New boots, now or later?

[Little Lightning]

Yesterday I was talking to Kim Walker of Outdoor Divas and mentioned how much I loved my Head Dream Thang 10's. I told her I skied 71 days on them last year and they were still feeling great.

Kim's response was they recommend 100 days on a pair of boots and then it's time for new ones. If that's true then I'll need new boots mid season.:(

The pros of buying mid season will be taking advantage of mid season sales, the cons are I take a risk of not finding my size. I could try to get them online but then I don't have the services of having a good boot fitter like Mike at Outdoor Divas.

My original Head's I got on sale mid season from Outdoor Divas. The only reason they still had my size was because the boots were delivered late in the season from the company.

Kim suggested I buy early and alternate boots. BTW, my size 22 sells quickly. So what would you do?

 

[Jilly]

Spend the money, they gotta fit and be comfortable, or you WON'T ski!!

 

[skigrl27]

I bought my boots before last season and had them custom fitted. Best thing I could have done for my skiing - ever. I skied about 80 days last season and I certainly needed time to adjust to the new boots, but now they are perfect and I love them.

 

[Little Lightning]

Jilly, you're right but I'm feeling incredulous right now because the boots fit so well and it's hard to believe they may not make it though the season.

One thing to note is that I have not had to use the various adjustments features available on the boots. However, there is no guarantee the features will work for me as I have bony feet, (according to the fitter, swiss cheese feet, with lots of spaces) and on other boots moving buckles only puts more pressure on my bones.

Head has a new version of the Dream Thangs, 10.5, and I'll have to see what changes they've made, if any.

 

[pinto]

I think maybe that figure is low. The FAQs on bootfitters.com says 200 to 300 days is the limit. I'm sure some people can wear through a pair of boots in 100 days (or less), but I think you'd need to be quite rough on them.

Because you found your holy grail of boots, and you have an unusual size, I would definitely keep your eyes open for a spare pair for the future. But honestly, I wouldn't worry about your current ones "expiring" at 100 days.

 

[Jilly]

Jilly, you're right but I'm feeling incredulous right now because the boots fit so well and it's hard to believe they may not make it though the season.

And I think that's the issue. If you think you can wait?? I had over well over 100 days on my Rossi Saphir's before I changed. I'm actually going to use them to teach on here at home. Leaving my Xena's at Tremblant. Well I will bring the Xena's to the Summit!

 

[altagirl]

Wow - only 100 days on a pair of boots seems crazy low to me. And I'm an advocate for spending all the money it takes for good boots!

I would think 300 days minimum, unless you're not skiing many days a year and those 100 days are spread out over 4-5 years and they're aging.

So I would say no. Wait until they start to deteriorate. I cannot believe you'd need new boots this year - maybe start thinking about it next year.

 

[Jilly]

Now that I think about it, it had to be 4 years and over 170 days on those Saphir's. Two years at 35 days and 2 years at 50 days. So yah, less than or equal to 100 is not high. And the only real reason I changed was the liner had holes in it. I wear/eat my shoes from the inside too! Sweaty feet!

 

[Little Lightning]

Thanks for your thoughts. I was thrilled with 71 days, 100 days sound great and 200-300 sounds awesome.

Historically, I get 50-60 days on a pair of boots. I'm not sure why this is but most likely due to my very prominate ankle and venicular bones. When the liner starts to give, the boots get sloppy in the heel and as I tighten them they put pressure on the venicular bone and ankle bone. The bone ends up bruised and swollen and takes a long time to recover. Once this occurs no amount of adjusting helps. Padding the heel helps for a little while but it's a temporary fix.

The Dream Thangs are the 1st pair of boots that seem to match my foot and not irritate my bones. However, at the end of the season I did start seeing some redness on my venicular and ankle bone which makes me wonder if this bone thing will start again soon.

I looked at Head's website and it looks like the only changes they made was a better system to put them on. Great for me because it's a chore to get into ski boots.

When the new boots arrive at Outdoor Divas I'll go in and try them on. Hopefully, I'll be able to compare new with old and evaluate the status of my boots. I wonder why there isn't some type of evaluation system of boots to help the consumer determine how much life the boot has left?

Most likely I'll buy the new boots and either store them or alternate them in with the old boots. I like the idea of alternating them. I'll be assured of dry boots every ski day.

 

[PowDiva85]

the dream thangs will be the same boot this season. they changed up the graphics a bit but the fit is the same so if you decide you want to have a second pair you will be safe buying the same boot!

 

[dloveski]

Boot Care and Replacement

Thanks for your thoughts. I was thrilled with 71 days, 100 days sound great and 200-300 sounds awesome.

Is it the boot shells or the liners that need replacement---because, I say the shells are pretty durable for years. The design and technology on the shells does not change that much from year to year.

The liners are what pack out. Most women, unless they are doing a lot of hiking, are probably going to get more wear out of the liners than big heavy guys. And boot dryers, after every day's use, are going to prolong the life of the liner.

After 3 years in my Solomon Rush 9's, the shell is in great shape, the custom liners are a bit packed out, so I snagged some Rush 8's at the REI Garage Sale for 50.00, and will interchange the liners with the custom orthotics.

I just don't know that many skiers who replace their boots very often (100-200 days---that's every season for frequent skiers).