Boots for trees, moguls, 3D.....

[pack21]

Hi,

Someone could give me a recommendation, for what kind of boots and flex should i look to play between trees, moguls, bumps, 3D snow. I will not walk (mode), only resorts, i'm 5.9ft 187.4lb and will be to use with my new enforcer 93 185m.

I'm looking to Tecnica Mach1 110Flex and Speedmachine 110/100Flex

I read somewhere that to play and trees, moguls, 3D, boots should be soft in flex to allow rapid adaptations to the terrain.


I'm grateful for suggestions.

Thanks.

 

[Philpug]

You start by matching a boot to your feet, not the terrain you ski. You will see skiers skiing the terrain you are asking about in every type of boot and model on the market.

 

[Ron]

I read somewhere that to play and trees, moguls, 3D, boots should be soft in flex to allow skiers should be able to rapidly adapt to the terrain.

Fixed it for ya'

 

[ScottB]

I am a race coach and love to carve, so I ski all the terrain you speak of in 140 flex Lange raceboots. I am also a 2XL person. You can use any boot to ski what you desire. What would make the most sense for you? If you are not an ex-racer, don't bother with a race boot. Get an all mtn boot, like a Lange RX or XT series. Buying it small enough and having it fit right is critical. The flex of it is decided by your weight and height, and personal preference. You should be in the 100-120 flex range. The exact brand and model goes by what fits your foot and the closer to expert skier you are, the higher level model boot you want. Higher level boots give more precision and control over your skis. If you don't have the skills developed yet, too much precision can arguably be a bad thing. I wouldn't go below mid level model, start there and go up as you feel you need.

Softer flex helps to absorb shock in moguls, but can hurt your ability to pressure your tips to drive your skis into a carved turn. I like my 140 flex most of the time, in moguls I would probably prefer a 130 flex boot. Since I don't ski moguls all day long, I am happy with the 140 flex.

 

[Doug Briggs]

Softer for the terrain you are talking about is possibly preferred. Until it isn't.

You need to be able to adapt to terrain with flexion and balance throughout your whole body. While ankle flexion is a part of that equation, it isn't the only part. Control of the skis is also paramount. A stiffer, rather than a softer boot is going to give you more control. In the rare instance where you need more flexion in the ankle you may want to consider why you are flexion challenged. Speaking for myself it is typically that I failed to anticipate a terrain change such as skiing off a ledge I thought was 3 feet high and finding out the hard way that it was 10 feet.

 

[dbostedo]

Since no one has directly said it yet....

The most important thing is to find a good boot fitter, and set up and appointment with them.

They will determine the make and model that will best fit your foot, and your skiing. You should not go in with brands and models in mind based on reading or looking yourself... better to talk to the fitter and find the brand and model that will work best and fit best for you.

 

[Doug Briggs]

QFT

Since no one has directly said it yet....

The most important thing is to find a good boot fitter, and set up and appointment with them.

They will determine the make and model that will best fit your foot, and your skiing. You should not go in with brands and models in mind based on reading or looking yourself... better to talk to the fitter and find the brand and model that will work best and fit best for you.

 

[green26]

Perhaps it's already been said clearly: you can waste hundreds of bucks buying boots by yourself (like I did a long time ago). Go to a good boot fitter. Properly fitted boots are the most important equipment.

 

[Ken_R]

Hi,

Someone could give me a recommendation, for what kind of boots and flex should i look to play between trees, moguls, bumps, 3D snow. I will not walk (mode), only resorts, i'm 5.9ft 187.4lb and will be to use with my new enforcer 93 185m.

I'm looking to Tecnica Mach1 110Flex and Speedmachine 110/100Flex

I read somewhere that to play and trees, moguls, 3D, boots should be soft in flex to allow rapid adaptations to the terrain.


I'm grateful for suggestions.

Thanks.

For lift served skiing at your weight I would look into 120 flex boots or 130. Rather than the specific flex consider the fit and design (+geometry) of the boots and the feel on your feet.

I mostly used my Lange RS130's for resort skiing. My other boots are mostly for touring (Atomic Hawx Ultra XTD's 120 with Intuition liners).

 

[Monster]

Good advice above. My $0.02 - for what you want to do, don't try to get into a thoroughbred plug boot. If you spend most of your time in manque, bumps, and soft snow, they'll be too aggressive. You'll also want more shock relief and more fore/aft flex than they will give. Watch out for boots that claim easy in out - they'll likely have softened the top of the foot which will collapse under the cuff and let you down when you need real forward pressure, even in an all-mountain boot. Maybe a K-2 Spyne - do these still exist? That's the only model with soft tops-of-foot I've come across that actually lets you control forward flex with cuff adjustment and won't fold up under you when you want to crank a hard carve. Look for something that fits your foot and will accept a moderate to moderately high-fill liner (consult boot fitter first), chuck the stock liners (they all suck, IMHO, like the tires that come on a new car) and get a good pair of thermo-moldables that fit the shells. Make sure they're sized correctly to accept your new custom orthotics made by the best practitioner you can find. Don't buy a liner with a foam sole - make sure it's strobel, flat and thin, or you'll never be happy with your fit. Find the best boot fitter you can - maybe the same guy who makes the foot-beds? Don't believe any hype about him. Accept only the word of people who have used said practitioner and assure you their boots fit like a dream and give them no grief ever. Make sure he decks the boot boards or matches the bases of the footbeds to the bootboard contours. If you find that person, please P/M me his contact info - J/K I fit my own boots, but this guy's very good. . . Bottom line - if the shell's OK for your foot and the punches are right, everything else can be brought into line. Good luck!

 

[pack21]

Thank you all, for the opinions given.

Unfortunately in Europe there are no well-known bootfiters around the corner, there is a very good in the Pyrenees, Andorra, but will only go there in January. If i can find a boot that fits well to my foot, will buy it, and if after some use i see, i need a better fit will go to that bootfiter, make adjustments and buy moldable insoles if necessary.

I mentioned Nordica and Tecnica, because they are brands that the store closest to me (400mi) always have the full range, as well as the necessary adjustment equipment (infrared and CAS) if any urgency arises. So, if within these 2 brands i find what i need, better, otherwise i will have to go to another brand obviously.

btw, my new skis arrived today, and they look awesome!!

 

[pack21]

**Sorry, above didn't mean 400miles, but 248miles (400km).

 

[Wilhelmson]

A softer boot feels better, but if I get into a situation where I have to make those turns I don't want too floppy of a boot.

 

[silverback]

Some good advise here.

I think your plan is flawed. It is worth it to travel to a really good fitter. The best boots might not even be skiable without work.

Getting footbeds, fitting and alignment right takes time money and effort but will pay dividends every minute of every ski day and we all have too few of those.

My current boots are the best of my life and took many hours to fit and refit with a great fitter. I have about 200 days in them and hope to get more. The time and cost amortize out to be a bargain.

Remember, you marry your boots and date skis. Don't just pick up a spouse that is convenient and sort out the problems later.

Instead of getting some boots and skiing them then work on them in January, take a trip to the fitter, get your boots and plan to get some tweaks and adjustments to them in January when you go back.