 Poster: A snowHead
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I'm sure this has been asked before, but I can't find it so I'll try again.
On balance, do the wise and the good of the Snowheads community feel that it's best to purchase boots in the resort or at home? I guess that an advantage of the resort is that you can get adjustments made when you're using the boots in real world conditions. In favour of the UK is that you don't waste valuable skiing time, you don't have any language barrier, and you have more feedback on the quality of the vendor.
Opinions please?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Jonny Jones, I can't label myself wise, or good, but I do know that there are some european resorts where the bootfitters have a really good reputation. It may be possible to justify a trip to a resort, just to get boots fitted properly 
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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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Jonny, just personal experience - Mrs H and I have done a combo - we both bought boots at S&R in the UK - subsequently Mrs H bought boots in resort (because she really couldn't get on with the boots she bought in the UK). In the future I'd probably buy in resort, as close to beginning of week as possible, I'd consider this a marginal decision though. I'd be more confident of a resort shop having a large stock and the salespeople being experienced as well as knowledgeable.
If you're bothered about feedback on vendor quality then I'm sure snowHeads can give recommendations on any number of in-resort vendors.
Usual conditions apply - I have bought a total of 1 pair of boots!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Jonny Jones, I bought my boots from S&R and then spent time on a dry ski slope to check out whether or not they really fitted. I then took them back to S&R to have a minor adjustment made. If you can do it this way I would recommend it; otherwise I would buy in resort.
Both times I've bought boots I've gone to S&R and I've been very please with them.
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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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If you can find a good bootfitter in the UK then that's fine but they are easier to find in resorts
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Jonny Jones, There's plenty of crap fitters in both the UK & resort. The problem is finding a good 'un.
I can personally recommend Profeet in London & also Freeride in Courchevel 1650 after bad experiences with both EB/S&R in the UK & Francis Blanc in C1650. I've friends who've used SMALLZOOKEEPER in Chamonix & are as praising to them as I am with Profeet.
Being sold the right level of boot is also important. An experienced skier on my Warren Smith course last year had new boots from Lockwoods & she was very pleased with their fitting but she hadn't actually skied on them before arriving in resort. After struggling for a day Warren realised that she just couldn't flex the boot at all so she ended having to have cut. She said she was never ask to flex the boots in the store.
I think a major factor is the amount of skiing you do in the UK. I'm a regular snowdome user so after going to Profeet I'd plenty of opportunity to adjust before I went abroad, although no adjustment was necessary.
Although the UK route is probably more expensive if you need a few trips to the snowdome or dryslope but I'd rather do that than waste valuable slope time in resort. Well before I arrived in resort I'd had about 20 hours in my boots from snowdome use & around the house to ensure that they were right.
I'd just wouldn't want to go on an expensive activity holiday having never worn/broken in the footwear I was going to wear for 8/9 hours every day.
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I have done both and I had more success with the boots from the UK. But I put that down to a very poor shop in Italy and its my fault for going for it. Giving that you need about 1 hr plus then that sort of time might be hard to give up in the resort, but then again if you get a dream fit then it will have been worth it
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| JT wrote: |
| Giving that you need about 1 hr plus...... |
Took me about 2 hrs 15 mins at Profeet.
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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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spyderjon,
I would want 2 hrs as well but I thought that might sound greedy in print
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I bought in the UK and spent a few hours on the dry slope getting comfortable with them, I'd have no problems doing it this way again in the future. I like the idea of doing it in resort and being able to sort any problems out there and then but it would have put me in the scrum on the first night of the holiday with all the hirers in the shop battling to be served and I don't fancy swollen ankles/tired legs from a day's travel interfering with the fitting process. Doing it during the week would be better but then what to use the first few days?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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My only experience buying boots in resort was when I was young, foolish and soon parted from my cash. I've never had a problem buying in blighty.
But then judging by the horror stories on all the boot threads (all that chatter must be a foot fetish's smorgasbord) I think my feet (lovely though they are) must be rather unexciting - EU standard feet or something. It's the only explanation for the ease with which I seem to get comfy boots. Sure the fitter needs to suggest a shell with a profile that best suits but then, well, that's it! My point is that if your feet like mine meet with current EU regulations, you can buy them anywhere convenient and avoid wasting precious resort time in shops. But if they're all gnarly with 6 or 7 toes, you're probably best giving all the hard spots on your feet time to get to know the hard spots on your boots before deciding whether they want to go home together. 
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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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| Quote: |
Doing it during the week would be better but then what to use the first few days?
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Your previous pair of boots!
slikedges, I think the point you make about how uninteresting your feet are is a good one (if you see what I mean)!
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Jonny Jones, I've done both....first ever pair bought in resort, but then I didn't know anything about boots then and just took what they gave me, they fitted just fine and lasted untill my skiing standard outgrew them. Second pair in blighty....rubbish boot fitter, struggled on with them for a couple of years but never liked 'em. Third pair in blighty....fab boot fitter, fab boots can't fault them!
I think that blighty or abroad isn't the issue....it's the fitter that makes the difference. Don't forget you can buy boots in blighty and go to any boot fitter in resort that sells that brand and they'll teak them to get the fit right under the manufacturers guarantees. Got a mate who did that and it worked out just fine.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Quote: |
| Don't forget you can buy boots in blighty and go to any boot fitter in resort that sells that brand and they'll teak them to get the fit right under the manufacturers guarantees. |
I wondered about that - Have a dryslope here in Soton, but no decent ski shops nearby. So if I can buy boots in (say) London, break them in at Soton, and get them tweaked in resort, it's better for me. But only if I can get them tweaked in resort. Do all boot manufacturers allow it?
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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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There are good and less-good boot fitters both in the UK and in the resorts. Perhaps it would be worth asking for advice on particular shops, UK or abroad. Where do you live and shop? Where are you going to be skiing?
There are also issues of time of day and day of week when you go to purchase your boots. Between now and February the UK shops can get very busy, specially at weekends. Leading to overworked shop staff who are sometimes too busy to give the attention they would wish to give to each customer.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Manda wrote: |
| Do all boot manufacturers allow it? |
Not sure....it'd be worth checking, I'd reckon that they probably do....but don't sue me if they don't!!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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RESORT, RESORT, OR RESORT. BUT LOOK FOR THE GOOD GUYS/GALS. ASK THE BAR STAFF IN ANY RESORT
THE'RE NOT HARD TO FIND. BE PATIENT, THEY'VE NEVER SEEN YOUR FEET OR MET YOU BEFORE!
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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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Manda, so long as the boots are suitable for you and the correct size, any decent resort bootfitter will be able to tweak them for you, though of course you will pay for them to do so
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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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SO BUY IN RESORT, OFTEN CHEAPER AND TWEAKING WILL BE FREE 
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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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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Manda wrote: |
| I wondered about that - Have a dryslope here in Soton, but no decent ski shops nearby. So if I can buy boots in (say) London, break them in at Soton, and get them tweaked in resort, it's better for me. But only if I can get them tweaked in resort. Do all boot manufacturers allow it? |
A colleague of mine at work bought a set of boots at Filarinskis in Havant and got a free hour session at Soton dry slope to try them out. Apparently they will adjust them and let you try them out for free again until you are happy with them. He was pretty impressed with the service when he was buying them as well and he seemed to think the fitters knew what they were doing.
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