Barking Bears Are Right! Boots Are #1 Piece of Equipment!

Just purchased a pair of 07/08 Head IM 78's. While waiting for the ski shop in SLC to mount my bindings, which would take 24 hours, I left my boots for binding adjustment and rented their premium (not demo) ski package for that day.

I purchased my boots 5 years ago and they were custom fit. A little snug the first season, but with a little boot pack, it has been perfect ever since.

Well, after trying 4 different boots for the rental skis, (young man working there was very patient) I settled on the one I thought felt the best. None of them felt very good but I did not expect it as there must have been a hundred different foot types shoved in each boot. Oh well, it's just one day, I can live with it.

OMG, skiing down my first warm up run at Snowbird, I felt like a beginner. The boot which felt the best at the shop had too much play up front and not enough forward lean on the slopes. Granted, I had rental skis, but this was the boots doing not the skis. It was soo much work, no wonder why skiing is so hard in the beginning with rental gear. After less than 4 hours on the slopes, I called it a day. My calves, shins were bruised, thighs and quads were burnt, never recalled feeling this sore from skiing.

As mentioned on this forum many times before, for anyone looking to purchase skis. Custom fit boots should be your first equipment purchase!

There is a happy ending to this, I got my boots and new IM78's back for the next 4 days of skiing. This experience truly makes me thankful for my boots/gear and by the way, the reviews on the IM78 are correct, these skis rock!

ssh had a similar experience a couple years ago. He was pretty amazed that beginners come back to ski after experiencing rental boots. :

Old Boot would agree. Our first trip up to the North Carolina Mountains this winter, we got there and Old Boot had forgotten his ski boots. We were excited and rushed *frowns*. We had booked a hotel room and paid, the day before and there was a no cancellation policy. After going to the rental shop and trying a few pairs, we left with none and headed to the hotel. The hotel was no where near full, it was 9pm and so Old Boot asked if we could trade the room to the next night (not like canceling then). The front desk clerk agreed so we drove the 2.5 hours back home and went back in the morning to ski, and stayed at the hotel after skiing. If we hadn't driven back home for his boots, I doubt he'd have skied.

I had to ski on rental boots. The last few times was when I was breaking in my then new boots. I could only suffer the new boots for an hour or so before I had to get the rentals (my new boots needed considerable punching out).

With the sloppy rentals it was much more like riding my skis and balancing on them, kind of like surfing (just for reference, the only surfing I did was in Cape May on a styrofoam surf board as a kid - not the easiest thing to do, but at least it didn't hurt too much when it hit you in the head after wiping out). With my boots it's more like balancing on the snow with the skis being extensions of my feet.

Ghost, as a former surfer, I couldn't agree with you more.

Funny, with surfing you put wax on top of the board for grip and skiing on the bottom for exactly the opposite reason. Anyway, have a great ski season!

Skiing in sloppy boots is like driving a car with the power steering belt loose.

I remember when I used to ski in way oversized rental boots, it felt like my skis would move a lot more under my feet, particularly side to side. I'd be on a groomed run out and look down and the skis would look like a slithering snake.

boot fit is overrated. what about those guys in leather tele boots that still shred?


WWJS...?


what would Jer say?

Tahoegnar420, You're 100 percent correct! If I was to play Kobe Bryant 1 on 1 basketball in the latest/best Nike shoes and he played barefooted, I would still get my ass handed to me.

So I ask you to please forgive us mere mortals from doing the best we can, to become the best we can in the sport we love. Hope you have a powdery and wonderful ski season!

Bogus advice is overrated

Properly fitted boots are the platform of every good skier. You may own the most expensive skis on the planet and they aren't gonna be worth crap if you can't steer them.

It's critical that you have good boots that fit and your feet are in alignment.

your steer with your poles, not your feet. I agree they should be comfortable.

You will never know if the grass could be greener until you walk through it! or maybe I should say, the snow whiter?

Well, now we know how you ski

Meh, he has a point. Something called skill used to make good skiers.

AND I lived i Houston for a while, the grass may be greener, but you have to cut it twice a week, even in winter.

Snowsports Directors: If you don't already, having your instructors go through the rental process and ski/ride on rental equipment can be a good component of your school's training process; been doing it for years with successful results.

"Steer with poles," Tahoegnar420: beginners read these posts too, so if you are joking (snark), please say so. Bad advise can do harm.

don't know about you brah, but I steer with my poles. I was never told to steer with my boots.

Resist the bait, resist the bait.................

Oh, grasshoppers....you have so much to discover.

One can certainly balance on skis and turn with a wide variety of poor alignment. These compensations are easily visible to a skilled eye in just two turns and will limit your success in reaching higher levels of skiing. You have been lead to the water, but whether you choose to drink or not is up to you. Good luck with your skiing.

If you are happy with your skiing level and abilities then don't bother but if you want to move past Ok or "good" skiing you may want to rethink your theory?

eh how about tie rod end loose?

a power steering belt loose would just squel and maybe might make it slight harder to turn the wheel but most likely not an issue.

the cars with the best steering feel dont have power steering at all.

so yeah tierod end loose alright?

TC sniffs bait..........swims away

Ok, i'll bite on the tierod thing.

Actually, I was relating it to an old 59 Impala Convertable I had quite a few years ago. The power steering belt used to slip all the time. So whenever you turned the steering wheel, you had to keep turning it as you turned the corner. Took more effort than it should have.

Same for sloppy boots.

For your info, Porsche 911, Nissan GTR, Chevrolet Corvette Z06/ZR1, Dodge Viper ACR (top line supercars), BMW 3 Series, Infiniti G35/37 (best sports coupes) all have power steering that make them the best handling cars in the word.

Had a Corvette that that I used to drag race, one of the modifications I did was to take out the power steering. This was done to reduce weight and increase horsepower, it worked! But it sure sucked trying to make a left or a right turn! Never again.

There is a reason I have fitted boots with well made footbeds and proper alignment.

So, where can I get comfortable poles from?

Do I need to get the grips heat-moulded to fit my gloves?

I didnt say best handling I said best steering feel.

there is a difference. If you dont know that difference then well you dont really know as much as you think about cars.

also none of those cars you listed are 'the best handling cars in the world"

you corvette was hard to turn because you didnt install a rack that wasnt power steering. If you would of done that I bet it would have been alot better, also the ratio wouldnt be as quick and it would of made it better for drag racing.

although I am talking with someone who cross dress races a corvette. What a waste of a nice car.

I see your cars and I raise you an Ariel Atom.

which doesnt have power steering

Just to sing with the choir, we went skiing a few weeks and my wife took too pairs of boots that I had bought on line for a "good deal". One pair she had skied on several times, but they were too big and she was getting really bad shin bang. The second pair was too snug and her big toes were hitting into the shell causing great discomfort (not to mention very badly bruised toes). So we went to Norway Haus in Breck and she spend a couple of hours with the boot guy trying one numerous pairs of boots and getting custom inserts made. The next day she commented with amazement how the skis felt like a part of her feet and she couldn't believe that how she could actually feel the skis. That is a big leap for an intermediate to make and it is all boot fit related.

Where can I get poles with power steering?

I steer with my headlights