Massive boot problems-a cautionary tale

My boots were fitted in ellis brigham at milton keynes by a guy who you could tell really knew his stuff. they're absolutely spot on. my husband was fitted in the same shop a few weeks later by a different guy and i got the impression he wasn't quite as knowledgable. very unfortunate for my husband because he suffered all week and had to have an alteration made by skiset in resort. ironically it was the same alteration made for me in the shop during my hour long fitting.
i'd say don't buy if you don't feel the salesperson is confident.
i'd also say, meercat, put it behind you and enjoy your news boots, gloves, hat, etc :-D

Thank-you everyone for taking the the time to respond.

As skiiers, it is very important to share as much info as we can regarding the most important aspect of our beloved passion.

With regards to your comment Corona:-

"i'd also say, meercat, put it behind you and enjoy your news boots, gloves, hat, etc"


I have done just that and have now exchanged half the value of my boots for the above. The whole bad experience is now behind me, and I have moved on, butv it is my duty to share my non-partizan experience.

I cannot re-iterate the fact how crucial it is to make sure sure that you seek out a proper boot fitter, and to tell every-one you know, who does not want to waste time and money on incorrectly "fitted" boots

DO NOT BUY SKI BOOTS FROM

FINCHES
25-29 PERRY VALE
FOREST HILL
LONDON
SE23 2NE

I made this mistake and have paid the the price.

This is my opinion through my personal experience.

I am not being malicious in any way, but the fact is they do not know how to fit boots.

Of course, no one at Snow+Rock etc. are going to say it, but it makes no sense to buy ski equipment in the UK. Like many, I did this and regretted it - I don't believe that there's a price difference if you go to the right place locally (i.e. not the shop that gives a backhander to the ski rep) and surely it makes more sense to be able to take things back for adjustment to a local place from whom you've bought it? Many rental shops give a discount if you opt to buy after rental and will allow you to try out a variety of skis before deciding. Of course, if you walk into a local shop on a half-term Saturday, you may not get very good service, but choose the right time and I think that you can do better than anywhere is the UK, solely on the basis that you can and will walk back in the next day if you're not satisfied.

Of course, if you buy abroad you are not covered by the Sale of Goods Act, there is a language problem, and it's a nuisance if you need adjustment to the boot the following winter because it ties you to going to the same resort.

Spent ages getting my OH's boots sorted last winter, he was measured for fitting by Colin Martin at http://solutions4feet.com/ and advised to buy 1 of only 2 models of boot. He has small feet, and getting the correct mondopoint was proving difficult.

We headed out to Engelberg before Christmas, and scoured the ski shops. The best (and most hilarious) performance was by a large ski shop trying to fit him into a Women's model Salomon in a 26. What he actually measured up to was a 24.5 in an Atomic B100 or the Head Edge 10.8 in 25.0

It's so easy for resort shops to sell bigger sizes, after all, you put em on and they feel comfy...for a little while anyway. By the time you find out they are way too big, it's too late and you just end up buying even more new boots.
None of the stores sold mens boots in smaller sizes, we walked away and found both the boots in stock at Filarinskis in Havant.
Although the store was not involved in fitting the boot, to their credit, they were unwilling to sell the Atomic to him in a 25.0 as the shell sizing meant that he really should have been in a 24.5 IIRC. He said it was very comfy though!
Then again only 2 weeks ago, we had our 1st outing on touring skis. OH was persauaded to try touring boots, and was duly measured by the shop. Oooh he says they are sooo comfy. He lasted about 1 hour before they turned into wellies, and he had sores on his feet the next day. On looking at the boots we noticed that they were women's!!! No way does he have women's foot shape!!! Still, he shop made money on the hire so that must be okay )
He was able to appreciate Colin's skill as a bootfitter once back in his Head's :mrgreen:

I simply can't agree that the "convenience" of being able to call into a resort ski shop is an effective counter to the potential pain and suffering of badly fitted boots. Of course, if things do go pear shaped with your boot purchase, being fluent in the local language must be a great help when it comes to making your case.

Unless of course you buy the perfect fitting boots at a bargain price in resort 8)

Tony_H wrote:Unless of course you buy the perfect fitting boots at a bargain price in resort 8)

Then there is the approach that I would advocate. Do some research and buy cheap (but good condition boots) on ebay. Figure out what works for you on a local dry slope. Even if you get the perfect fit, the boots may not work in terms of performance. There's a lot more than flex index to how a boot works. Then you know what you want in terms of performance and have some experience as to what is a good fit. If you still feel the need to spend some big money on the perfect boots, at least you'll have a clue.

Trencher

Tony_H wrote:Unless of course you buy the perfect fitting boots at a bargain price in resort 8)

Well done :D How many weeks have you skied in them so far?

I'm sensing a can of worms has been opened :wink:
i've got 18 months to go back to ellis brigham as many times as i like...
Caron