 Poster: A snowHead
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I am kind of covering old ground here so sorry if you get deja-vu!
I was thinking of buying boots out in Chamonix, but I am not sure i can locate a master boot fitter.
A friend has suggested ProFeet in London (http://www.ifyouski.com/gear/profeet/)
What do people think of getting boots in a place where you cannot ski them and get changes made as you need?
Do you think a few hours in one of the snowdomes would give enough feedback on where the boots may rub?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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fragglerock, There are pros and cons to both buying at home or in resort. You can read them all at various places on the net and possibly on this thread shortly. The point of this is to vouch for Profeet, if you decide to buy before you travel. I had my boots fitted there a couple of years ago. They were first class from first to last in all facets and I've never had a single problem with my boots. At the time I paid £99 for the fitting on top of the cost of the boot and it was worth every penny. I've skied six weeks in these boots and I can't tell you what a bloody pleasure it is to say goodbye to boots which don't quite do it for your feet.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I bought my current pair of boots in resort, 2 days before the end of the holiday. I had them adjusted once, but on the next weeks skiing, I had to have 4 different things done to them (costing almost as much as the boots  ).
Buy in resort, but on the 1st day of the hols...then you have time to get them adjusted for free.
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4thefunofit, did Profeet do much work on your boots themsleves, of was it mostly on the footbed to correct any alignment problems? I have very wide feet and have had many problems with ill-fitting boots over the years, despite lots of attention from decent boot-fitters. If ProFeet are any good I might give them a try.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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rob@rar.org.uk, I'd say 25% of the time work was on the boots (a little packing and blowing out in certain spots) with 75% devoted to the footbeds (including alignment). In fact a good deal of the time was spent on alignment. I didn't need to ask about footbeds or request them, it all came as part of the fitting service. Like you I have wide feet and have been in agony at times in the past. My current boots give me no problems at all.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Hmm it does sound good...
I wonder if they gave any advice if you had hadproblems on the slope?
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fragglerock, footworks in Chamonix are rated very, very highly. You'll need to book though.
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fragglerock, not so much for when I was actually on the slope. One of the disadvantages of buying from home is that the bootfitter isn't at the end of the run back into town. However they did tell me to run off to Milton Keynes or some other slope and try them out. If there were any problems then they'd tweak them. Following this they'd tweak them again after I'd been out to a resort. This was at no extra cost and is all part of the fitting package.
As it happens they never saw me again. I never did make it to MK but gave them as good a thrashing as my legs could stand in Tignes. They were as good as I hoped for and better than I expected, given the grilling previous boots had given my feet. I'll be wearing this current pair 'till they fall apart then go back to Profeet for the next pair.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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fragglerock, I would say the most important thing is to be able to use the boots as soon as possible - either on snow or plastic. You should expect some modifications to be made to the boot to get a good fit. The best place is snow, I find that I need the toe-box stretched, and that's easier to judge when the liner has compacted a bit, ie after 2-3 days. The time spent is worth it - my last pair of Langes (retired this year), lasted 10 years of snow and plastic use.........
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fragglerock, I bought my boots in the UK but went to the MK Snowdome and found them uncomfortable. I got some custom footbeds made and they were perfect after that. However, jumping round the house in my boots before going to the Snowdome wasn't enough to tell me that the boots weren't quite right.
Therefore I'd recommend buying them where you can test them on a slope. 
S
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| Snowy wrote: |
Therefore I'd recommend buying them where you can test them on a slope.
S |
That doesn't really work so well, most decent boot have some sort of custom fit liners now, so for obvious reasons the stores can't let you test them.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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We bought our boots in Snow & Rock (Manchester), with a guarentee that they would fiddle around with them free of charge through the season and if they couldn't get them to work refund about 75% of purchase price.
As it turned out we went to Saas Fee over New Year and Mrs H was in absolute agony - a very nice man in the local ski shop suggested thermally moulded insoles and these worked miraculously, although at a price. I got the impression that as long as the original fitting was broadly correct then the local boot fettlers could finish the job.
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You know it makes sense.
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fragglerock the insoles were about £50 but well worth the money - involve standing on a weird machine thing!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I was going to a have custom footbeds made wherever I got the fitting done. From what i have read they are never a bad thing.
Only slight problem is they can make your foot ache if you are not used to the control, but I wear Superfeet (not custom) footbeds in my day to day shoes anyway.
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Poster: A snowHead
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One comment made to my wife at S+R was that the heat moulded footbeds weren't bad but, if you need support, they can be a bit lacking in that department.
Basically you stand on them on a hot machine and they mould themselves to your feet - great - unless your feet 'collapse' a bit; in which case you get inserts for 'collapsed' feet.
