How the Start Haus helped on the new K2 Ski Boots
There's been a lot of buzz around K2's new ski boot line for 2013-14, with some pretty exciting innovations for both alpine and backcountry ski boot design.
What you haven't read is that Start Haus owner and one of the country's best boot fitters, Jim Schaffner, had an opportunity to provide design input in the all-new K2 ski boots. Jim is well known for his experience in ski boot R&D, as well as boot fitting and performance tweaking at the highest level of our sport.
"I had my first test in the prototype boots September 2011 in South America," Jim said. "From there I was invited to be involved in some of their debrief/design improvement sessions, and the re-testing process as design changes were made. Basically providing feedback on fit, skiability and performance."
He helped K2 fine-tune the angles (forward lean, ramp angles) and dial in the fit of the boot for the best performance (specifically positive heal hold from the mid foot through the cuff).
When K2 set out to design and build their own ski boots from scratch, rather than going into an existing factory, they used their best design engineers of many of the K2 product categories to fast track the process.
"The unique aspect of working with K2 that you don't see much anymore is that all the staff, right up to the president, is an engineer or has an engineering background," Jim said.
And that meant K2 was in a unique position to tackle ski boots from the ground up.
"Nobody has been able to do this - to come from having no boot factory to having a great boot line like this out of the gate. The only way to think outside the box is to not start out with the same box everybody else has," Jim said.
By not working with the same constraints as established ski boot makers, K2 was able to create what they call an "Energy Interlock" on the spine, basically replacing the standard spine rivets with coupled pieces between the cuff and shell that stretch when the boot is flexed, and return to upright with more energy.
"You can't tell the difference from a top-performing riveted boot," Jim said.
But the real winner is the new K2 Pinnacle, a freeride backcountry boot, that can de-couple the Energy Interlock for a full walk mode - whether you're skinning in the backcountry or booting it to your favorite powder stash in-bounds, and then get the full connection of the rest of the K2 ski boot line for the way back down.
"The Pinnacle is much closer in ski-feel to their alpine boots than with other company's releasable cuff boots," Jim said. "The Pinnacle is one of the best executions of skiability with a releasable cuff."
Often when a brand-new product like this comes to market, their are still kinks to work out, but Jim said the K2 boot is ready to go, so much so that he'll be trying them on customers this winter, side by side with the best boots from the Start Haus' other established brands.
"The boot works well for a large range of feet with a design that a boot fitter can count on," Jim said. "The K2 Spyne 130 can go up against the Lange RS 130 in performance, it's good enough for the best skier on the mountain."
Jim will continue to work with K2 on their new ski boot line. If you're interested in checking out K2 Ski Boots, stay tuned to starthaus.com to see when they become available later this summer.