Narrowest last touring boot

[detrusor]

Wife needs new touring boots, insisted on doing it herself. Made bootfitter appointment and came home with dynafit radical pro. Pretty wide last. She skis in 93 last alpine boots with no need for punching or grinding. Very low volume foot. Remarked “they seem pretty roomy” and hasn’t skied them yet.

So, instead of a 104 mm last…what female touring boot is the lowest volume in a 1200ish gram boot that is relatively stiff but not a 4 buckle?


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[SoVT Joey]

Roxa w 115. Or a full tech boot like the atomic backland or the new tecnica would both work.

[PNB]

I have also (male) slender feet and most boots are too wide for me.
Currently I´m quite happy with the Salomon MTN Lab and a thicker Palau liner (after a few attempts to live with the original one)
I also added a butterfly pad above the heel to help locking it down and it works fine.
My other favorite boot is the Lange XT 130 LV (the white one, not the tour'ing thing) one size down.
If I´d tell you that I occasionally made up to1200m elevation with it (and the Marker Tour) you might think I´m a bit odd, so I´ll keep it for me .

[September]

Call SKIMOCO in Cottonwood heights.

[kootenayskier]

It’s a common issue. My wife skis in 95mm Dobermans (with the rivets removed) and 4 buckle Lange XTs were/are the only thing she could find with a Low Volume (97mm) fit, but they’re still sloppy. My feet are also relatively narrow, and I found the now discontinued Salomon SLab XAlps to be great lightweight narrow (and low instep) fit boot. I see that the Arc’teryx outlet has a few pairs of the almost identical Procline boots available in a few smaller sizes.

[adrenalated]

I've asked this of multiple bootfitters as I also have very narrow feet and the answer has always been Atomic.

The Hawx Ultra XTD 115 comes as small as 22.5 and so does most versions of the Backland.

[detrusor]

Skimo is the place that sold her the boots. Still pissed that she had to make an appointment to try on boots and left with some of the roomiest


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[Marshal Olson]

Definitely have her look at the Backland Carbons (not ultimates, which are skimo race boots).

Pretty sure you can still get the TLT Speedfit Pro boots too (NOT the TLT 7/8 or TLT-X). The Speedfit are essentially new graphics on the old TLT6 shell, which would also be a low volume option.

[AlpiNord]

I've asked this of multiple bootfitters as I also have very narrow feet and the answer has always been Atomic.

The Hawx Ultra XTD 115 comes as small as 22.5 and so does most versions of the Backland.

Interesting. Scarpas have been a good fit for my narrow heel. Atomics have a narrower fit, eh?


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[Benneke10]

Pretty surprised they put her in the Radical. They are lower volume than the stated last suggests but not that low volume. The Hoji boots were great for low volume feet even though the forefoot was wide because the instep and ankle were quite snug, but they made the Radical more roomy.

The Hawx Ultra XTD is the lowest volume mainstream touring boot. The Zero G Tour Pro is slightly roomier all around but has a full vibram sole which is better for scrambling. The Hawx XTD 130 and ZGTP shells weigh about the same, the only difference comes from the liners (Tecnica uses a very wimpy liner). I believe both are lighter than the Radical Pro but walk a little worse.

Unfortunately there aren't many truly low volume lightweight touring boots. Scarpa Alien/F1LT/F1XT/F1GT are pretty low volume but have weirdly roomy heel pockets and insteps. The old Salomon X-Alp/Arc Procline were very low volume all around but don't ski that well, haven't tried the new Salomon. The Dalbello's are pretty low volume, as are the first gen Skorpius (ignore the wide stated last, they fit narrow feet pretty well). The newer Skorpius is supposedly higher volume. The Atomic Backland boots are narrow but have a low cuff height so I don't think they would ski that well but others get along with them.

[gregL]

Pretty surprised they put her in the Radical. They are lower volume than the stated last suggests but not that low volume. The Hoji boots were great for low volume feet even though the forefoot was wide because the instep and ankle were quite snug, but they made the Radical more roomy.

The Hawx Ultra XTD is the lowest volume mainstream touring boot. The Zero G Tour Pro is slightly roomier all around but has a full vibram sole which is better for scrambling. The Hawx XTD 130 and ZGTP shells weigh about the same, the only difference comes from the liners (Tecnica uses a very wimpy liner). I believe both are lighter than the Radical Pro but walk a little worse.

Unfortunately there aren't many truly low volume lightweight touring boots. Scarpa Alien/F1LT/F1XT/F1GT are pretty low volume but have weirdly roomy heel pockets and insteps. The old Salomon X-Alp/Arc Procline were very low volume all around but don't ski that well, haven't tried the new Salomon. The Dalbello's are pretty low volume, as are the first gen Skorpius (ignore the wide stated last, they fit narrow feet pretty well). The newer Skorpius is supposedly higher volume. The Atomic Backland boots are narrow but have a low cuff height so I don't think they would ski that well but others get along with them.

Dedicated low volume touring boots (non-4 buckle) don't really exist, and I don't expect that to change any time soon - the market is too small to entice boot manufacturers to spend the development money.

Best bets are to get an Atomic Backland or Scarpa F1 series boot, size down as much as possible (dropping one Mondopoint size narrows the last by 2mm), and punch the toe if needed (be forewarned, neither boot punches all that well for toe length due to carbon reinforcement in the Grilamid, so don't expect miracles - plus Scarpa says specifically not to do it).

