5 Myths You Need to Know When Choosing New Ski Boots

[@ZirvmoFringe]

Great video! I have been fitting boots for over 20 years and I agree with everything here. Couple other things. Ski socks. Be sure to wear yours when you go to try on boots. I would suggest a new pair (or two) when you get new boots. Synthetic or wool. Cotton is the enemy in winter. Warm boots to start means warmer feet when you ski. Your boots should ride in the car with you. Better yet, if you have the coin, a heated boot bag. Sooooo wonderful. Heated boots! Either via foot beds or heated socks. It’s called a lift ticket, not a lodge ticket. Think about the cost of a lift ticket or pass. If you are sitting out runs because of cold feet the heat systems will pay for themselves in no time. I specialized in fitting ladies as well. Ladies, don’t listen to your husband or boyfriend. Listen to the boot fitter. The number of ladies I helped get into the right boot after they got the ones their mates recommended is staggering. And lastly, everyone should not worry too much about the cosmetics of the boot. If you are looking at your boots while you are skiing you will have much bigger (and herder) issues coming your way. Just my 10 cents.

[@SkylarRace]

This might be the most informative boot fitting video for the average skier that I've seen on KZbin. From my experience, depending on where you live it can be extremely difficult to find an expert bootfitter or even a shop that stocks multiple options in your size and flex. And I'm just a few hours away from the mountains. At the larger chain stores they seem to be very hit or miss on bootfitters and are usually part-time college kids. They have the knowledge but very much lack the many years of experience that makes a good bootfitter. This results in skiers buying boots online which is very much crossing your fingers and rolling the dice.

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Thank you! We're glad you enjoyed it and appreciate the comment!

[@russcontact]

Really good video! Nice to see this on YT. As a fitter, I’d add for everyone: be honest with your fitter! A big part of a lot of bootfits is weeding through the bravado and trying to get people into what is really best for them. Trust me dude, I see it all day, you will not bullshit me I will see right through it. Just relax and focus on what’s best for you. There’s ALWAYS someone who’s a better skier than you so who cares? Remember you just walked into an environment of people who have been around skiing a LOT. We respect honesty. I’ll help anyone regardless of attitude, but your results will be best by checking the ego at the door. Ive seen dozens of intermediate skiers spend huge time and money because they demand race boots, and ultimately they’re just worse off in the end. A good fitter wants you in a boot that will help your skiing, don’t forget that.

[@milhertime]

Agreed, I was helping a young lady last week that mentioned three times that she was a former ski racer, and her mom sitting next to her mentioned it twice in like less than 10 minutes, so I asked them, “ how come you are here? Why don’t you already know what you want??? “ They were trying to tell me they knew what I was talking about, but they didn’t want to be told that they don’t understand. I stopped what I was doing, and told them to hit the door and leave. They didn’t want to listen.

[@freeskierdude_]

this is a really great video and im not sure anyone has ever done a thorough walkthrough for newbies like this. Good Job!! also i love your guys ski selection you have in store

[@milhertime]

I’m a boot fitter in Beaver Creek, CO and you nailed everything bud! I would buy a boot from you a heartbeat!

[@wtfdinges]

Not a bootfitter myself, but something I picked up while working in a shop that employed several experts: try to fit a boot without looking at it too much. I've seen loads of people come back with complaints about their boots after overruling the bootfitters' opinion based on style mostly. It's utterly stupid, especially since they'll be covered in snow and ice after a few minutes of skiing anyway. Also: don't be afraid of fitting shoes meant for the opposite sex. We've had both women and men who were super happy with shoes that were meant for the other sex. Your foot shape may just happen to be suitable for a shoe with pink accents instead of blue accents, but who cares? The only thing to keep in mind is that the flex ratings are often slightly different, so as a man fitting a women's shoe, you may require a higher flex rating than you're used to. Lastly: the flex of a shoe is also very dependent on how tight you make the buckles and in my experience the tightness of the buckles mostly comes down to personal preference. Make sure to tell your bootfitter if you tend to close the buckles super tight or super loose. The tighter the buckle, the stiffer the boot becomes (and thus a higher flex).

[@Puzzoozoo]

As a new skier I can vouch for No 1, I've got small narrow feet so purchased some Nordica Doberman's 110 26.5 mondo - 98 mm last - from an independent fitter - Rivington Alpine - which were a performance fit, and they were crippling me, so I got rid of them and switched to a comfort fit Salomon S/Pro Alpha 100 27.5 mondo - 98 mm last - from Snow + Rock , and it was like night and day.

