Bootfitter's Notes: Bootfitting for the Backcountry

Several years ago out in the Mount Rose backcountry I had my first day of real backcountry skiing in Tahoe.

At the time the Marker Duke was introducing a new generation of skier to the backcountry, and I was part of the new class.

For that first excursion I was using my regular Lange alpine boots clicked into the Duke, I was relatively comfortable in an incredibly heavy set up, and having the time of my life. My friend and partner that day had Dynafit bindings on backcountry skis and some super lightweight touring boots.

Watching him come down 30+ inches of fairly damp pineapple express snow, one thing was obvious, the boots weren’t a great fit.

Start Haus Owner Jim Schaffner skinning up Hidden Peak on Tahoe's west shore.

Normally a very aggressive skier, he struggled to find the sweet spot in his boots to drive the ski through the snow. With downsized Lange boots custom fit for me, by me, I was not having the same problem.  However, going uphill was a different matter; with no releasable cuff I got fatigued much more quickly than I would when I got my first pair of touring boots.

I am pleased to say touring boots have improved about 100 percent since that day; companies like Scarpa and Dynafit are building backcountry ski boots with a much more precise fit than ever before, perhaps a trickle down from the major manufacturers getting in the touring game.

Five or six years ago there were almost no touring boots that offered a precise fit or decent flex - those used to downsized race boots and aggressive alpine style were basically out of luck on the backcountry boot front.

Manufacturers have stepped up their proverbial game by designing shells around a human foot far better than ever before.  Heel hold has improved immensely, and instep height no longer resembles the inside of Grand Central Station.

From a performance standpoint the heel pocket is a critical fit zone which cannot be ignored, whether you are after a world cup racing boot, or minimalist boot for a two week Alaska Range assault, heel hold is king.

Instep height is another crucial calculation for making any boot fit.  There have been several fairly popular backcountry boots that had a miserable shape in the instep, and were the bane of both bootfitters and boot users alike. If the instep fits too roomy the foot is free to move around, causing huge lack of control over the boot, and subsequently the ski.

In terms of custom fitting a backcountry boots the first step is properly molding the liner. When we mold an Intuition, we pad the foot’s various bony prominences to create a pocket, and also put toe caps on the toes, for two reasons; to create toe room and drive the heel into the heel pocket.

Over the years we have been perfecting our approach to performing punches or stretches to lightweight plastics like grilamid (used by Dynafit and Garmont/Scott) P-Bax (used by Black Diamond and as PeBax in Scarpa) and Triax (pioneered by Tecnica). Internal heating devices have proved incredibly valuable for shaping backcountry boots.

Bottom line, if your touring boots are giving you pressure, there is no reason to suffer, the plastic can be manipulated.

Backcountry skiers at the top of Hidden Peak on Tahoe's west shore.

At the Start Haus we have several backcountry ski boots that fit the foot very well, providing some really nice downhill performance, while having a great releasable cuff that offers a comfortable stride uphill.

If you have Dynafit bindings or another tech-style touring setup, the Scarpa Freedom SL has a really nice heel pocket, and a great anatomical fit with a huge range of motion for the uphill stride, as does the Dynafit Mercury.  The Tecnica Cochise 130 Pro offers a super stiff burly 130 flex boot, and tech-insert soles are available after market.  The K2 Pinnacle 130 comes with tech-inserts and has a great heel hold and really nice overall fit which parlays into great downhill performance.

If you do not need tech inserts in the toe and heel there are loads of great options, not least of which are the Lange XT 130, Rossignol Alltrack 130, and the Dalbello Lupo.  All of these boots ski very well, tour fairly well, but are not light.

With industry heavyweights like Lange and Tecnica getting into the backcountry market the touring boot, standbys like Dynafit, Scarpa, and Garmont (now Scott) have been pushed in the direction of providing boots with more anatomical shape than they ever have before.

It is now possible to get a great lightweight boot, that fits great and skis downhill with the performance you’d expect from a boot fit at the Start Haus.