Boots as you head into your 50s

[sorcamc]

this is all great feedback. I felt last year the stiffness of my boot was pushing me into the backseat at high speed and I had to always fight to get back forward over my skis (but only on the coldest days). I had my boots softened, but then they felt maybe a little too soft to me and I wasn't getting the rebound that I really enjoy- wouldn't it be nice if there was an app like CARV that you could put inside your boot that would do biometric scans on foot shape and how you ski and make a fully digital custom fit boot? I think I am gonna get one of my kids to make this happen..haha

 

[MissySki]

Missy, our feet sound very similar, so the timing of you buying boots is really benefiting me. I found some Mach Pro lv for a steal, One thing I can not see any video of is the "booster strap" on those pros. How does it work? looks like a cam buckle. Wanna make a quick video of how that buckle works for me?

So we actually pulled off the stock strap and installed the branded "real" booster straps. My fitter said that while Technica is trying to use their stock one in the same manner with the buckle (so more secure than Velcro), the design doesn't actually accomplish what you are trying to achieve with it. I believe that is wasn't very elastic, which is where the booster strap is (in varying options of stiffness with more or less layers). Maybe a patent issue. I can take pics and/or videos of the booster straps I now have if you are unfamiliar with them, but unfortunately the stock ones are long gone for this purpose. Actually I'm not sure now if I even took them with me after removal, I could check if they made it home with me somewhere lol. Hope this description of the difference helps, but let me know if it isn't clear or if you have any specific questions about it!

 

[sorcamc]

No that is actually perfectly clear, and on my last boots I also had the real booster strap that has some elasticity in it. I have just now tried on the new Solomon 110 low volume boot and I think it might be a little bit too big in the heel area. This is a 265 and I also ordered a 255 that should be here in a couple of days. My first impressionOf these boots is that I love the way they look and they feel really great, unfortunately a little too great and comfy for a ski boot

 

[sorcamc]

You can see that straight out of the box I have them on the tightest settings. The last doesn’t feel narrow to me at all

 

[MissySki]

You can see that straight out of the box I have them on the tightest settings. The last doesn’t feel narrow to me at all

Oh WOW, nope definitely not the right fit.

I do hate that when things are tooooo comfy it's a bad thing in ski boots!

 

[sorcamc]

Missy, do you have very skinny ankles, out of curiosity. That is one of my biggest issues. Very narrow heels, skinny ankles and lower legs

 

[MissySki]

Missy, do you have very skinny ankles, out of curiosity. That is one of my biggest issues. Very narrow heels, skinny ankles and lower legs

I have skinny heels and ankles, but wider forefoot bony protrusions, and a nonexistent instep height.. Dimensions that all don't go together at all. Everything feels nice and snug here, and the front is much better after we stretched to match the shape of my wider forefoot as that was very crunched for me to start.

 

[sorcamc]

The struggle is real

 

[MissySki]

The struggle is real

Dang! Okay I can almost touch my middle finger and thumb around my ankle, but you are well past that. So they are not as skinny as yours for sure.

I think we are pretty well matched on the instep though! Sorry for the bare foot!

 

[sorcamc]

Dang! Okay I can almost touch my middle finger and thumb around my ankle, but you are well past that. So they are not as skinny as yours for sure.

I think we are pretty well matched on the instep though! Sorry for the bare foot!

YES!!! We are practically related! You must be REALLY smart too LOLOL

 

[MissySki]

YES!!! We are practically related! You must be REALLY smart too LOLOL

Obviously!

 

[liquidfeet]

The visual analogy I like is something I saw here, where I believe there was a pic of Mikaela standing in a lift line, resting forward, letting the boot support her. My basic understanding from that was, if your boot is “supportive” (higher flex) enough, your naturally forward stance will feel comfortable. Is that a fair way to think about it?

Sure. Bend forward at the ankles with heels firmly weighted. It takes some getting used to, but for me is very comfortable when I'm relaxing as well as when I'm skiing. The boot's inbuilt forward lean needs to match the foot's dorsiflexion range of motion.

That bending forward at the ankles with the boot solidly contacting my shin is one of the things I miss the most when ski season ends. It's really comfy and secure feeling.

Note: I have a Booster Strap installed which I clamp around the liner's top, holding the liner snug against my lower leg. The original Velcro strap is gone. The Booster is inside the plastic shell, not outside it as the Velcro strap would be. The buckles hold the plastic shell tight around the liner and the Booster strap.

 

[sorcamc]

So I was supposed to get the smax 110 in both sizes, but got a call that they sold the 25.5 that I thought they had. Long story short, they had the smax 120 in 255. Keep in mind my foot measure 269, but the narrowness gets me. So, today I got the 255 in the Solomon smax 120. Look at the size difference! I put the back of my foot on a plank line. The 265 seem so much bigger!! These fit much better except my poor big toe, but that can be fixed. My old boots I had to have the liner sliced and mended for my big toe. Otherwise these feel great!! Waiting for the Mach pros to ship now and will see which boot wins.

 

[MissySki]

So I was supposed to get the smax 110 in both sizes, but got a call that they sold the 25.5 that I thought they had. Long story short, they had the smax 120 in 255. Keep in mind my foot measure 269, but the narrowness gets me. So, today I got the 255 in the Solomon smax 120. Look at the size difference! I put the back of my foot on a plank line. The 265 seem so much bigger!! These fit much better except my poor big toe, but that can be fixed. My old boots I had to have the liner sliced and mended for my big toe. Otherwise these feel great!! Waiting for the Mach pros to ship now and will see which boot wins.

Ohh yeah huge difference there!! Looking forward to your comparison when the Machs come in!

 

[sorcamc]

You know what else was truly remarkable to me? The 120s r so much more performance oriented than the 110. Just take a look at both boots side by side, bucked the same. I feel I can actually flex the 120 better and it’s probably because it doesn’t come up as high? Almost want to get the 120 in 265 to compare apples to apples!

 

[sorcamc]

I’m not sure why my pics always go sideways, but here is the front view. Amazing what a few more bucks buys in terms of fit. Look how much more slender these are around the ankle area.

 

[MissySki]

I’m not sure why my pics always go sideways, but here is the front view. Amazing what a few more bucks buys in terms of fit. Look how much more slender these are around the ankle area.

It does usually seem that the higher you go on flex the higher the material quality goes and their being more performance oriented. There looks to be a massive size difference all around between those two! Are they the same volume as well I assume?

 

[tinymoose]

It does usually seem that the higher you go on flex the higher the material quality goes and their being more performance oriented. There looks to be a massive size difference all around between those two! Are they the same volume as well I assume?

This always annoys me b/c I need a low volume, high performance boot but in a softer flex... and the options are just so limited.

 

[MissySki]

This always annoys me b/c I need a low volume, high performance boot but in a softer flex... and the options are just so limited.

At least you can soften to a certain extent though? I don't know if maybe that's the thought process in manufacturing, that high performance boots are often going to be further customized in some capacity.. and having a higher flex can accommodate a larger audience since it can be lessened with a bootfitter versus lower flex being able to be stiffened more.

 

[newboots]

Interesting! I've been shopping the Salomon lines too, and settled on the S/Pro 100. My coworker (boot guy) at the shop steered me to the Pro version rather than the Max version. I'll have to ask why.