Once DH complained about his shirts being wrinkly, I asked how would anyone take him seriously as a physicist if he were all neat and pressed? Besides, neat and pressed shirts would not go with the socks and birkenstocks look. He wasn't amused at the time, but he no longer has any delusions of having a wife who irons.
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What is your bootfitting prep?
- Thread starter MissySki
- Start date
Jenny
Angel Diva
This I love.
me too.
newboots
Angel Diva
Except in the 50s and 60s, when I grew up! Men ironing? Almost unheard of!
Actually, my father may have done it a few times, but likely only because my mother couldn't be relied on for much.
liquidfeet
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
My job as a child was to iron the sheets (yes indeed the sheets), my mother's nylon slips and nightgowns (yes you read that right), my father's cotton handkerchiefs (they were easy to iron and this actually made a little sense since they were all wrinkled; I folded them up as I ironed them so they would fit into his pockets nicely), and his whitie-tighties (yep). Anything cotton was pretty wrinkled, since wrinkle-reducing rinses and laundry sheets were nonexistent. To help with the ironing, since spray irons had not yet come on the scene, I sprinkled water on everything ahead to moisten it up. There was a glass sprinkle bottle made for this purpose. Plastic spray bottles were not in existence yet.
I hated ironing. It was not the work involved, it was my mother's irrational requirement that all those things had to be ironed. Once I became an adult I vowed I would will never iron again.
I hated ironing. It was not the work involved, it was my mother's irrational requirement that all those things had to be ironed. Once I became an adult I vowed I would will never iron again.
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Jenny
Angel Diva
I had a college roommate who melted her nylon running shorts when she tried to iron them.
liquidfeet
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
MissySki
Angel Diva
#1:
I resemble this remark deeply. @MissySki …I have also been watching the Patriot Footbeds Bootorials for extra fake knowledge.
#2: @Jilly … I hadn’t thought about taking my old boots (DUH), and I’m so glad you said that, because I do know exactly where those are going wrong. Common sense is not always common practice!
I’ve been watching/reading some of these bootorials, and find them really good. Also, I had a question specific to my feet after one and sent an email. He responded to me today, I was quite impressed with the speed and thoughtful response I received. I like that he opened with, “Yeah, it sounds like you have some very interesting feet for bootfitting…” lol.
liquidfeet
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Good luck today.
NewEnglandSkier
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Let us know what you end up with!
Analisa
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I know the OP's already headed to boot fitting, but I think I take a less traditional approach. I have an amazing fitter who I trust dearly, but I start by trying all the stock boots on. I look online and ask friends about which shops have which boots and I try to get my feet in a bunch of sizes. (I measure a 25.5, usually wear a 23.5, but I'll test out everything down to a 22.5 just in case). I try them all buckled up, but if they're a touring boot, I'll also try to explore the ROM with stairs or lunges. I go into my fitting with a list of boots and notes, and know which boots have the most potential and which ones would need which modifications.
We usually agree on something that's a little too tight out of the box, so I'll wear them around the house, begging the liners to pack out. Sometimes that's enough. Others, I'll keep a marker in my car and circle the painful spots on my feet after a tour to inform where we should punch. I have an insanely low instep, and as a former ballerina, my toes have been conditioned to a lot of abuse and can handle tightness and pinching. It's not uncommon for me to leave the store with something a little too tight to accommodate my volume. This past season, I went all winter happily skiing a pair of Zero Gs, but realized on the longer 10-14 hour days that my toes were unhappy.
Can't +1 the recommendations about going on less busy times of the season or day enough. Totally helps to get undivided attention. And I also push friends to leave appointments where they don't feel heard or trusted. There are lots of talented bootfitters out there, but they won't work magic for you if they don't communicate well. I'd rather go to a fitter with fewer accolades who wants to work together on my bootwork as a team than one who wants to minimize my participation in the process.
