I have been looking for my first pair of AT boots recently. They are not well stocked in most ski shops in the Boston metro-East areas. REI carries them but they won't bring out their ski gear till October. I will miss all the summer/early season sales by then. Kind of need a specialty BC shop to find a good selection. If I drive from Boston to ski country I am sure I can find plenty of boots to try, but I don't have the time for the trip.
I found a local shop, The Sports Stop, in Wenham MA that has some. I tried on the following:
K2 Pinnacle 110
Head Kore 1
Salomon QST 120
Full Tilt ?
Tecnica Cochise 120
I found out I can size down one size from my Lange RS140 29.5 boots. Really, I should be in Lange RS140 28.5 with a toe punch vs my 29.5's. I have a long narrow foot with no unusual features. If they are narrow enough and long enough, I get a great fit out of the box.
I liked the K2's and the Technica's. The fit was good and the boots felt pretty good overall. The are both heavy downhill derived boots with a walk mode and toe inserts. The Head Kore's hurt my feet around the instep and ankles. No way on those, but they were decently light. The Salomon proved that 29.5 was too big and they didn't have a 28.5 to try. The Full Tilt was just awful in too many ways, and very heavy.
The two boots I am most interested in are the Salomon SLab/Mtn and the new Technica Zero G tour Pro. The shop is ordering both pairs for me in 28.5 size and I will go back soon when they come in. I am hoping that they will be the boots for me and I get to pick the one I like the best. I don't think this shop has a certified boot fitter (I didn't ask, yet) but I know my feet well and how a boot is supposed to fit. I need to remember to do a shell fit to make sure the boots will have enough room. I assume I want a slightly more relaxed fit compared to a race boot fit.
I found a local shop, The Sports Stop, in Wenham MA that has some. I tried on the following:
K2 Pinnacle 110
Head Kore 1
Salomon QST 120
Full Tilt ?
Tecnica Cochise 120
I found out I can size down one size from my Lange RS140 29.5 boots. Really, I should be in Lange RS140 28.5 with a toe punch vs my 29.5's. I have a long narrow foot with no unusual features. If they are narrow enough and long enough, I get a great fit out of the box.
I liked the K2's and the Technica's. The fit was good and the boots felt pretty good overall. The are both heavy downhill derived boots with a walk mode and toe inserts. The Head Kore's hurt my feet around the instep and ankles. No way on those, but they were decently light. The Salomon proved that 29.5 was too big and they didn't have a 28.5 to try. The Full Tilt was just awful in too many ways, and very heavy.
The two boots I am most interested in are the Salomon SLab/Mtn and the new Technica Zero G tour Pro. The shop is ordering both pairs for me in 28.5 size and I will go back soon when they come in. I am hoping that they will be the boots for me and I get to pick the one I like the best. I don't think this shop has a certified boot fitter (I didn't ask, yet) but I know my feet well and how a boot is supposed to fit. I need to remember to do a shell fit to make sure the boots will have enough room. I assume I want a slightly more relaxed fit compared to a race boot fit.