Comments on: Scarpa Spirit 4 Ski Boot — Close Look

By: Lou

Lou — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 16:09:54 +0000

Craig, the ‘shim’ refered to is the Scarpa boot board, sort of like an insole that goes below your liner inside the shell. Call Scarpa customer service and see if they have that for Spirit 4, my memory on that is vague. There are other fixes for the high arch, but they’re time consuming and don’t always work. All this said, the Methods are nice as well, and it is axiomatic with boot shopping that you buy the boots that fit you best out of the box unless you’re super experienced with boot mods, working with boot fitter, etc….

By: Craig

Craig — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 15:38:12 +0000

I just tried on two pairs of boots and can’t decide on either. I was excited to try the Spirit 4′s based on what I have read about the boot’s adjustability. But what I’ve found is that the high arch is very uncomfortable. The comment above about feeling like walking on tennis balls is exactly what I’m feeling. You’ve mentioned to fix this you can get Scarpa’s 4mm shims? I haven’t been able to find those anywhere and my ski shop doesn’t know what I’m talking about. I also tried on the BD Methods which seemed to fit better out of the box though they give me a lot of pressure on my ankles which I don’t like. The scarpa’s feel like a more well constructed boot compared to the flimsy plastic feeling of the bd’s so I’m tempted to stick with scarpas and go through some massive boot-fitting procedures. Do you have an opinion on the Methods that would sway me more toward the Spirit 4s?

By: Brad

Brad — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 22:23:25 +0000

THANKS SEAN!

By: Sean

Sean — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 13:40:20 +0000

It Looks like the right tongue for the boot to be at 110 flex that you are calling the ski tongue. I would Send scarpa a note and ask there customer service about the tongue and if it is truly fits the spirit 4. It looks like the stiff flex tongue i have on my spirit 4′s and i would guess that it is at a 85% certainty, as it is listed as Alpine Touring and Freeride maybe they have one stiff tongue for their full 08 AT and FR line.

By: Brad

Brad — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 09:05:57 +0000

I have a pair of Spirit 4s that were given to me by a friend but i never received the ski tongue, do you know if the ski tongue available from scarpa is the same tongue in question here, as i feel it would make a significant difference, cheers