The Saga of Liz' Boots, Aspen and Utah, January 2014

jasoncapecod

jasoncapecod

Well-known member
Monday morning 1/13 we made an 8AM appointment with AmyZ's bootfitter Steve at Christy Sports in Snowbird. Steve heated a safety pin with a blowtorch and punctured Liz' big toenails, draining fluid and almost immediately relieving the pain. He then worked on Liz' boots, liners and footbeds.
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The bootfitter practices Podiatry? interesting..
 
That must be one hell of a safety pin!

ER docs use a small sterile drill bit for that procedure (and charge a few grand to do it). I would think she'll probably still lose her toenails over time if it was bad enough for the puncture procedure.
 
Didn't Liz buy those boots from some fancy pants Aspen bootfitter?...I would drive back to Aspen and shove those boots up his a**
 
jasoncapecod":22l2pme9 said:
Monday morning 1/13 we made an 8AM appointment with AmyZ's bootfitter Steve at Christy Sports in Snowbird. Steve heated a safety pin with a blowtorch and punctured Liz' big toenails, draining fluid and almost immediately relieving the pain. He then worked on Liz' boots, liners and footbeds.
Click to expand...

The bootfitter practices Podiatry? interesting..
Click to expand...
That's because prior to becoming a bootfitter he was a.....podiatrist. However, I do rather question performing a surgical procedure in a ski shop. The legal risk is nothing short of losing-the-shop huge.
Also the risk of infection is pretty damned high as well. I'd keep careful watch on her toes.
 
jasoncapecod":165so9uy said:
Didn't Liz buy those boots from some fancy pants Aspen bootfitter?...I would drive back to Aspen and shove those boots up his a**
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When Liz was having problems with her 2004 vintage boots on Snowmass groomers, I e-mailed Jeff Hanle for suggestions of Aspen bootfitters. That evening a quick Google search yielded these testimonials:
http://www.skinet.com/skiing/photo-gall ... s?i=124286
http://www.thesnowpros.org/NewsInformat ... OTech.aspx
http://www.whatsworthit.com/products-services/bootech/
There seemed to be little doubt that we were dealing with the most respected bootfitter in Aspen. Nonetheless it was not too far into the process before it was evident Jim and Liz were not getting along too well. In retrospect perhaps we should have taken a refund when the first boot didn't work out and started over in Utah.

Once Liz' toes were that painful she thought it was difficult to evaluate any boot until they "quieted down," and it was unclear how long that would take. Steve's "ski shop surgery" at Snowbird was effective in allowing her to make good progress and provide effective feedback with the Nordica La Ninas.

I have encouraged Liz to write all of this up sometime for the Equipment Section as it's her story not mine. I was observing but I wasn't going through it myself.
 
Should have taken her to Claud at Skinet sports in Studio City. Tough guy to get along with but he was the first person who actually found me boots that fit.
 
Bernstein recommends the same guy in Studio City, not sure if that's coincidental but good to know.

With the contraction of SoCal specialty ski shops, I've generally tried to get boot work done at Mammoth, usually at Footloose. But 2 years ago they didn't carry the boot I wanted so I went to Kittredge. My old boots hadn't failed but they had a lot of mileage and I knew I would be in trouble if they broke down during my then upcoming 5 week road trip. This trip when Liz' old boots became unwearable I thought we were lucky to be settled in Aspen for awhile. :-k
 
If you're someone who needs extensive bootfitting it's beneficial to have it done by qualified personnel in a slopeside location. That way you can get some work done, test if for a few runs, and return for tweaking. Lather, rinse and repeat until perfect. You can't do that from a ski shop in Studio City.
 
Admin":3mw2xuay said:
If you're someone who needs extensive bootfitting it's beneficial to have it done by qualified personnel in a slopeside location. That way you can get some work done, test if for a few runs, and return for tweaking. Lather, rinse and repeat until perfect. You can't do that from a ski shop in Studio City.
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True, but on the flip sie if you're doing 2-3 day trips to a destination and you don't get them dialed in, or they pack out a bit you're kinda screwed.

There's something to be said for just paying up at Surefoot.
 
socal":1ckpl3vf said:
There's something to be said for just paying up at Surefoot.
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Liz had a bad experience with Surefoot at Whistler in 2004 and will never go to them again. OTOH My friend Richard Weinstein got boots at Surefoot in Santa Monica and has had them tweaked at resort locations. However Richard is a casual intermediate who skis 5-10 days per season.

Surefoot is a chain. They have a particular technology, but bootfitting still has much dependence upon the expertise of the individual bootfitter. So I tend to vote with admin on this one. Go for a person with high reputation/good word of mouth reference and preferably at a resort where you can ski a few runs and get adjustments done on the spot. We certainly thought we had met those criteria with Bootech at Aspen Highlands.

AmyZ should be a great source for bootfitting reference as she is a high intensity skier with unusual feet. That reference (Steve at Snowbird Christy Sports) seems to have worked out for Liz, though we won't know for sure until her next trip in February.
 
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