Went to Richelsons today and..

[Edd]

My visit went well. I'm in the market for new boots. Today's visit was to take a look at my feet, my old boots, and establish what my needs are.

Brian, who sounds like he skis quite a bit, asked a bunch of questions and took measurements. I have no long standing comfort issues. I've been skiing on Salomon X-Wave 10s for years. I dabbled in skinning a bit last year and I wanted to consider boots that would make that easier but, realistically, the vast majority of my skiing is in bounds lift served and I want to do that as well as I can.

He did a thorough inspection of my old boots and had me try on a pair of Salomon Impacts, sort of the current version of my old boots. Then he excused himself for 10 minutes or so to select boot models that he believed would fit my foot/needs. He came back with a list from several different manufacturers. I'm gonna do a bit of research on these models.

The deal there is, if you order the boot through them, the costs of the fitting after is included, and there's a 30 day guarantee to try them. If you choose to obtain a boot yourself you can go there and get fitted for a separate cost. They have a few boots there to play with but no display at all and he explained they don't officially keep an inventory...they simply order as needed.

He gave me a list of 6 boots and ranked the strict alpine models. He included a couple of alpine/AT hybrids just to think about. The list is:

Lange RX110
Atomic Hawx 110
Salomon Impact 110CS
Nordica FireArrow F2

...in that recommended order. Then he tossed on the Salomon Quest 10 and the Nordica Hell & Back Hike EXD as AT alternates. I'll take a good look and keep an open mind.

I'm estimating the process took an hour. It cost $65. It was a positive experience. I'll update this as I go.

Does anyone have experience with the listed boots? Input is appreciated.

 

[riverc0il]

It is all about fit. Last time I did a boot fitting many many years ago, I was stunned at the different fit between boots of the same size. Every company has similar "slots" for their boots. So a boot fitter can basically pull out one boot from each company for the slot you have self identified with through your stated preferences. But every company's fit is going to be different. As I recall, I got brought out boots from Head, Lange, Salomon and perhaps one other company... and it wasn't even a competition... only one boot worked for my foot.

So while including the cost of fitting with the boot is a GREAT deal, it is off NO service to you if you can't try on each of those four boots to compare. They might as well not even be in the retailing business if that is the option they gave you. Fitters can only do so much and they can do a huge amount more if they are starting with a shell and last that works for your foot.

Good luck!

 

[Edd]

So while including the cost of fitting with the boot is a GREAT deal, it is off NO service to you if you can't try on each of those four boots to compare. They might as well not even be in the retailing business if that is the option they gave you. Fitters can only do so much and they can do a huge amount more if they are starting with a shell and last that works for your foot.

Interesting take. I feel like you're right about that.

 

[Glenn]

I agree with Riv...go with what fits. I bought new boots this fall and tried a number of pairs on. I went with fit over anything else.

Another thing...buy your boots at a shop that's close to you or close to where you ski. I had my boots dialed in when I bought them. But I've gone back twice because I'm getting some shin pain. It's really easy to just drop by the fitter since he's at the mountain.

 

[billski]

They might as well not even be in the retailing business if that is the option they gave you.
Good luck!

I worked with Brian and had a nice chat (as always) with Paul. A large amount of their business is in fitting orthopedics for street shoes, various other sports, medical prescriptions. They do the whole medical insurance thing. If they were only in the ski boot business I would agree with Riv.

There is no question both Brian and Paul ski a lot. They not only said so, but you can tell by the way they question you. They even second guess my skiing problems and were spot on.

The qualifications Paul has are quite impressive, when you examine their training.Brian is almost there too. Paul had five days that week (Saturday) and planned on Sunday skiing. They attend annual multi-day conferences. This is a good overview http://bootfitters.com/ .

I doubt they would go to such a length if it was ski boot fitting only. I did listen to a local racer guy who buys his boots on the net but comes in to see Paul every time he gets new boots (annually).

 

[drjeff]

I've gotten to the point now where I try to go into the shop (of a boot fitter who I either know personally from past work or based on MULTIPLE recomendations of others) with no preconceived notions as to what brand/model of boot i'm going to get. I give the fitter and honest assesment of what my skiing style is and what I do/don't like about the fit and performance of my current boots. Then I let the fitter, based on his/her knowledge of what they've just seen of my foot anatomy and skiing style description choose what shell will work best for me and my foot, since they have way better knowledge of what shells fit what shaped feet than I do.

I used the same fitter for my lat pair that Glenn referenced in his post above, and he had a hunch what shell would be best for my foot, and he was correct, and in the 100 or so days I've been in this pair of boots now, I just needed 1 minor adjustment to thin out a small bit of padding over my left inner ankle. Starting with the shell that best fits your foot is a HUGE advantage, and that's where trusting a good fitter is a key thing

 

[Black Phantom]

They used to sell boots. And everything else.

 

[jrmagic]

As others said, go with what fits you best. I had my heart set on getting back into Langes this year but after trying on several boots, it turns out the Salomon Impact 120 fit me far better. (I was told at the start after the foot exam that this would likely be the best one)The Lange's could have worked but given that I have a very high instep, I'd always have comfort issues on long days as the flexed boot put too much pressure on the instep.

So far the Impacts are awesome with 6 days on them. the first day I skied a 1/2 day and then spent 2 hours drinking brews in the lodge and didn't ahve to open them. In my old boots I would ahve been crying.