We usually agree on something that's a little too tight out of the box, so I'll wear them around the house, begging the liners to pack out. Sometimes that's enough. Others, I'll keep a marker in my car and circle the painful spots on my feet after a tour to inform where we should punch. I have an insanely low instep, and as a former ballerina, my toes have been conditioned to a lot of abuse and can handle tightness and pinching. It's not uncommon for me to leave the store with something a little too tight to accommodate my volume. This past season, I went all winter happily skiing a pair of Zero Gs, but realized on the longer 10-14 hour days that my toes were unhappy.
Can't +1 the recommendations about going on less busy times of the season or day enough. Totally helps to get undivided attention. And I also push friends to leave appointments where they don't feel heard or trusted. There are lots of talented bootfitters out there, but they won't work magic for you if they don't communicate well. I'd rather go to a fitter with fewer accolades who wants to work together on my bootwork as a team than one who wants to minimize my participation in the process.
elemmac
Angel Diva
I'm curious about this approach...
Most shops don't have their boot selections out on the floor for just anyone to go through and try on different sizes (at least on the East Coast). I'm okay going into a shop and asking for a couple boots or a couple sizes and letting them know I'm just looking. But, I feel bad tying up someone's time to go grab a bunch of sizes, and then put them away when I know I'm not buying from them. How do you normally approach shops and salespeople in this type of scenario?
Analisa
Ski Diva Extraordinaire
@elemmac - I'll buy from a shop if they have the boot I need and I get supportive service, and then pay my fitter separately.
I've also had enough really bad experiences with ski shops that I've learned to feel confident self-advocating. When I bought my Zero Gs, the fitter wanted to start me at a 25.5 even though I usually wear a 23.5, maybe a 24.5 in shorter length boot brands like Dynafit and La Sportiva. He pulled 2 boots in 4 different sizes, and we could've avoided it if he listened to me. I also wear a 23.5 in my Mach1s, and he argued with me that that's an appropriate size for my "race boots" (I've never raced a day in my life) and that it couldn't possibly be remotely comfortable, even though I stood there in the 23.5, with my feet flat and toes uncurled. He expressed a lot of doubt when I told him I had tried the Atomic Hawx XTD and couldn't size down as aggressively, and that the 24.5 still had a ton of heel lift. I don't feel bad about leaving the store empty handed in those cases. And I limped my last boots through the end of the season and drove to Canada for a 55% discount once MAP policies ended. I go to great lengths not to give mansplainers my sale.
For my Mach1s, I had a great experience at the shop where I bought them, but I just told them I wanted to get my feet in a pair of K2 Luvs and Nordica Promachines before I committed. I make sure to get the associate's name to ensure they get credit for any commission. A lot of times, they don't carry as many stiffer flexes, so I have to coordinate a special order and wouldn't walk out with a boot anyways. I also make sure to ask about sister stores. (For example, I bought at a Sturtevant's which has another location in the Seattle area, so I make sure to ask if they have whichever boot is on my list).
To me, boots are a much more committing purchase than skis are since there's no learning curve to a bad fit, and they lose so much value when you try to re-sell, especially if you start making modifications. Going on off-times helps make it less annoying. And a surprising number of fitters seem to get excited when a customer comes into the shop who's gone down the rabbit hole on plastics or what they need stance-wise for their style of skiing, especially for spots that tend to get a lot of first-time boot shoppers. I also do a lot of gear mentoring, wrote for Blister for a short time, and have done some sessions doing interiews & feedback sessions for a few hardgoods brands, so a small percentage might see that I have a (very small) amount of influence when it comes to the women's market.
I've also had enough really bad experiences with ski shops that I've learned to feel confident self-advocating. When I bought my Zero Gs, the fitter wanted to start me at a 25.5 even though I usually wear a 23.5, maybe a 24.5 in shorter length boot brands like Dynafit and La Sportiva. He pulled 2 boots in 4 different sizes, and we could've avoided it if he listened to me. I also wear a 23.5 in my Mach1s, and he argued with me that that's an appropriate size for my "race boots" (I've never raced a day in my life) and that it couldn't possibly be remotely comfortable, even though I stood there in the 23.5, with my feet flat and toes uncurled. He expressed a lot of doubt when I told him I had tried the Atomic Hawx XTD and couldn't size down as aggressively, and that the 24.5 still had a ton of heel lift. I don't feel bad about leaving the store empty handed in those cases. And I limped my last boots through the end of the season and drove to Canada for a 55% discount once MAP policies ended. I go to great lengths not to give mansplainers my sale.
