boots first 2 weekends, with the top buckle on the 5th place you can put your buckle in.

(2009 model, don't know if they changed buckles)

and for the bottom buckle i put it on 4rth place you can put your buckle in

then my power strap as tight as it can go on those settings.

This was good for keeping my foot place. but I'm thinking because i hadn't broke them in yet i had pain in the right side of my right foot and on the right side in my left foot. i got a kind of bang in the bottom of my foot when landing.

the 2nd day of the 2nd weekend (Sunday), i got my boots heat molded and put active foot beds in, after suggested by my friend the day before (Saturday). The foot beds adsorbed the bang in the bottom of the boot. the heat molding helped the pain in my left foot and both of my shins. i still had a pain in the right side of my right foot.

then the next Friday, i had a rail jam where i stood/walked around in for a good 6 hours in my boots, before i actually started skiing. then skied for 45 minutes, hitting rails. the walked in my boots another hour then took them off. The pain after breaking them in compleatley (the 6 hours before i skied). compleatley went away, i must say my feet hurt really bad Saturday from being in my boot so long not skiing. this resulted in me not skiing Saturday.

Sunday i had a pain really bad in the pressure pressing against my upper shin. The skiing was verry bumpy and shredded up ( because i was skiing on non groomed runs) not thinking i tightened my boots right before hitting a around 12 foot cliff with a firm landing (looked like pow) my shins hurt like no other. then my feet became numb under my foot on the way back to the lift.

i had to compleatley undo my boot on the lift for the ride up. this made my feet feel relaxed. then i got off the lift and not thinking about my problem put my boots on my usual settings (listed in first part of review) my shins still hurt in the upper part. so not thinking tightened them. this resulted in numb feet and having to undo my boot on the lift. then i though about it on the lift because i was in so much pain. I relized i should loosen my boot! so i put my top buckle on the 3rd place it can go and my bottom buckle on the 4rth (to keep my foot in place.) sure having my top part of the boot mre flexy then the top hurt the top of my foot a bit nut nothing compared to the numb feeling i had before.

The SPK is a great boot though once figured out
 
same here 15 hours is my record for having my boots on with my spk's kaos. I like mine i skied them all last year. I get minor shin bang but nothing that results in not being able to ski. I've found the spk's to be the warmest boot i have ever had, if it gets real cold i throw in some toe warmers. Tightening wise i tighten the top buckle and booster strap as tight has i can. The bottom buckle i tighten until there is a significant amount of pressure pushing down on my foot but not so much that it hurts.
 
Well i guess thats the downside of 2 buckle boots. But then again, you shouldn't need to crank buckles to keep you foot locked in place if they fit you properly.

If you aren't getting the heel hold which you want you can get a boot fitter to make some small changes to your liner to keep your foot locked in. Better option than cranking.
 
really? my kaos's are pretty damn cold. i'm lucky they packed out so much cause i need to super warm socks with them
 
If u want a boot that u will never have problems again with get Strolz Boots. Its an Austrian Boot factory. They are also known as the Mecca of skiing . They are just SICK !
 
i got 3 spots in on the toe and 2 on the shin when i butter my foot might come up a little bit but i dont really notice if i nollie into a butter the boot will flex a little but i dont butter that much anyway
 
like my kreations! comfy. wish they were a little higher flex but o well. LAst year on buckle broke off but turned out to be an easy fix
 
Yea the bogus part is that we have no legit fitters. I have a narrow heel and a wide forefoot and a high arch. the only thing the guys here suggest is a new insole and it's designed for a running shoe, i tried it out and it made my heel sit farther out from the pocket and felt like garbage. so i'm just going to fiddle around with some more foam that I've got and try to get closer.
 
I have worn my SPK's so much. I went from a Nordica Beast (Heavy as hell freeride and race boot) to SPK's. I did it because i got a good price for them and because they are lighter. I had them heat fitted and the whole shibang. They are a comfortable and warm boot. But overall there are a lot of boots that are better. The fit is real good but i don't feel that they are a good all around boot even if you do spend every second in the park. I understand that they are the most accessible find for wide footed people but they just don't back up on a performance end like i think they should. Top buckle is lame (needs to be tightened again after a few runs) and the booster strap is rather pointless. The flex is also soft for my liking. Random pieces (that red thing behind your calf) fall off and if you snap a buckle your fucked. The liner has the cord tightener thing which i do LOVE and the pull on handle and replaceable foot pads are all pluses. But if i was going to pay full price for a boot i would not buy these. However they aren't an epic fail.
 
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