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Thread: Custom Boot Fitting In Boston Area?

  1. #1
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    Nov 2010
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    Custom Boot Fitting In Boston Area?

    Does anyone have any suggestions about custom boot fitting locations in the greater Boston area? If so, let me know who particularly you recommend to speak with.

    THANKS!

  2. #2
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    Jan 2007
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    ski stop

  3. #3
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    Does Gordon Hay still work out of Wilderness House? 'Cause he rules (or at least the footbeds he made me rule).

  4. #4
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    gorden hay, kind of a kook, but knows what is going on that is for sure.

  5. #5
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    Just go somewhere near the mountains while you're there.

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steven S. Dallas View Post
    Does Gordon Hay still work out of Wilderness House? 'Cause he rules (or at least the footbeds he made me rule).
    Their shop on Comm Ave is gonzo.

  7. #7
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    Feb 2006
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    There's not much in Boston proper anymore.

    Gordon is now on his own doing the Aline Insert thing: http://www.aline.com/

    He was working out of Marblehead not long ago: http://www.wickedlocal.com/marblehea...-in-Marblehead


    For best ski shop, go to Summit Ski and Snowboard on Framingham: http://www.summitskishop.com/
    Screw the net, Surf the backcountry!

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by gameface View Post
    Their shop on Comm Ave is gonzo.
    Really? Fuck, that sucks. I remember when that place was like a giant rummage sale held in a human-scale rabbit warren, just shit stacked everywhere and wooden bins of clothes- way before the newer shop and way, way before Joe Jones. Anyone know what Jack Stevens is going to be up to now?

  9. #9
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    Feb 2006
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    Wilderness Crack House for gear heads.


    I still shake when I drive by...
    Screw the net, Surf the backcountry!

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
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    Yeah the Wilderness House will be sorely missed. I tried to stop by in October and it was a Halloween Costume (temporary?) store. So it goes.

    I've heard good things about the new shop in town, East Coast Alpine (where Ski Market was), but I have yet to scope it myself.

    Best bet is to shop around as much as you can, especially when your up at the mountains, take it all with a grain of salt, and wait for the right boot to land on your foot before you pull the trigger.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
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    Stopped into East Coast Alpine today at 860 comm ave. Seems like a quality shop, they have more space and more gear (especially good skis/boots) than Ski Mahket had, though they are probably a bit pricier to say the least.

    Spoke with the Manager (John Marsh) for about 20 minutes, seemed to know what he's talking about, and he said they guarantee their boot fit for a year. Sounds like a good place to start.

  12. #12
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    Shells still good? Intuitions in your oven. I've yet to have any luck with anything in a Boston ski shop. Motivation to go it on your own.
    Uno mas

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
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    Where the climate suits my clothes.
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    Where do you ski? You may have better luck finding a better fitter around your hill than at home. Personally I live in Malden MA and have had all my boot work done at Stan & Dan's in North Conway NH for years. Find a fitter in the mountains near where you travel frequently. That's my advice to you. All other Boston related ski shop questions, go to Summit Ski and Snowboard and SkiMD in Framingham. End of story.

  14. #14
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    Dec 2007
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    ~~BLA BOYZ~~
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    Either:

    Lionel Hering/Happy Tunes - Kingfield, ME (Sugarloaf)
    207.235.8863

    PJ Dewey/Race Stock Sports - Waterbury, VT (Stowe/Sugarbush) 802.578.3585

    Not in Boston but best I've found in New England

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
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    Boston, MA
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    I went to Inner Bootworks in Stowe and had Benny help me. He knows what he's doing. It's worth the drive to go somewhere decent. Closer by, I've heard good things about Ski Stop, never been though.

  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by JayPowHound View Post
    Personally I live in Malden MA
    Used to live off E. Boarder Road. I miss DiPietro's.

  17. #17
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    Jan 2006
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    788
    Second a trip up north... Do the boots, ski, fine tune, ski some more, come back home with fitting pair. What are you going to do on day 1 in new boots when your fitter is 3 hours away and there is a spot that bothers you?

    Having said that PJ with race stock sports in Waterbury, VT is the man. There is a thread full of NE bootfitters somewhere.

  18. #18
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    Aug 2009
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    I'll vouch for East Coast Alpin insomuch as they seem to be a competent company. I didn't shop boots (got mine taken care of at Wilderness House), but did talk ski and gear. The Comm Ave store is new, but it's their third store.

    I wouldn't do Ski Haus. Their MO is not good boot fitting, rather matching price and stock to customer. They'll sell you what they've got in stock at your price point before they try to fit you in a boot to match your feet.

    I was at Boston Ski and Tennis. They boast well trained boot fitters, but I can't totally vouch. I think they're primarily a gaper shop. Their selection so skis is exclusively on piste. Plus they only have two or three brands in stock (lange, Nordica and Technica).

  19. #19
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
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    1
    The Ski Stop in Westwood, mentioned above, has been good to me and my wife. I liked the fact that they worked with her present boots instead of automatically trying to put her in something new.

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Oct 2011
    Location
    Boston, MA
    Posts
    9
    Still no high-performance boots at East Coast Alpine... I'm 6'3", 190lbs; Sales guy put me in a Tecnica Demon that he claimed was the stiffest, highest performance boot they had... I know boots flex more in a toasty store than on the mtn, but those things were flexing like a wet noodle... What a joke.

    Quote Originally Posted by huckthe'schrund View Post
    Stopped into East Coast Alpine today at 860 comm ave. Seems like a quality shop, they have more space and more gear (especially good skis/boots) than Ski Mahket had, though they are probably a bit pricier to say the least.

    Spoke with the Manager (John Marsh) for about 20 minutes, seemed to know what he's talking about, and he said they guarantee their boot fit for a year. Sounds like a good place to start.

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