For that reason, they suggested Superfeet for her.
I already had heat moulded insoles and if you look at mine they're as flat as a pancake!! No arch support whatsoever (which could explain why my feet still ache after a while).
Indeed, if you read up on the Profeet site, it says: Orthotics are made by a podiatrist who takes non-weight-bearing plaster cast moulds of the feet in a 'neutral' foot position. The casts are then sent off to a lab where the orthotic device is made often using rigid materials and additional 'posts' are added to correct the alignment of the joints.
Thoughts?
David
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I have orthotics which are made for my regular shoes as well as heat moulded footbeds for my ski boots. The orthotics for my shoes were made my a podiatrist when my feet were in a non-weight bearing position (I was lying face down on a bench at the time), while my ski footbeds were made on the usual heat machine at S+R. I sometimes think that I want footbeds that are in the middle of both methods - sometimes I feel as if I'm not getting enough support from my ski footbeds (resulting in aching and tender feet, especially under the arches), and sometimes too much support from the orthotics in my regular shoes (feels like the orthotic is pushing up into the arch of my foot).
My orthotics are mainly used to address excessive pronation of both ankles, although I have to say I don't really notice this once I'm trapped into ski boots. However, the effect of the orthotics when wearing regular shoes is quite pronounced. Perhaps I should give Profeet a try to see if they are any better than S+R...
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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fragglerock,
Deb & I are booked in to Profeet on the 6th Nov. Deb's is getting new boots & I'm having a fitting check on the boots I got in June and probably some custom in-soles (using Superfeet's at present) so I'll let you know how we get on.
We were recommended to them by Warren Smith whilst on his course and by a former S&R boot fitter who was also on the course and got her boots from there.
If you do decide to go with them I'd recommend booking quickly as I'm told they already have a good few weeks waiting list for fittings.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| spyderjon wrote: |
fragglerock,
Deb & I are booked in to Profeet on the 6th Nov. Deb's is getting new boots & I'm having a fitting check on the boots... |
How did it go?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Well he's selling boots in Buy and Sell.......... 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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fragglerock,
Go to Profeet, do not pass go, do not collect £200.
Absolutely superb. I won't bore you with all the details but trust me, just book an appointment, pay the money & leave with your boots - orange ones in my case!
Book an early afternoon appointment, get there an hour early & check in, then go to the local cafe 100m down the road for lunch which is also great.
Both Deb & I had new boots & we've both skied at Casteleford this morning & are extremely happy. Deb was a particularly difficult case having a classic girlie 'A frame' posture and having virtually all her weight supported on her right leg. The difference between our static stance weight loading print outs & our post fitting weight loading print outs is truly amazing - but then I said I wouldn't bore you with the details so you'll have to discover all this technical stuff for yourself.
BTW, allow plenty of time as you'll be there at about two and a half hours, two hours minimum.
I've spent this afternoon with a friend who was being fitted for boots from a major UK ski boot retailer & there's absolutely no comparison. My last boots were from the other major UK ski boot retailer & there's also no comparison.
Now I'm not certainly not saying that these retailers are bad, in fact far from it having now experienced both of them> However Hamish & his team at Profeet are light years ahead in terms of the technology used & their bio-mechanical knowledge etc. I learnt more in the first hour there than in four hours of combined fitting time with the other two!
Granted, Profeet are a little more expensive in that there's a £99 fitting charge which includes their own custom footbeds (which would be £40-45 elsewhere), however the extra cost is well worth it.
Profeet's boot prices are equal to S&R's catalogue prices and my boots were £11 cheaper than EB's price. SCGB members get a free Profeet boot bag with each pair of boots purchased if they have their card with them.
There's certainly no hard sell at Profeet. We went for new boots for Deb and a 'health check' for me as I felt that my 'new in June 04' boots "just weren't quite right". It would have been very easy for them to have said that I needed different boots. In the end it was me who opted for new boots as opposed to a relatively easy and inexpensive shell tweak to my existing boots, thus leaving the shells unscathed for the future benefit of a fellow snowHead at a bargain price (see Buy & Sell section).
Overall, Profeet are totally recommended.
(Hamish & Chris, if you read this, I'll see you in Verbier on the 10th Dec & you owe me a beer  )
Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Mon 8-11-04 21:05; edited 1 time in total
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ise, is Footworks still a going concern? I stopped bythere in September but they appeared to have closed down. There were notices for a liquidation sale in the windows.
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Yet another Profeet recommendation I'm afraid.
I had a problem of nervousness with skis flat, crashing out of schuss's and tumbling off drag lifts. I also seemed to be the only one going up drag lifts with skis flat and tips pointing together. So ended up at Profeet at the beginning of last season and the difference is incredible.
