Like fingerprints, every foot is unique. When you have hard plastic backcountry skiing boots that come out of generically shaped molds based on the DNA of a small town in Italy, it’s easy to understand why your feet might be a different shape, your toes go numb, your arch aches and your knees hurt. And on that perfect powder day, or any day you get to be out, you don’t want to be held back by foot pain. A custom fitted boot can ensure that you won’t.
I love, love, love my Dynafit TLT5’s for their feather weight and easy walking mode, but they are not an out-of-the-box fit for me. I’m using Intuition Pro Tour liners, and I’ve molded and overstretched them to make the toe box roomy, only to get a sloppy fit that makes me struggle all the more. Then my fairy god mother smiled down on me and introduced me to a boot fitter, Bob Egeland.
Master boot fitter: Bob Egeland.
Bob, owner of Boulder Orthotics operating out of Neptune Mountaineering in Boulder, Colorado, is a Board Certified Podiatrist with extensive experience in footwear sales, product design and manufacturing. His goal is to provide his customers with the best fitting, best performing backcountry ski boots they’ve ever owned. Ideally, he starts at the beginning, matching the foot with a shell, then he supplies an insole, either off-the-shelf or custom, and molds the liner. I wanted to make the TLT5’s work rather than try a boot that would perhaps be better designed for my foot. While Bob won’t work on boots that are a bad match for a client, after examining my feet and talking to me about my issues, he said the Dynafit’s were suitable.
Inside the hallowed halls of Neptune Mountaineering Store and Ski Museum, Boulder, Colorado. Alongside the latest gear are mountaineering relics dating back to the 1800's. You can even schedule a tour with owner, Gary Neptune.
Some of the tools Bob uses to evaluate feet.
Range of motion and flexibility of ankle determines how stiff you want the boot to feel in the fore and aft mode. If you are super flexible or severely lacking in ankle flex, you'll usually feel the need for a stiffer boot. If your dorsiflexion is average, it'll be less of an issue for you. This is one reason why it's important to not just buy into random internet information from boot reviewers saying a boot is 'stiff' or 'not stiff enough,' since you'd need to know their style of skiing as well as their ankle flexibility to figure out if what they feel in a boot is what you would feel.
Imprints of my feet made by an Apex Harris mat show pressure points. I resisted getting a pedicure because the calluses on my feet highlight problem areas.
After positioning my legs in a neutral pose, Bob forms a putty cast.
Bob lays a warm insole into the mold and holds my foot secure while it cools.
The mold gives my arch gentle support.
The base of the insole can be made with materials of various stiffness depending on need.
Lou in the backroom getting secrets from the master, either about insoles or which tool to buy next.
The original, stock Dynafit insole is used to trace the proper shape onto the custom insole.
Bob is intimately familiar with the interior shape of most AT shells. This is important because most are not flat under the foot, but rather have bumps and curves you have to interface the footbed with. He grinds my insole to fit the TLT5 and my liners.
Once the insoles are finished, Bob remolds my Intuition liners with an EZ Fit off-the-shelf insole which is the same size as the custom insole. Since the custom insole is heat moldable, it would get wrecked if it was used for heat molding the liner.
Thin rubber discs are placed on bone spurs and bunions to ease the pressure off these sensitive areas.
I like lacing my liners but it's always been a hassle. They constantly come undone and if I tie a triple knot, it's tough to untie. Bob's solution is elastic on the bottom loops. This secures the tongue in place but allows easy in/out access. Clever!
Ahhhh, when I put on my boots and buckled them up, they felt great! Bob wants them to feel good immediately, and that certainly happened for me. No more squeeze or slop. My foot was encased in a comfortable handshake. I felt like Cinderella slipping on that magic slipper.
My only concern now is warmth: the liners may have lost some of their insulating power since they’re thin in places where we stretched them for my wide feet. My toes get cold and have patches of Raynaud’s, but I surely don’t want to sit home on those lovely, cold smoke days we’ll have in January. Temps get down to the single digits but the slopes can be covered in Colorado’s finest champagne pow. Battling the brrrr is always on my radar, and luckily, I recently attended a class on installing boot heaters, such as Hotronics, at Masterfit University. Eeee gads! Am I becoming like Lou where there is always one more mod to be made??? Stay tuned.
WildSnow Girl, Lisa Dawson, is the luckiest girl in the world. Also known as Mrs. WildSnow.com, she tests whatever gear she wants. She gives the WildSnow family of websites the feminine voice.