the answer to "WTF is wrong with my boots?"

[mntlion]

the nordica liners might be a more open curve (for a less skinny leg?) try a hot blow dryer on the tongue and reshape it to a smaller diameter curve?

try the power strap around the liner only (not the shell)

buy some intuitions (ask intuition what model/size to get)

find some closeout langes, and use them for liner only (and send me the shells for parts)

[DudeLebowSKI]

Closeout Langes.....brilliant. You need shell parts? I have a pair of orange Freeride 120's if you want em? Sans liners of course.

[mntlion]

just need the buckles. can you unscrew them, and mail them?

[DudeLebowSKI]

PM sent.....

[camlax]

I'm heading to the bootfitter where I bought the boots tomorrow but I figured i'd see what anybody on here had to say.

I just got a pair of lange rs 130 boots and have about five days of skiing in them. they feel great and the toe and front half of my foot width is perfect. my only complaint is the heel feels a little wide and i can feel a little lateral slop in my heel. whats my best option for taking up a little volume in the heel?
im coming from a banshee pro and a seth morrison ft. the rs130 shell feels infinitely better than either of the two and i highly recommend it.

[weasel1]

What are you using for a footbed?

[mntlion]

is the heel slip,

1) side to side (this is lateral)

2) up and down

3) forward and back?

some thin "L" pads around the sides of the heel
thicker socks
footbed with deeper cup
tongue padding (to drive the heel back more)

[camlax]

is the heel slip,

1) side to side (this is lateral)

2) up and down

3) forward and back?

some thin "L" pads around the sides of the heel
thicker socks
footbed with deeper cup
tongue padding (to drive the heel back more)

1. side to side

i'm using blueprint footbeds. i've used them for years and never had a problem/would like to keep using them.

i'll ask about the L pads. thanks.

[NWFlow]

Ok got a dumb / hopefully easy boot question -- problem for me is I haven't found a great bootfitter in the area (Bozeman -- any suggestions?):

Boots I am in: BD Factors 27.0 stock liner and footbed, no custom bootwork. Prob 100-120 days on shells and liners

Problem: I believe I am slightly bow legged and this is affecting my ability to properly edge the skis. My right leg does not bother me much, but the left leg is driving me crazy. I can't easily initiate the inside edge on the left ski, and I don't feel like this ski runs flat on the snow. My skiing stance is noticeably bowed out at the knees. I sometimes get pain/sweeling in the sixth toe region.

Currently I have the boot cuff alignment set all the way out on the left leg and neutral on the right leg.

Question: In situations like these, are custom footbeds often enough to alleviate this type of stance issue or is canting going to be required? Is canting even possible on boots this old?

[weasel1]

What are you using now for a footbed? If nothing, a properly aligned footbed will certainly help. How much depends on the degree of misalignment. Basically, you want to creata platform under your foot that allows the ski to sit flat while your foot stays like it wants to, and is supported. This can be accomplished a number of ways, I would start with the footbed before shimming bindings or grinding bootsoles.

[NWFlow]

Yeah the boots are all stock components -- so the footbed/insole are just what the boots came with. I am not sure on the degree of misalignment -- I have been skiing this way for years without pain so I doubt it is super severe. I really want to get this figured out, I just am having trouble finding someone to do so in the area.

[weasel1]

Okay, so here is a ghetto approach to try to gain some insight until you can make your way to a solid bootfitter (weekend in Banff to visit mtnlion?)

Go to Bozeman Running Company and pick up some green Superfeet trim-to-fits. Take them home, remove the liner from your boots and slide the footbeds into the shells. LIne them up where they ought to be, and step into the shell. Take some cardboard, and have someone place cardboard under the inside sole of the left boot,no more than a centimeter or so in from the edge. As they build up the cardboard, or sheets of thick paperpay attention to how your foot feels. Is the weight distributing more evenly? How much is too much? Once you find an amount that is comfortable, step out and measure how much you needed built up under the boot sole to feel balanced. Now, Take some narrow strips of duck tape (a centimeter wide at most, and lay them along the bottom of the footbed on the inside, to build it up. Start with about half of what you measured under the bootsole. Place the footbed back in the boot, and step back in. look at your ankle bones...is one side closer to the shell than the other? If so, adjust the duck tape height.

This is not an ideal approach, you really need a bootfitter to fit you properly with some footbeds. But you can play with this at home to get closer to figuring out where you need to be.

[Soup Nazi]

mntlion, you are doing everyone a great service here, and I would appreciate your help. I have always had a problem with ski boots because of my extremely narrow and bony feet. I also haves tiny calves (like a Kenyan) and I wear custom orthotics. Many have told me that Lange makes the narrowest boots but I would like advice from an expert before heading to my local ski shop in Madison, WI.

[mntlion]

just about everyone makes a really narrow, boot but the stores might not bring it in (and maybe not in madison) Lange, and everyone else also make really wide boots too.

Most of the narrow boots will be called "race boots" or plug boots: this is just marketing for narrow and stiff. The narrow will work well for you, the stiff can be made softer (I take lots of nordica WC150's and make them 100 flex)

get the fit right, and make the flex what you need. dont be scared to move buckles to smaller settings too.

look for the nordica WC, lange WC, rossi radical, and fulltilt might be narrow enough too, but that is just my guess, let YOUR feet tell YOU.

[mntlion]

soup: what is the length and width of your foot? just wondering HOW narrow it is.

