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‘Atta Boy…

Bookmark and Share            By Lou

Hi Lou,
I Just wanted to drop you a line and let you know that my first stab at thermo molding ski boot liners turned out great! The house that I have been renting has a custom kitchen with double ovens, and one of the ovens is a convection oven. I baked the liners one at a time for about 8 minutes at 235 degrees, they puffed up nicely. As you recommended I used a woman’s stocking to hold my toe cap and foot bed. For the toe cap, I used the toe from a single cotton sock and a little duct tape wrapped around my big and little toes as per your suggestion.

I had my daughter help me by holding the shells open so I could slide my foot and liner into the shell. Buckled down about halfway and kept them there for about 5 minutes. I then pulled my foot out of the shell/liner and finally pulled the liner out and allowed it to cool. It was very cool to see how the liners had conformed to the shape of the shell. Tried them on and they felt great… a little snug at the toe but not painful.

The next morning (5/11) I left for a 3 day trip to Janets Cabin here in Colorado. I was a little worried about breaking in new boots on a 5.5 mile tour with a heavy pack, but I didn’t have the option of using my old boots (Scarpa Avants) because my partner on this hut trip was wearing them! (sometimes you have to lend out gear in order to get people to go skiing with!) The new boots were great (Scarpa Spirit 3s), no foot pain or hot spots.

We approached Janets from Vail Pass and enjoyed a magnificent day on Friday (although it could’ve been a little cooler). I was very pleased with the way the Spirits skied. My heel was totally locked and I was skiing confidently by the 3rd turn of my first run! All in all I am very happy with the touring and skiing performance of the Spirits. And I am very satisfied having baked them myself (I have also done three Fritschi binding mounts at home using your instructions and templates). I really appreciate and enjoy your blog, have been an almost daily visitor for a few years now. Keep up the great work!

K.G.

Posted by Lou on May 16, 2007 | Filed Under Backcountry Skiing 

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Comments

One Response to “‘Atta Boy…”

  1. Skinny D May 17th, 2007 1:08 am

    Hi, I can second those words, I’ve mounted three pairs of Naxos and thermo-fitted two sets of liners based on the info on your site. Many thanks for the info.

    Dave

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Welcome to Louis (Lou) Dawson's backcountry skiing information and opinion website. Lou's passion for the past forty years has been alpinism, climbing, mountaineering and skiing -- along with all manner of outdoor recreation. He has authored numerous books and articles about backcountry skiing and is well known as the first person to ski down all 54 of Colorado's 14,000-foot peaks, otherwise known as the Fourteeners! Books and free back country information here, and tons of Randonnee rando telemark info.

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Backcountry skiing is a dangerous sport. You may be killed or severely injured if you do any form of randone, randonnee and randonnée skiing. The information on this website is intended only as general information. While the authors and editors of the information on this website make every effort to present useful information, due to human error the information, text and images contained within this website may be inaccurate, false, or out-of-date. By using, reading or viewing the information provided on this website, you agree to absolve the owners of Wild Snow as well as content contributors of any liability for injuries or losses incurred while using such information. Furthermore, you agree to use any of this website's information, maps, photos, or binding mounting instructions or templates at your own risk, and waive Wild Snow its owners and contributors of any liability for use of said items for backcountry skiing or any other use.