[adrenalated]

Interesting. Scarpas have been a good fit for my narrow heel. Atomics have a narrower fit, eh?

Night and day difference in heel retention between the Maestrale series boots and the Hawx XTD.
I haven't tried on the F1 series boots but my understanding is better heel hold than Maestrale, worse than Hawx.

[Joey Joe Joe Junior Shabadoo]

Definitely have her look at the Backland Carbons (not ultimates, which are skimo race boots).

The Backland Carbons are what I have and that was what the bootfitter said was probably one of the narrowest AT boots. I love them but their downhill performance is about what you'd expect from a single buckle boot, although that wasn't my main criteria when shopping for them. I'm also on my third liner in as many seasons, but I'm a big guy (6'4, 230lb) and I'm skinning 2-3 days a week for work all winter so I'm sure your wife will get better mileage out of the liners.

[AlpiNord]

Night and day difference in heel retention between the Maestrale series boots and the Hawx XTD.
I haven't tried on the F1 series boots but my understanding is better heel hold than Maestrale, worse than Hawx.

Yeah, I was incorrectly thinking the Hurricane & 4-Quattro vs Maestrale. They're tighter than the Maestrale.

[jmedslc]

Skimo is the place that sold her the boots. Still pissed that she had to make an appointment to try on boots and left with some of the roomiest


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that outfit seems to be dwindling in terms of their customer care and overall service delivery. they have a stronghold on the market and i would think (as i am sure you did) that they will come through with a proper boot choice and fit. pffft

[Benneke10]

that outfit seems to be dwindling in terms of their customer care and overall service delivery. they have a stronghold on the market and i would think (as i am sure you did) that they will come through with a proper boot choice and fit. pffft

In their defense, they are just starting to ramp up to full capacity and training new staff since its not even real winter yet.

[September]

Skimo is the place that sold her the boots. Still pissed that she had to make an appointment to try on boots and left with some of the roomiest


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Fair enough.

[McShortyShorts]

I could have sworn that Salomon was talking about releasing a pretty stiff 96mm-lasted touring boot this season, but I haven't seen anything like that in the shops. Was I imagining things?

[mntlion]

K2 mindbender is 98mm, but odds are not light enough

New K2 dispatch is 100mm but maybe OK for wieght..


if you CAN, go for fit first and weight second....

[altacoup]

I could have sworn that Salomon was talking about releasing a pretty stiff 96mm-lasted touring boot this season, but I haven't seen anything like that in the shops. Was I imagining things?

https://www.backcountry.com/salomon-...ing-boots-2022

They released these, but they aren’t low volume. Did notice in the latest 50 episode that Cody was wearing a similar boot in a different color. Maybe a narrower/stiffer version or just the pre release version from last year?

[gregL]

I could have sworn that Salomon was talking about releasing a pretty stiff 96mm-lasted touring boot this season, but I haven't seen anything like that in the shops. Was I imagining things?

Salomon released the MTN Summit Series this year, it is nominally a 100mm last but feels roomier. No one is thinking about making a 96mm touring boot.

[gregL]

K2 mindbender is 98mm, but odds are not light enough

New K2 dispatch is 100mm but maybe OK for wieght..


if you CAN, go for fit first and weight second....

K2 Mindbender 98mm last feels like everyone else's 100mm last; Dispatch 100mm last feels like a 102.

[Eluder]

No experience with Skimoco other than ordering small parts.

There is every chance the fitter sucked, but touring boots are hard to sell unless the purchaser trusts you to make the choice and can overlook features. Dudes generally get caught up on the features and want the wrong boot, ladies generally just want it comfy and warm.

The Radical will walk better than the competitors in the showroom, and the Hoji Lock system is slick. Its also important to note that unmolded Intuition/Ultralon liners always feel tighter and distort the true fit. Maybe OP's wife really wanted them, and the salesman let her leave with what she wanted?

I always put small volume feet in Hawx Ultra XTDs and tried to upgrade to intuition liners if the customer was actually touring in them. The first gen liner sucked, and the second gen liner got heavy.

[I've seen black diamonds!]

Something to keep in mind that might not be obvious during a bootfitting:

Hawx Ultra XTD is lower volume than most but also runs shorter than other similar boots. I prefer to use lower volume boots to get good heel/ankle hold, then punch the forefoot as needed to accommodate my widish foot. The Hawx were almost great for me with low volume Intuition liners, but they were just too short even with punches for length. Skiing down was fine, but my toes would eventually start crying out on longer days of skinning and especially kicking steps. They have a pretty aggressive heel cup that pushes your foot forward a bit on a longer stride. With minimal toe room this led to pain for me.

[Eluder]

Something to keep in mind that might not be obvious during a bootfitting:

Hawx Ultra XTD is lower volume than most but also runs shorter than other similar boots. I prefer to use lower volume boots to get good heel/ankle hold, then punch the forefoot as needed to accommodate my widish foot. The Hawx were almost great for me with low volume Intuition liners, but they were just too short even with punches for length. Skiing down was fine, but my toes would eventually start crying out on longer days of skinning and especially kicking steps. They have a pretty aggressive heel cup that pushes your foot forward a bit on a longer stride. With minimal toe room this led to pain for me.

Very true