[@perogycook]

Nice video. Tracks with my experience, although I lean a tiny bit towards trying many boot brands. I've always downsized my boots to get a more performance fit, so I definitely notice the differences in the shell shape a bit more than some might. In the same size and supposed last, a Lange boot was excruciatingly tight, a Dalbello boot was way too sloppy and a Tecnica boot absolutely perfect.

[@krikon3314]

Hi awesome vid. Just curious what are those red volki skis in the background?

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Thank you! They are Volkl Super RS P20 skis.

[@krikon3314]

Thanks

[@virus56777]

Flex on. Comp. Done. The only boot in the world. Supper g. Freestyle. Bump n run.

[@jnblawnandlandscapellc]

I'm from the Midwest and thinking about skiing next season. Should I fly to Utah and get a proper boot fit?

[@barsaa._.]

no, you should fly out to the top of swiss mount ski shops for the proper fit

[@Mark260165]

Great Video, just wish more fitters would be like you, I have short wide feet (24, 103) and the amount of times shops in the UK have tried or even in the early days sold me Women's boots saying they are identical to men's, just with a fluffy liner. Lucky back then heated mouldable liners weren't a thing so could take them back after my feet had gone numb just walking around the house, these days once they are heated, they are yours! but hey you get a boot fit guarantee, not much use when your skiing 500 miles away and you can't ski on them, luckily there are fitters like you here in the UK, not many a few and they do go the extra mile and now I ski in my "Men's" correctly fitting boots all day long. One question, please can you give me your take on ankle flexibility and boot stiffness, how do they correlate. thanks again.

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Hey, glad you finally got into a good boot! More flexible ankles do better in softer boots, while more stiff ankles do better in stiffer boots. Within this general grouping there is a lot of nuance based on your body, skill level, and what you want out of the boot. Ankle flexibility can't solely determine your optimum flex but it's a very important factor.

[@rmschindler144]

another thing I’d like to know: I’ve had a bootfitter tell me, regarding the liner crushing my toes, that “my toes will push the liner out in time” . physically, I just don’t see how that is possible: the lateral forces of the toes are just not nearly enough; a fight will ensue, liner vs. toes, and the liner will win . thoughts?

[@PowderHouseUtah]

While your boot fitter isn't wrong, they're definitely lazy! Without a footbed your foot moves forward into the front of your boot/liner. This packs it out but also kills your toes. Another scenario could be that the boot you bought is the right fit but too tight out of the box. We even see this with just the liner, not the shell being too tight. A quick heat mold or other modifications can solve this in store and there is no 'eventual packing out' of the toe box that has to occur. So they're right, but this isn't the type of solution you'd expect from a top notch boot fitter.

[@russcontact]

That’s ridiculous. It takes me 2 min to stretch the toebox of a liner and there’s zero performance degradation.

[@perakojot6524]

How would you help a guy like me that has very wide feet, requires large volume boots to avoid the pain, can only use medium width boots after the shell is extensively widened, is a large (250lbs) expert aggressive skier that needs very high flex boots that don't exist anywhere on the market for his foot width/volume?

[@rmschindler144]

I’ve got a philosophical question I’ve been meaning to ask an experienced bootfitter, such as yourself . when I go into a store, there are brands they carry, and brands they don’t . I always feel like the bootfitter is in a scenario of a conflict of interest: he earnestly wants me to have the best boot possible, but also to sell one of the boots which the store carries . I wonder what you think of the following idea, as something that might be a trend in the future: you pay for a bootfitter’s time, at a location that carries a very, very wide selection, and you don’t buy from that location . the bootfitter is simply providing the service of her expertise . thoughts?

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Long story short, it wouldn't be economically viable! However, this is such a common anxiety around buying boots I'm glad you brought it up! Yes, a boot fitter is trying to sell you a boot they carry but they also don't want to sell you the wrong boot and have you complain because that will impact their business. Using the tips outlined in Myth 4 you can better discern whether you're dealing with a boot fitter or a salesmen who wants you to pull your wallet out. Here at Powder House, we turn people away that we don't have the correct boot for as it would be worse for us to sell a bad boot. The best thing you can do is find and vet a great boot fitter and don't stress about the particular model. There is so much redundancy across companies that it is not the most important factor. The most important factors are that the shell dimensions and flex are correctly determined in store. Also, a good boot fitting shop will only carry the models that they find are the best of the bunch for their selection.

