Canting- [ex. -/+2]
rear spoiler-
[ I have one on my car, why do boots need em'?]
Flex indexx- [ex. 120-110]
sizing- [MP XY.Z] Whats with the MP?
wedge-
The time has come to start looking for new boots. I got to try some different brands on my last trip to Austria and I fell head over skis with a honey of a set of Nordica speed machines.
Boot vocab.
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Canting, In engineering that means the difference in angle between two sides, ie roads or railtracks are canted. For boots or shoes it means some people don't evenly weight across their whole foot so, for example, they're placing more pressure on the inside than the outside, if the boot is canted then that imbalance can be evened out which means you have a more equal pressure and that's an obvious advantage for edging a ski. The more canting a boot supports then the more you adjust that. A boot ought to have some canting adjustment although most people shouldn't need it and shouldn't mess around with it. A good test is to ride up a drag lift, relax into a neutral postion and just glance at the ski, you should see it running flat to the ground (on flat or non-cambered terrain), if it's not then you might need to look at the canting. On the other hand, this can be corrected with footbeds that's probably better.
Spoilers. It's a raised section more or less bolted to the rear of the boot shell, the spoiler will make it harder to lean back so far and flatters weaker skiers. Some people hate them and remove them. Worse though, they're rather dangerous and are linked to ACL injuries when a skier takes a backward fall where the ski does not release. Good spoilers will be removable and you'd be able to move them up and down.
Flex index is just a measure of how hard the boot is and how difficult it is to flex or bend, the higher the number then the stiffer it is. The stiffest boot is more suited to racing and the most flex to beginners. The index just lets you compare boots in a range and to an extent compare different makes of boots, the flex indexes aren't precise but they're not so different across manufacturers.
MP is a mondo-point, again it's just a universal sizing, in fact the mondopoint standard is regulated by ISO and is the only international standard for footwear sizing.
Wedge. Not sure what you mean, where have you seen this word used? A wedge is just a wedge, probably mostly commonly associated with forward lean wedges, that's basically a wedge placed at the rear of the boot behind the ankle which again will stop you leaning back so far in the boot.
I wouldn't get hung up on makes of boots, there's only two sorts of boots, the ones that fit and the ones that don't. Unless you've a genuine foot problem, there's a boot that fits without being mucked around with. Nearly everyone doesn't have a foot problem no matter what they self-diagnose or what a boot fitter tells them, there's a simple test, if you can walk a couple of km with some uphill and downhill in a normal pair of shoes without any modification you can be fairly sure your feet are perfectly normal. That means the best place to buy a boot is generally the place with largest range not the boutique with the celeb' boot fitter and two models of boot.
Mostly people buy boots too big, they fit for a couple of weeks, or appear to, then become too sloppy to be usable. So new boots will be a little tight, it ought to be an even pressure all around the foot not some sharp point pain though.
that's true, I should have said "can" or "can often" be corrected with foot-beds, they're not quite interchangeable.
depends where you are, luckily the cult of the celebrity boot fitter hasn't spread to the European market :D Most stores here, outside of tourist traps, know what they're about though.
I was measured and fitted with a reasonably new pair of (rental)touring boots by a retailer that you know well. They fitted so badly, that I could turn one foot on it's side on the footbed, with the boot fully fastened. The volume was such that I could pull my foot out of the boot with it done up. As I know how a boot should fit, I declined to use them.
My OH was fitted out with womens rental touring boots, during the same visit. He said he'd give them a go. They were comfy for the first hour, after which they hurt. This resulted in sore feet for several days. He was pleased to get his regular boots back on, which of course, were fitted perfectly by one of these "celebrity" bootfitters, who has a mere 20 years of bootfitting experience.
When I come to replace my boots, I know who I will trust my feet to.
No, that's about how touring boots are supposed to fit :D we just all have incredible and precise foot control :D
I'm not sure XXXsport are that good really, best range of skis in the valley but the Intersport over the road is a little better to buy from. Ideally you'd go down to the bottom and somewhere like Follomi or La Haut or further on to Stöckli. There's not many ski stations I'd buy boots from, Val d'Isere, Tignes and the Stubai are the only ones that spring to mind.
