Reply With QuoteCan’t give any recommendations but I would say don’t buy in resort. Got mine from Snow and Rock who were pretty good but I went back after the first week of use for some tweaks (free of charge).
Been skiing 5 times now, so no expert my any measure, but I have been considering buying my own boots this year.
Anyone got any recommendations in the midlands area that offer a good fitting service without paying daft money?
I note there is Ellis Brigham at Tamworth and Lockwoods at Leamington that seem to get decent reviews, anyone used them?
I guess there is the buy in resort option to consider as well…
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Can’t give any recommendations but I would say don’t buy in resort. Got mine from Snow and Rock who were pretty good but I went back after the first week of use for some tweaks (free of charge).
I would say definitely buy in resort! You can have them fitted and then take them back as many times as you need for tweaks after having actually skied on them.
I never understood the point in buying ski boots not in a resort.
Your feet/legs will also be a slightly different size at altitude.
So, if you can, I would also recommend buying in resort. But price/availability will be much higher/harder.
I bought my wife's boots in resort and they did a great job. I would advise getting a foot bed fitted as well at the time. The rest of the boots we've had done in Snow and Rock and again they seem decent but it is always down the the person doing it. You will find that the boot packs down after a few days of actual skiing that you can't really replicate buying in the UK. So that again will affect the fit and hence why being able to get further adjustments made in resort is not that bad an idea.
Buying boots is a challenging process and it’s down to luck on the quality of the fitter.
In resort has the benefits stated above but it’s time consuming and you might prefer to be skiing rather than having boots fitted.
I have gone both routes and would probably go UK on balance but make sure you get a proper fitter not the Saturday boy.
I bought a high end pair of boots off the bay at a fraction of RRP. I then bought a new set of inners from a ski boot supplier locally and they moulded them to my feet.
Total cost well below half price. The original owner had used them for one holiday.
Good luck and enjoy
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Originally Posted by deepdivedaz
if you go down this route have a look at the Skibay group on Facebook… a bit race focused but lots of good secondhand gear.
Funnily enough we had it done in the evening :-) Tbh neither the UK fitting nor the resort were greatly different in time taken. Depends on the range they have really....or the ones they want to push!
I just remembered that when my wife and I were having our boots fitted at intersport in Ischgl, we were treated to wine and beer whilst we were stood motionless whilst the inners were fitted.
The evening? Après-ski!!
Point is it is a bit of chore having boots fitted.
Had my 1st boots fitted UK whilst working away. I did question the size, they said a size 7 was required (I’m 10 size shoes) but thought they are the experts so be it. Went skiing a couple months later and the boots crippled me after 2 hours, seriously crippled to the right foot so much so I couldn’t ski for rest of day and ended up with the hire boots thereafter
When I got home I went to a local ski shop to see if they could tweak them, they couldn’t believe the size I was given and said at a push an expert would size similar, wearing no socks and doing a few minute slalom race. They said they couldn't tweak them and I would have to have a new pair fitted to correct size. They also knew the owner of the shop up in Scotland and gratefully they spoke with him to explain my scenario who then offered a full refund. I was very lucky as the boots were £300+, so in answer to your question, I would certainly consider a holiday ski slope purchase, as it happened my next ski trip with the newly fitted boots were a dream fit and skied for 6 days trouble free
Thanks for the replies. Probably more unsure than before!
Deffo see a benefit in resort fitting, probably cost me a stack and could be a time consuming exercise.
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Best place to ask this question is the Snowheads forum. The answer you’ll get from most people there is go to Solutions4Feet in Bicester. I’ve not bought there but I’ll probably buy my next pair there even though I live in the North of Scotland! Buying boots in resort can be okay, I’ve done it, but you do end up losing valuable ski time.
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I can recommend Solutions4feet in Bicester.
They supplied and fitted me with a pair of Langes a couple of seasons ago.
You’ll pay a little extra for the fitting but well worth it IMO.
You can’t just walk in, you will need to make an appointment for a fitting slot.
I think I’ll give Lockwoods at Leamington a punt. It’s close enough and they seem to have good reviews.
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Another recommendation for Solutions4feet from me!
Just picked up my new Atomics from them after a 2 hour fitting process. They are regarded as the best in the UK. They even have French and Swiss locals come out to the UK to have Colin & Keith fit their boots. That says it all really.
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Speak to Colin at Solutions 4 feet in Bicester. His ski boot fiiting knowledge and service is second to none in your area.
I say this as someone who worked in the Ski industry for almost 20years and have known Colin for a significant number of those. He has helped many friends and customers of mine
Yes, you will pay a bit more for his expertise, but yourskiing will benefit heaps and your holiday enjoyment will be worth the spend
John
Thanks John, I reckon that’s the answer.
Just hope I can get an appointment in the next few weeks.
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Great, I'm glad I could help. Clothing was my speciality, but Colin's name in the industry is second to none. Let me know if you need any clothing advice
John
Investing in your own boots, as you’ll have correctly gathered, is one of the more useful steps in the early stages of skiing. Brilliant move.