[nate s]

Ok got a dumb / hopefully easy boot question -- problem for me is I haven't found a great bootfitter in the area (Bozeman -- any suggestions?):

Boots I am in: BD Factors 27.0 stock liner and footbed, no custom bootwork. Prob 100-120 days on shells and liners

Problem: I believe I am slightly bow legged and this is affecting my ability to properly edge the skis. My right leg does not bother me much, but the left leg is driving me crazy. I can't easily initiate the inside edge on the left ski, and I don't feel like this ski runs flat on the snow. My skiing stance is noticeably bowed out at the knees. I sometimes get pain/sweeling in the sixth toe region.

Currently I have the boot cuff alignment set all the way out on the left leg and neutral on the right leg.

Question: In situations like these, are custom footbeds often enough to alleviate this type of stance issue or is canting going to be required? Is canting even possible on boots this old?

I have similar issues as you and have Factors as well. Before you start going crazy with canting I would really recommend you try some Sole footbeds and an Intuition liner. I use these in all my boots and they work wonders as well as make the boot lighter, warmer and more comfortable. Most stock footbeds are basically throw aways and the stock Factor liners are not that great either. Even if you end up needing other stuff done to the boot you won't regret having a better footbed and liner in there, and it may fix your problems so you don't need to do anything else.

[NWFlow]

Weasel and nate -- thanks for the help, really appreciate it. Going to try some footbeds from PHD skis?

[Soup Nazi]

soup: what is the length and width of your foot? just wondering HOW narrow it is.

Length: 26.5 cm
Width: 95 mm
Heel Width: 50 mm

[mntlion]

soup: ya, what I said. I was just checking to see HOW narrow

[Norseman]

Ok got a dumb / hopefully easy boot question -- problem for me is I haven't found a great bootfitter in the area (Bozeman -- any suggestions?):

Weasel and nate -- thanks for the help, really appreciate it. Going to try some footbeds from PHD skis?

Yep, if you wanna shell out $150 for fancy footbeds, Ph.D. is your best bet. Call a couple days in advance to make an appointment. I've been working there for the past couple of years and I'm convinced that the owner Kevin is the best bootfitter around, if you can tolerate his opinionated rantings.

[sqikunst]

Boot fitting sucks but its what keeps you going all day. I have to boot fit people pretty often and its funny cause they think its a one or two step process but it took me personally ages to find a boot and then fit it. First I had to find boots that didn't give me wicked shin bang and then when I found those boots it still took me a good three weeks of fiddling and packing out and attaching foam here and there to get it so that:

a) It didnt hurt

b) so that I didnt feel sloppy inside the boot (narrow feet). I am in a 98mm last (kryptons) at the moment...

So after reading the post it seems like a lot of the measures are really expensive.... Custom foot beds seem like a good idea but just from general complaints its been about pressure points and the like. Where do the custom foot beds besides maybe from a support stand point improve the fit? Well that question sounds retarded of course it is better but how is it better than swapping for a middle range orthopedic one.

And a question concerning really narrow 3 piece boots. I slipped into a pair of Salomon plugs from this year 96mm last and they felt soo bomber but I know I cant wear 4 buckle boots cause I get shin bang so bad when I walk it feels like shin splints. Does anyone make 96mm last 3 piece boots cause the kryptons are dope and everything but the more I ski in them the more packed out they get and slowly adding material to make up for what should I call it, lateral foot slop in the boot i.e its still too wide. The easy thing to do is just get new liners and no biggie but I am full on the limit width wise. As soon as the liners start to pack out I get slop again. What I have seen are intuition liners but can they really get a 98mm to squeeze in tight like a 96mm and then not pack out quickly.

Long question but what I really want to know is how to get some 96mm last 3 piece boots or make a 98 feel like a 96mm.

[mntlion]

1) 3 prt boots dont solve shin bang. boots that fit solve shin bang

2) Fulltilt is narrower then Kryptons. [ame="http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2168120"]full tilt vs krypton boot info - Teton Gravity Research Forums[/ame]

3) lots of boots are out there that are narrower then Krptons (claim 99, but seem wider) Just about all companies make a narrower models and wider models
salomon = ghost, falcon, X3 all 98mm
nordica = WC and pro shapes
Technica = makes 95 and 98mm
Lange = both 92, 95, 98mm in the past few years

keep in mind that "Race" boots just = narrow and stiff. You can make ANY boot wider, and softer, so find a fit that works, and make it softer if needed.

If you HAVE to have 3 prt, and need narrow, try the FT's on.

[MMP]

Great thread, and I plan to read every post but I have questions.

I just put Intuition Power Wraps in a T1 shell. I have never used a liner that had this height (last boot was a Synergy). After taking 2 runs, my calves were very uncomfortable. The liners have not been baked yet, and the footbed is stock, for now. I am 5' 8".

Q: Will I get used to this? they skied fine, but when i stopped they were very uncomfortable. Is this plainly the wrong liner? Do you recommend a brand or model of liner that will be preferable to this one?

Thanks

[weasel1]

Bake the liners. Now.

Skiing an intuition liner unbaked is like driving a ferrari without tires on the wheels....you can do it, but it sure isn't fun and makes a very strange noise.

[weasel1]

So after reading the post it seems like a lot of the measures are really expensive.... Custom foot beds seem like a good idea but just from general complaints its been about pressure points and the like. Where do the custom foot beds besides maybe from a support stand point improve the fit?

1). What mtnlion said. All of it. Esp. the part about shin bang. Chances are you have too much movement in the boots you have been trying, and I don't mean just that they were too big. Improper underfoot positioning and support can translate to vertical heel movement and shin bang. See previous posts in this thread regarding balance and positioning exercises.

2). Custom, while sometimes very helpful, is NOT necessary. After years of building and skiing custom footbeds, I now use a $55 ALINE footbed in all of my boots. Period. Check it out, get fit, save some cash. Not a shill, just a convert.