[@dianeziemer6444]

What do you think about surefoot liners?

[@PowderHouseUtah]

They work great for some and not for others. Foam injection liners give you a great close fit, but the foam they use can be too stiff or too much for some causing discomfort. The best liners we've found and the only ones we carry are Zip Fits. They are worth every penny to invest in!

[@rickden8362]

The one point, so obvious I don't know how he missed it, a boot in a warm shop is not going to flex like it does on the cold mountain slopes.

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Great point! Ski boot flex changes slightly based on temperature at the mountian on a given day. More stiff on super cold days and less stiff on warm spring days. However, this doesn't factor into the decision making process when purchasing a new boot. During an analysis a good boot fitter can determine the correct flex for someone in store regardless of fluctuations of temperature on hill. Tying this into myth 5, it is very hard to determine a great boot for you based on feeling alone in the store unless you are knowledgable in boot fitting and/or have skied in a well fitting custom fit boot previously.

[@HS-pk8cd]

Slops? Or slopes? 😅

[@russcontact]

Yeah but the other side of the equation is you’re putting much more force on your boots on the slope than can be replicated in a store. A good fitter is thinking about that from the beginning and if needed will cover it. Also keep in mind most people don’t want the same stiffness all the time - 9am on fresh legs with 2’ of powder is different than 2pm on questionable snow with poor visibility. If someone really needs to cover everything well then they’re probably going with multiple setups and ski enough days a year to justify it.

[@rickden8362]

@@russcontact Gee...why stop there, must be a hundred more off the wall scenarios you can cook up.

[@sknowmann]

Is there a downside to using an overly stiff boot other than discomfort? I’m just curious if an expert skier who’s short and very light would benefit from going a little softer.

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Yes there's a performance downside as well as discomfort. You will get pushed into the backseat skiing a boot that is too stiff. The goal is to get a boot that is stiff enough to support you but not so stiff that you can't get forward on the boot and drive your skis.

[@sknowmann]

@@PowderHouseUtah thank you for the clarification. Great info! Do you think adjusting the forward lean angle could help reduce some of the backseat throwing?

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Yes, this is a common solution. A spoiler will definitely help you get forward. It really just depends on how much you're trying to compensate with the forward lean. A boot that is a little bit too stiff this will work for, but it's unlikely to make enough of a difference with a boot that's way too stiff.

[@sknowmann]

@@PowderHouseUtah thank you!

[@inquistive]

Over the years I have had 3 footbeds fitted for 3 different boots by 3 different fitters in 3 different shops. They felt ok in the shop but after 30 mins of skiing I was in agony so had to take them out and put original insoles back in and had immediate comfort. Any thoughts? When do people not need footbeds?

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Even more important than who is fitting your boots is who is making your insole. There are different philosophies and methods out there that can hurt or help a given person. Since you are in pain the arch is probably too high or the material used for the footbed too stiff. Another cause of footbed pain is in people with a low arch that collapses a lot when weighted. Since we build the arch up for these individuals to add support this can cause some discomfort at first as the foot needs to adapt to the support. The same thing happens with shoe orthotics. Sometimes podiatrists will only recommend wearing an orthotic for a certain amount of time per day as you adjust. However, excruciating pain that will not let up after a few days skiing is indicative of something being off with the footbed itself. As for people not needing footbeds there are two main reasons. 1. Extremely athletic, supportive feet that do not pronate excessively in a race shell fit to minimize movement. Bode Miller is one of few racers that skied without a foot bed in a race fit boot, modifying the inside of his shell to allow for a little pronation. 2. Extremely flat feet that cannot tolerate any support even after an adjustment period (I would get a podiatrists opinion). That being said, footbeds are very beneficial for the majority of skiers and foot types. The exceptions make the rule!

[@lourosenfeld6589]

I don't understand what weight and height have to do with fit

[@PowderHouseUtah]

Hey, in the optimal fit section of the video JP is talking about the overall fit that someone receives(both the fit and the flex). Weight and height have the most to do with determining your optimal flex.

[@lourosenfeld6589]

@@PowderHouseUtah I agree. It isn't clear to me since you are talking specifically about fit.

[@DominicRodiack]

If you’re heavier your weight will cause the boot to flex more as it’s creating more pressure. So heavier people may need a stiffer flex to get the same feeling as a lighter person with a softer flex.

[@BobGilman-in3wh]

Beds right on!