Had footbeds and some additional packing added to the liner, well worth the money can't recommend them highly enough.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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There already seems to plenty of good advice here, but for what it's worth, S & R (Chertsey branch at any rate) have a podiatrist in store. My wife went there before last season to see if anything could be done to improve her comfort (off centre knees make skiing awkward to put it mildly), and they were excellent. Her comfort and technique have improved no end. Not only do they look at the need for custom footbeds, but also specialist canting if needed.
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Mark Hunter, that's amazing, a podiatrist should be holding a degree in Podiatric Medicine to merit the title. I'm surprised S&R can afford to employ one given the margin on boots and the employment opportunities open to holders of a DPM.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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spyderjon, wow great write up! I am going to give Jonathan Hedges a ring tomorrow and see what he says.
Living in Newcastle makes the trip down etc. a further cost/complication.
I will definitely have to pass go and collect at least £200 I think
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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One of the bits of kit that Profeet had that I hadn't seen before was a foot pressure measuring device - a plate that you stood on which then showed on a plasma screen (for you) & PC screen (for the fitter) an outline of your feet which was coloured differently according to the amount of pressure the different parts of your feet was applying. Red was for high pressure etc, very much like the thermal imaging camera pictures you see on TV.
You did this barefoot in both a normal standing & in a skiing posture plus throughout the fitting process with your boots on. Profeet save all the images on their client database for future reference & also give you a print out. The work they did on your boot set up is also saved, ie canting, heel risers etc.
This device is truly amazing. Deb had virtually all her weight supported on her right foot with only a small proportion supported by her left heel, even though she thought she was standing equally balanced. No wonder every time she goes to the bar to buy a drink she ends up in the ladies!
In my case I could instanly see the difference my custom footbeds made in evening out my weight distribution. It also highlighted the need for a small heel lift in my left boot & again you could see the benefit on screen.
Interestingly, neither S&R nor EB have spotted the need for a heel riser, but instead adjusted the canting in my left boot! I queried this with Chris at Profeet before he fitted the lift & he said that my alignment was fine. However, just to show me, he dialled in some canting adjustment to the left boot and this just added more problems to my pressure distribution & certainly did not cure the problem. Quickly taking out the canting & adding the lift did cure the problem.
To me the benefit of this system is that you can actually see the effect of the fitting process rather than just trusting in the 'black art' of the fitter. The difference that this also made to both our confidence levels the next day at Xscape was also amazing.
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fragglerock, I live in Durham and could do with a trip to profeet too. I love my boots but they're not quite right.
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You know it makes sense.
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More on Profeet from the SCGB Website. They are using a Skiers Edge trainer to assist in checking their boot fitting. Sounds like a good idea. Will others follow? Got to sell a lot of boots to justify the ~ £1,000 cost of the machine.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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kuwait_ian,
I think that the Skiers Edge machines are now available from Profeet (they gave me a brochure) so I don't think that they will have paid much, or anything, for there's.
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Poster: A snowHead
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A slight aside.... many boots are narrow as a consequence of where they are made.
British feet are significantly wider than European feet - really, this is true ! Thus, many European boot manufacturers did not make boots of a suitable width for our UK feet...
This is best illustrated by Technica, who found they had great sales everywhere except the UK. They found, very simply, we wouldn't buy them because they were too narrow.
Thus, they made wider-fitting boots principally for the UK market and sales rocketed. Expect to see a lot of new Technica boots on the slopes this season as a result of this.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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austin7, I must have European feet then.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Helen Beaumont, either that, or you're well bred and of noble descent
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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GreyGit, sorry, I was away and didn't see that. Yes, as far as I know footworks is still going, I'd have expected it to be closed in September personally. If you are having problems, and footworks are not the answer, then I know a guy in Bern (as you're in the Aravis) who's as good or better than profeet.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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At one time (about 10 years ago) Salomon were known to have wider shells than the other makes. Is this still true?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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kuwait_ian, volume wise the Salomon shells are slightly larger at any given mondo point than, say, lange or rossignol. I find the Atomic shells have a fairly high volume as well, whether this is a good or bad thing depends on the shape of your feet of course 
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austin7, Helen Beaumont, seems my feet are European as well. I'm sorted for ski boots (Salomon Evolution 8) but I'm stuck for shoes. Most shoe shops now advertise 'extra wide fitting' as if it's a virtue. Trouble is you can't get anything else now. I haven't tried on a pair of shoes that fitted properly for years.
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austin7, I'm European (continental) but my feet are British. Seems I made the right move, except for being further away from snow.
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FAQ