For my Mach1s, I had a great experience at the shop where I bought them, but I just told them I wanted to get my feet in a pair of K2 Luvs and Nordica Promachines before I committed. I make sure to get the associate's name to ensure they get credit for any commission. A lot of times, they don't carry as many stiffer flexes, so I have to coordinate a special order and wouldn't walk out with a boot anyways. I also make sure to ask about sister stores. (For example, I bought at a Sturtevant's which has another location in the Seattle area, so I make sure to ask if they have whichever boot is on my list).
To me, boots are a much more committing purchase than skis are since there's no learning curve to a bad fit, and they lose so much value when you try to re-sell, especially if you start making modifications. Going on off-times helps make it less annoying. And a surprising number of fitters seem to get excited when a customer comes into the shop who's gone down the rabbit hole on plastics or what they need stance-wise for their style of skiing, especially for spots that tend to get a lot of first-time boot shoppers. I also do a lot of gear mentoring, wrote for Blister for a short time, and have done some sessions doing interiews & feedback sessions for a few hardgoods brands, so a small percentage might see that I have a (very small) amount of influence when it comes to the women's market.
MissySki
Angel Diva
I like this idea in theory, but knowing myself as i do I also tend to overthink these things and go into analysis paralysis. I know how a boot should feel, but appreciate guidance from a trusted fitter on things like flex and how my stance is affected etc. Hopefully I’ll eventually know more about my needs and be able to take more of a driver’s seat. Luckily I do feel heard by my fitter and like I have input in the whole process though!
I can definitely see this process working for you @elemmac, assuming you can find somewhere to do this. I can relate to feeling it’s difficult to walk into random shops to just try on without a potential intent to buy.
I can definitely see this process working for you @elemmac, assuming you can find somewhere to do this. I can relate to feeling it’s difficult to walk into random shops to just try on without a potential intent to buy.
elemmac
Angel Diva
Gotcha. When you said that you go back to your fitter with a list of boots, I figured you were buying from them. Thanks for clarifying.
MissySki
Angel Diva
I headed up to VT bright and early today, excitement fueling me more than sleep. The shop my fitter owns isn’t open to the public yet this season, so it’s by appointment only for fittings. This was great because I was the only one there as a customer along with my fitter and a couple employees working on stuff for racer kids who have been coming in already too.
To cut to the chase, we ended up going with the Technica Mach 1 LV Pro W. The shell truly seems to be made for my foot and is a VERY close fit everywhere. A cool feature is a tongue that can be moved fore/aft on the liner which gives me actual contact on my low instep and can still adjust further! It wraps my foot like nothing I’ve had before, maybe a little too much pressure over my nonexistent arch even, which has NEVER happened and felt so good. They are also the tiniest bit shorter than my previous boots so I was worried about that at first, but once I had them on for awhile and using power straps my toes felt good and not crunched. These are truly a low volume boot all around. We still did the usual stretching for me in the forefoot area of course. This was the boot he’d originally had in mind for me, and he was very spot on based on the fit. Nothing else came close to this one for me. We didn’t do a ton to the boot because I need to ski them to see where we need to go, but I am so darn excited to get them on snow and see how they feel! After the shaping for my forefoot they are very snug but feel really good whereas they were quite constricting beforehand. Amazing what a few tweaks can do. Here’s a zoomed in picture of my boots, notice the bump outs inside to accommodate my forefoot area! Those are the spots where I have large bony protrusions on the big toe side. This plastic shows the specific spots much more clearly than any previous boot, very cool to see the boot shaped exactly like this. And that they actually keep the shape. My Langes would tend to try and go back to their original shape with their plastic, so we had to stretch them multiple times when they would shrink back a bit each time, and they still didn’t look this distinct. This is why boots will never fit me out of the box, that protrusion stuck in boots that are pretty straight down the side cause me all sorts of trouble up front.