Yes, I understand that as a regular ski-tourer you have the skills of a skigod :D It's just that I did'nt fancy being able to step out of these boots whilst skinning up in them :shock:
Hmmmm, I would say, Precision in Val d'Isere, Franck in Tignes (can't remember the shop), no idea in Stubai, plus Jules at Sanglard in Chamonix. I take your point about XXXsport, but I was quite shocked at the time. They keep wanting to set my bindings to 7 as well :roll:
Iceghost, see how straightforward this ski boot owning stuff is! Unfortunately there is no one correct answer, do try and get local fitters' recommendations when you buy.
To Create or Answer a Topic
Started by IceGhost in Ski Chatter 16-Jun-2008 - 31 Replies
IceGhost posted Jun-2008
Uh oh, I think I broke'd the lift
Edited 1 time. Last update at 16-Jun-2008
Ise
reply to 'Boot vocab.' posted Jun-2008
IceGhost wrote:Canting- [ex. -/+2]
rear spoiler-
[ I have one on my car, why do boots need em'?]
Flex indexx- [ex. 120-110]
sizing- [MP XY.Z] Whats with the MP?
wedge-
The time has come to start looking for new boots. I got to try some different brands on my last trip to Austria and I fell head over skis with a honey of a set of Nordica speed machines.
Canting, In engineering that means the difference in angle between two sides, ie roads or railtracks are canted. For boots or shoes it means some people don't evenly weight across their whole foot so, for example, they're placing more pressure on the inside than the outside, if the boot is canted then that imbalance can be evened out which means you have a more equal pressure and that's an obvious advantage for edging a ski. The more canting a boot supports then the more you adjust that. A boot ought to have some canting adjustment although most people shouldn't need it and shouldn't mess around with it. A good test is to ride up a drag lift, relax into a neutral postion and just glance at the ski, you should see it running flat to the ground (on flat or non-cambered terrain), if it's not then you might need to look at the canting. On the other hand, this can be corrected with footbeds that's probably better.
Spoilers. It's a raised section more or less bolted to the rear of the boot shell, the spoiler will make it harder to lean back so far and flatters weaker skiers. Some people hate them and remove them. Worse though, they're rather dangerous and are linked to ACL injuries when a skier takes a backward fall where the ski does not release. Good spoilers will be removable and you'd be able to move them up and down.
Flex index is just a measure of how hard the boot is and how difficult it is to flex or bend, the higher the number then the stiffer it is. The stiffest boot is more suited to racing and the most flex to beginners. The index just lets you compare boots in a range and to an extent compare different makes of boots, the flex indexes aren't precise but they're not so different across manufacturers.
MP is a mondo-point, again it's just a universal sizing, in fact the mondopoint standard is regulated by ISO and is the only international standard for footwear sizing.
Wedge. Not sure what you mean, where have you seen this word used? A wedge is just a wedge, probably mostly commonly associated with forward lean wedges, that's basically a wedge placed at the rear of the boot behind the ankle which again will stop you leaning back so far in the boot.
I wouldn't get hung up on makes of boots, there's only two sorts of boots, the ones that fit and the ones that don't. Unless you've a genuine foot problem, there's a boot that fits without being mucked around with. Nearly everyone doesn't have a foot problem no matter what they self-diagnose or what a boot fitter tells them, there's a simple test, if you can walk a couple of km with some uphill and downhill in a normal pair of shoes without any modification you can be fairly sure your feet are perfectly normal. That means the best place to buy a boot is generally the place with largest range not the boutique with the celeb' boot fitter and two models of boot.
Mostly people buy boots too big, they fit for a couple of weeks, or appear to, then become too sloppy to be usable. So new boots will be a little tight, it ought to be an even pressure all around the foot not some sharp point pain though.
Edited 4 times. Last update at 16-Jun-2008
Bandit
reply to 'Boot vocab.' posted Jun-2008
Iceghost, in my experience, when a boot has "canting adjustment" what the manufacturer means is that the upper part of the boot "the cuff" can be aligned to your lower leg.
