Getting the gear dialed, part 1… Boots

Welcome to an ongoing series I will be posting about gear, and what I’ve found works for me.

Boots are a real challenge for me. The ski instructor in me wants boots that are warm and comfy. The skier nerd wants an extremely technical, precise fit. The freerider wants boots that won’t destroy my feet and shins if I huck and land backseat. The weight weany, gram shaving ski mountaineer wants a light boot that hikes and skins like a shoe.

While there are several new “beef” AT boots on the market now, I am cursed with a low-volume foot shaped like a chisel. I briefly considered going with a boot like the Dynafit Titan or Black Diamond Factor, but after trying them on, going so far as to size a full shell down from my normal 27.0, and still not having the buckles do anything, I gave up on that idea. Plus the weight weanie in me didn’t like how those boots “walked”.

I have come to the conclusion that a “boot quiver” is more the way to go for me.

For skiing the lifts and short sidecountry missions, I will be skiing a pair of Head Raptor RS 130 boots. These are a 130 flex, 95mm last plug boot. I replaced the stock powerstrap with a 2-ply booster strap, and will probably cut the shell a bit to soften them up, as a Head 130 flex is much stiffer than the 130 flex Tecnica boots I’ve been in for the last few seasons. The beauty of a plug boot is that it fits nobody. You must grind the inside of the boot to fit YOUR foot and your foot alone. Allows for unrivaled precision. To allow for my freerider tendencies, we (Head NW rep Deano) ground the toe box for length to help prevent the dreaded black toenail. I am super stoked, as the 98mm freeride boots I’ve had in the past have always been too wide and high volume.

For longer sidecountry stuff and pure backcountry adventures, I’ll be rocking a modified pair of Dynafit Zzeros. The Zzero is an awesome boot, my only real gripe is how crappy the stock liners are. They have a short bsl, which is great for hiking, along with awesome lateral stiffness. Unfortunately, molded and unmolded, I get uneven shin pressure and lack of heel retention out of the liners. I replaced the liners with Intuition Powerwraps, and put in a 3 ply Booster Strap. Ahh, much better fit, with no heel lift. I am also planning on putting a more upright setting on the walk mode and removing the lower buckles and replacing them with a wide buckle off a Spirit 3 or Salomon Ghost boot. I’m also on the lookout for a Krypton or other stiff tongue as an experiment, but I’ve heard that those tongues are almost too much considering how soft the lower shell is. We shall see.