Oh, and the reason he wanted me in the 120 flex is because we can soften if needed. He very much disliked how much I was flexing the 105 version and some other boots in that range. I was really unsure how that could be the case given my size, and he thinks it’s my long tibias giving me the leverage versus my height/weight. He also mentioned that he has customers who are much larger in general and cannot flex a boot almost at all and then sometimes has tiny folks who just crush boots. So he doesn’t go by weight/size exclusively in this regard. I’m a little apprehensive about the stiffness to start, but agree that it’s better to start stiffer and adjust as needed than starting at too low of a point. If anyone remembers my feeling like I couldn’t flex my 110 Langes last season, he said the plastic was really tired on it and thinks I flex it just fine and it was more feeling like the output wasn’t as expected with the boot versus not being able to flex it. I guess this could be the case as even taking bolts out didn’t seem to do what I’d hoped yet I did feel like I was bending the boot.. I just wasn’t getting the expected feedback I was looking for. Since I do remember a time where those boots did feel great in that regard, I’m inclined to think it’s as good a hypothesis as any.
I’m just so curious to see how they feel on snow!! I will likely need to go to Big Snow asap!! Unfortunately I have plans the next couple of weeks at least that won’t allow it, but we’ll see after that.
To cut to the chase, we ended up going with the Technica Mach 1 LV Pro W. The shell truly seems to be made for my foot and is a VERY close fit everywhere. A cool feature is a tongue that can be moved fore/aft on the liner which gives me actual contact on my low instep and can still adjust further! It wraps my foot like nothing I’ve had before, maybe a little too much pressure over my nonexistent arch even, which has NEVER happened and felt so good. They are also the tiniest bit shorter than my previous boots so I was worried about that at first, but once I had them on for awhile and using power straps my toes felt good and not crunched. These are truly a low volume boot all around. We still did the usual stretching for me in the forefoot area of course. This was the boot he’d originally had in mind for me, and he was very spot on based on the fit. Nothing else came close to this one for me. We didn’t do a ton to the boot because I need to ski them to see where we need to go, but I am so darn excited to get them on snow and see how they feel! After the shaping for my forefoot they are very snug but feel really good whereas they were quite constricting beforehand. Amazing what a few tweaks can do. Here’s a zoomed in picture of my boots, notice the bump outs inside to accommodate my forefoot area! Those are the spots where I have large bony protrusions on the big toe side. This plastic shows the specific spots much more clearly than any previous boot, very cool to see the boot shaped exactly like this. And that they actually keep the shape. My Langes would tend to try and go back to their original shape with their plastic, so we had to stretch them multiple times when they would shrink back a bit each time, and they still didn’t look this distinct. This is why boots will never fit me out of the box, that protrusion stuck in boots that are pretty straight down the side cause me all sorts of trouble up front.
Oh, and the reason he wanted me in the 120 flex is because we can soften if needed. He very much disliked how much I was flexing the 105 version and some other boots in that range. I was really unsure how that could be the case given my size, and he thinks it’s my long tibias giving me the leverage versus my height/weight. He also mentioned that he has customers who are much larger in general and cannot flex a boot almost at all and then sometimes has tiny folks who just crush boots. So he doesn’t go by weight/size exclusively in this regard. I’m a little apprehensive about the stiffness to start, but agree that it’s better to start stiffer and adjust as needed than starting at too low of a point. If anyone remembers my feeling like I couldn’t flex my 110 Langes last season, he said the plastic was really tired on it and thinks I flex it just fine and it was more feeling like the output wasn’t as expected with the boot versus not being able to flex it. I guess this could be the case as even taking bolts out didn’t seem to do what I’d hoped yet I did feel like I was bending the boot.. I just wasn’t getting the expected feedback I was looking for. Since I do remember a time where those boots did feel great in that regard, I’m inclined to think it’s as good a hypothesis as any.
I’m just so curious to see how they feel on snow!! I will likely need to go to Big Snow asap!! Unfortunately I have plans the next couple of weeks at least that won’t allow it, but we’ll see after that.
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