Footbed canting is serious stuff and will affect the whole way you stand on your skis.
ise, iceghost is a suitable candidate for an expert bootfitter. I know you're sceptical, but do you have bone screws in your feet?
Footbed canting is serious stuff and will affect the whole way you stand on your skis.
ise, iceghost is a suitable candidate for an expert bootfitter. I know you're sceptical, but do you have bone screws in your feet?
Ise
reply to 'Boot vocab.' posted Jun-2008
bandit wrote:Iceghost, in my experience, when a boot has "canting adjustment" what the manufacturer means is that the upper part of the boot "the cuff" can be aligned to your lower leg.
Footbed canting is serious stuff and will affect the whole way you stand on your skis.
that's true, I should have said "can" or "can often" be corrected with foot-beds, they're not quite interchangeable.
bandit wrote:ise, iceghost is a suitable candidate for an expert bootfitter. I know you're sceptical, but do you have bone screws in your feet?
depends where you are, luckily the cult of the celebrity boot fitter hasn't spread to the European market :D Most stores here, outside of tourist traps, know what they're about though.
Bandit
reply to 'Boot vocab.' posted Jun-2008
ise wrote:
Most stores here, outside of tourist traps, know what they're about though.
I was measured and fitted with a reasonably new pair of (rental)touring boots by a retailer that you know well. They fitted so badly, that I could turn one foot on it's side on the footbed, with the boot fully fastened. The volume was such that I could pull my foot out of the boot with it done up. As I know how a boot should fit, I declined to use them.
My OH was fitted out with womens rental touring boots, during the same visit. He said he'd give them a go. They were comfy for the first hour, after which they hurt. This resulted in sore feet for several days. He was pleased to get his regular boots back on, which of course, were fitted perfectly by one of these "celebrity" bootfitters, who has a mere 20 years of bootfitting experience.
When I come to replace my boots, I know who I will trust my feet to.
Ise
reply to 'Boot vocab.' posted Jun-2008
bandit wrote:
I was measured and fitted with a reasonably new pair of (rental)touring boots by a retailer that you know well. They fitted so badly, that I could turn one foot on it's side on the footbed, with the boot fully fastened. The volume was such that I could pull my foot out of the boot with it done up. As I know how a boot should fit, I declined to use them.
No, that's about how touring boots are supposed to fit :D we just all have incredible and precise foot control :D
I'm not sure XXXsport are that good really, best range of skis in the valley but the Intersport over the road is a little better to buy from. Ideally you'd go down to the bottom and somewhere like Follomi or La Haut or further on to Stöckli. There's not many ski stations I'd buy boots from, Val d'Isere, Tignes and the Stubai are the only ones that spring to mind.
Bandit
reply to 'Boot vocab.' posted Jun-2008
ise wrote:
No, that's about how touring boots are supposed to fit :D we just all have incredible and precise foot control :D
I'm not sure XXXsport are that good really, best range of skis in the valley but the Intersport over the road is a little better to buy from. Ideally you'd go down to the bottom and somewhere like Follomi or La Haut or further on to Stöckli. There's not many ski stations I'd buy boots from, Val d'Isere, Tignes and the Stubai are the only ones that spring to mind.
Yes, I understand that as a regular ski-tourer you have the skills of a skigod :D It's just that I did'nt fancy being able to step out of these boots whilst skinning up in them :shock:
Hmmmm, I would say, Precision in Val d'Isere, Franck in Tignes (can't remember the shop), no idea in Stubai, plus Jules at Sanglard in Chamonix. I take your point about XXXsport, but I was quite shocked at the time. They keep wanting to set my bindings to 7 as well :roll:
Iceghost, see how straightforward this ski boot owning stuff is! Unfortunately there is no one correct answer, do try and get local fitters' recommendations when you buy.
Ise
reply to 'Boot vocab.' posted Jun-2008
There's an Intersport up in the glacier at Stubai that's excellent, huge range of boots and test gear.
Topic last updated on 24-June-2008 at 14:38