Over the decades with my own and helping many friends with their boot fittings the one rule I have learnt to stick to is…
If the boot setup you are being offered doesn’t immediately feel super comfy and completely right, reject it. Don’t listen to bs from the fitter about them needing time to wear in/soften up. You have maybe 1-2 weeks a year to enjoy your skiing and being crippled by a pair of boots for even a couple of days whilst they submit (which they might not) is just not worth it. Any vaguely uncomfortable tight spots are likely to be really horrid after a morning of bumping around. There will be a way of choosing a boot shell/liner/footbed combo that feels like a slipper right from the word go, even if you end up in stiff race inspired boots. It all just feels perfect when it’s right.
Hope you have a good experience, this chap in Bicester sounds great!
OP, If you have skied 5 times you are still a beginner basically, do not get suckered in to talk about expert levels of flex etc and be realistic and honest as to your expectations and what you want to do. Let’s face it most of us want all day comfort and don’t want to be carving turns at our full ability all the day, we probably couldn’t anyway. I have skied a lot, I can ski most things, but I am happy enough in a touring boot with a walk setting as I ultimately am a lazy skier and want all day comfort, I am not interested in a 130+ flex boot. Get fitted, take your time & don’t go getting delusions of being Marcel Hierscher. Enjoy the comfort of a well fitted soft flex boot. Even my beginner 80 flex boots would see me get down black runs okey and even now I can ski everything in walk mode when I forget to click back into ski mode. Just aim for comfort.
A lot of sense there (although I suspect it'll fall on deaf ears in TZ).
For years I wore a pair of Dachstein V3 Pros (I bought them because at one point it looked like those God-awful rear entry boots - if you didn't ski in the 1980s you won't have a clue what I'm talking about - were going to take over the market and they wore holes in my shins!), which were basically what all the ski-instructors in Austria wore, so high end, stiff boots, as close to race boots as you could buy on the recreational market.
I always found them comfortable, but I replaced them a few years ago with some mid-range boots (mainly because the liners were getting compressed and thin and my feet were getting cold!), which are notably softer.
What I found though, was that I actually ski better in them, because it's a lot less effort to push my weight forward in the boot and therefore the tip of the skis bite better on more of the turns.
M
Breitling Cosmonaute 809 - What's not to like?
[mention]Plake [/mention] [mention]yumma [/mention] [mention]snowman [/mention]some great advice there. Thanks a lot.
I’m deffo a beginner, and probably will always be! No desire to get anything other than comfortable boots that fit well and will support my skiing.
Not having been through the process before the point about fitting like a slipper is something I will keep in mind. All the boots I have rented up to now have fitted like divers boots, so to consider the possibility of comfort is quite alien.
Got an appointment booked on the 22nd November with Keith at solutions 4 feet. Taking the good lady with me to Bicester as a sweetener, no doubt the boot cost will be eclipsed by her jolly in the shops!
I learned to ski relatively late in life (early twenties) and the main advice I'd give is not to get boots that are too big. I agree they mustn't be painful, but they need to be snug. There is little worse than trying to initiate a turn and your foot moves (inside the boot) but the ski does nothing, especially as a beginner when you start to find your edges. I ended up packing out a pair of boots with 3 pairs of my thickest Smartwool mountaineering socks once - awful experience, but nice warm toes!
I am now at the point where I can ski anything, ice, deep powder, I even ended up help skiing in Canada for a week a few winters back, although that was definitely at my limit!
Buying my own boots was the single best investment for sure. My flat feet meant I always had volume above the foot in rental boots. I did Click+Collect on 5 pairs of boots to Snow+Rock in Bristol, and got lucky with one of the pairs (also the cheapest - total win). Very good fitter that day too.
I'm a UK10.5 in all shoes, my downhill boots are 27.5 (UK8.5). They are snug, but ski brilliantly and are not painful. I do loosen them to walk around the restaurant at lunch, but not to relieve any great discomfort. I also have a custom footbed (100% worth it) and a 2mm volume reducer (I have flat feet).
My touring boots are a touch bigger at 28.0 (UK9) so I can wriggle my toes a bit, but also ski on them all day quite happily.
I had some boots very badly fitted by Snow+Rock in London, which were size 29.0. Fine for walking, horrible to ski.
My wife has endless foot problems, ski boots were no different. We ended up going for a full custom boot from Surefoot in Whistler. Eye watering price, and she was still in store the next day in tears because they were so tight, and sat next to another chap who was also there the previous evening. It cost her a half day of skiing in the end to get sorted.
We then did a few weeks in the Alps and they still weren't right, so we took them to the London store, who binned them and started from scratch with a bigger shell.
Moral of the story - it all seems to be down to the boot fitter on the day, and the customer knowing what they should feel like. The guys in Bicester sound great, but be prepared to pop in to a ski shop on your holiday to push out any pressure points if you find them after a few hours skiing. Good luck!
... if you're in the South or Rivington Alpine if you're in the North. Both excellent.
Went to solutions4feet in Bicester on Monday.
Fitting process was comprehensive and I was in the shop for about an hour and a half with Keith.
Just over £500 for boots, fitting consultation and moulded footbed.
Not a cheap job, I guess I’ll find out in a few weeks if they are any good.
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You'd be nuts not to buy them in resort. They'll tweak them as much as you need. And a great fitter will make all the difference. If you're Val d'Isere, go to Mattis Sport. The woman in there is a genius and rated very highly by people who 4-5 months a year in ski boots.
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