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Weight, ability, boot flex index question...

Makakio

Certified Ski Diva
Can anyone offer opinion: my daughter is 14, a very solid 10-year advanced skier who prefers to actively ride her skis (versus aggressively driving them). She's 5'7", 140# and in good shape. Currently riding a Rossi Pure 60(!) we got her two seasons and 25# ago and now over-flexing it. Need to step up on the stiffness, without it turning into something that demands to be driven hard. Guidelines are super vague and without accounting for weight or height suggest advanced women go 80-90 flex index. I know all manufacturers will flex a little differently, but is this really a decent target range to start with for her size? Her feet are more or less done growing and height is about finished too. She may gain a bit more mass (maybe 10-15#), but I can't see her losing any, so if we want to keep these for a few seasons where would you all suggest we start looking in the flex world?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts!
 

gingerjess

Angel Diva
When I got my pair of boots last month, the fitter selected a pair with a much higher flex index than I expected to buy based on how I flexed the samples he brought out in a lower range, so I would probably not necessarily go in with a particular flex in mind.

Rather than suggesting particular equipment, when it comes to boots around here, the suggested approach seems to be to understand the fitting process, to know the signs that can indicate a considerate or thoughtless fitter, go to a shop other Divas have had good experiences with, and to trust the fitter's recommendation as long as they seem to be giving you the professional consideration you deserve.

This thread has some great compiled information on what to expect, and if you post more about where you're located, you might get some recommendations on bootfitters near you. You can also look through my posts; there's a recent thread where I got a lot of fantastic advice in advance of my fitting.
 

BackCountryGirl

Angel Diva
Gingerjess is right. Finding a good shop to help her chose the right last, the right cuff height, the right amount of forward lean, and the right flex is crucial, as those factors all are important. One caveat to remember is that boots are always softer in a shop than on the hill; but the range you specified is probably right, given where she was and where she is now.
 
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ski diva

Administrator
Staff member
Another thing to keep in mind is that there's no industry standard for boot flex, so an 80 flex boot from Rossi might be different from an 80 flex from, say, Head or Nordica. As Gingerjess and BackCountryGirl both said, your daughter really needs to visit a good boot fitter and work with them to find the boot that's best for her. Good luck!
 

fgor

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
When I got my pair of boots last month, the fitter selected a pair with a much higher flex index than I expected to buy based on how I flexed the samples he brought out in a lower range, so I would probably not necessarily go in with a particular flex in mind.

Same! I was intimidated by the stated flex of the boot my fitter ended up selecting for me, but he said he had no issues with how I was flexing it. I also had ankle issues which also contributed to me ending up in a stiffer boot. I never would have thought of that, or selected this boot flex for myself, but once we got the fit dialed, it's been great - no issues with the flex - so echoing what everyone else has said, a good boot fitter will be able to help your daughter so much more than anyone can over the internet :smile: good luck!
 

liquidfeet

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@fgor, are you still skiing? Is the mountain still open? I'm thinking about skiing off and on every day here. Leaves are at least turning now.
 

fgor

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@fgor, are you still skiing? Is the mountain still open? I'm thinking about skiing off and on every day here. Leaves are at least turning now.

I am! Only two more weeks of the season left now though :( we're on the cusp of being hit with a huge storm which is mostly coming in the form of destructive winds - I skied today and saw them removing some chairs from one of the lifts in preparation for it - but we're also meant to get some more snowfall out of it. Fingers crossed! I don't know what I'll do once the season ends. I've just about lived and breathed skiing for the past 3-4 months.

20200926_091759.jpg
 

fgor

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I keep saying this. I am SO envious! Please keep the skiing posts coming for as long as the chairs run.

Absolutely!! I've got a few more days of skiing yet :smile: today I spent a lot of my skiing day thinking about my feet. I've noticed that if I really focus on trying to keep the weight/pressure on the middle (and inside) of my outside foot, I stand a slightly better chance of maintaining good fore-aft balance! I don't know why focusing on what my foot is feeling helps, but it's really been useful. Lots of slush today instead of smooth pistes, and though slush is definitely fun, I had gotten quite used to hardpack, and it's just a different feeling, a bit easier to get knocked off balance!
 

liquidfeet

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Great observation about the importance of foot focus!

As you work on keeping your underfoot pressure at the arch, try lightening or even lifting the tail of the inside ski. A three centimeter tail lift will be a win. Your nimbleness on snow and confidence in your ability to maintain your balance will shoot upward. This is especially a good thing to work on when the snow is frozen hard - maybe for you now in the morning.

Why? It means you are directing all the pressure to the outside ski, where it belongs - when you're on hard snow.
 

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