Mountain Life
  • Daily Content
    • Trips & Expeditions
    • Climbing
    • Mountain Biking
    • Mountain Lifer
    • Multiplicity
    • On The Trail
    • Paddling
    • Photography
    • Skiing
    • Snowboarding
    • Stay & Play
    • Surfing
    • The Great Outdoors
    • The ML Interview
    • Travel
  • GEAR
  • VIDEOS
  • STORE
  • Magazines
    • ML Coast Mountains
    • ML Rocky Mountains
    • Vie En Montagne
    • ML Blue Mountains
    • ML Annual
    • ML Subscriptions
  • ABOUT
    • What is ML?
    • Our Team
    • Newsletter
    • Adventure Grant
    • Distribution
  • Podcast
  • Contests
  • CONTACT
    • ML Agency
    • Advertising
    • Contribute
Subscription Form

Get notified of the best News

Social Links
Instagram 22K Followers
Facebook 25K Likes
Twitter 5K Followers
Pinterest 1K Followers
Vimeo 34 Followers
LinkedIn 0
22K Followers
25K Likes
5K Followers
1K Followers
Mountain Life
Mountain Life
  • Daily Content
    • Trips & Expeditions
    • Climbing
    • Mountain Biking
    • Mountain Lifer
    • Multiplicity
    • On The Trail
    • Paddling
    • Photography
    • Skiing
    • Snowboarding
    • Stay & Play
    • Surfing
    • The Great Outdoors
    • The ML Interview
    • Travel
  • GEAR
  • VIDEOS
  • STORE
  • Magazines
    • ML Coast Mountains
    • ML Rocky Mountains
    • Vie En Montagne
    • ML Blue Mountains
    • ML Annual
    • ML Subscriptions
  • ABOUT
    • What is ML?
    • Our Team
    • Newsletter
    • Adventure Grant
    • Distribution
  • Podcast
  • Contests
  • CONTACT
    • ML Agency
    • Advertising
    • Contribute
  • Skiing

You May Need a Boot Fitter If….You Ski.

  • January 8, 2020
  • Ben Osborne
Total
3
Shares
3
0
0
0
0
0
Total
3
Shares
Share 3
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Share 0
Share 0
You May Need A Boot Fitter If You Ski Skiis And Bikes Store
The Skiis and Biikes Collingwood, ON location.

words & photos:: Colin Field

When asked the simple question, who should be getting their boots fit, the Skiis and Bikes boot fitter Cam Alma has an obvious response: 

“Everyone.”

I’m not that convinced, but I’m here to give it a go. I’ve got brand new boots I’m terrified of wearing: they hurt to get on, they hurt to ski in and the one time I wore them, my toes were freezing. But my god, taking them off feels good! My feet are more or less normal (still ugly), but my toes seem to get colder every year. I always figured it’s part of getting older, but Cam says that isn’t so; it’s because my boots don’t fit right. 

The first thing he does is pull out my Intuition liners and put them in an oven. He asks me what kind of skier I am (advanced, obviously). He makes me take off my socks and stand on a couple different devices; a slightly angled board, a centering stand. He checks out my stance. Then he starts sticking slices of foam to my foot here and there. A neoprene cap goes over my toes, then I put my socks over all of that. 

When the liners are out of the oven, I put them on. We cram the liners into the boots and buckle them up. Then I stand on an angled board for ten minutes.

You May Need A Boot Fitter If You Ski Hands Holding Sticks
The tools of the trade. Choose your comfort level and the amount of wiggle room your foot will have.

“People make it really complicated, but honestly it’s carpentry,” he says. “You’re just trying to make everything square in the boot. We look at your foot, assess your foot. We look at injury to ankles, major weight loss, or gain; that will change how you stand. We’ve got x amount of volume and we’re just changing the shape of it. We’re not really making more volume. When you grind something, when we lower your footbed, then we’re finding space, but manipulating shells is all about reshaping the volume.”

Alma’s tells me he’s been fitting boots since 1978, and he’s seen it all. He’s worked with racers, recreational skiers, freestyle kids and he says getting boots that fit properly makes all the difference, no matter who you are. 

“It’s hard to impress on people that everyone should be getting their boots fit,” he says. “People say, ‘I hate skiing because the boots are uncomfortable.’ We’ve got families that are shopping with us now, that have been skiing for 15 years and are just realizing boot fitting makes a big difference on how comfortable our feet are. When the family’s feet are happy everything is just that much better. It really is the number one thing.” 

Of course, there are different parameters for racers, freestylers or weekend warriors; but determining that is all part of the boot fitter’s job. They’ll work with you to tune your boot so your feet are comfortable (unless of course you’re a racer, then they’ll make your boots perform to their best ability). If they don’t get it right on the first visit, simply pop in again with more feedback and they’ll make it right.

You May Need A Boot Fitter If You Ski Man Operates Vice
Cam Alma gains some volume by pressing the shell.

But the real proof is in the proverbial pudding. And I went directly from Skiis and Biikes’ Collingwood store to Blue Mountain on a windy -10C day. I did some laps at the North End waiting for my toes to get cold. They didn’t. Then I headed down to the Central Chair where the top is guaranteed to be windy and always brings a chill to my toes. Nothing. They were toasty warm. I hit the Southern Comfort chair skiing the pre-groomered bump runs of late afternoon, expecting to feel at least one or two hotspots of a blister forming. And still nothing. I couldn’t believe it. These are brand new boots! And they’re instantly more comfortable and better fitting than my five-year-old, punched-out boots that I assumed had formed to my feet. They hadn’t. But my new boots feel amazing. 

I’ve been preaching about Alma’s work to all my buddies every time I ski now and none of them have had their boots fit before. Boy are they missing out. 

So what’s it cost to get your boots fit? 

“We break it down,” says Alma, “it’s about $120 an hour. It’s time and materials. We break that down into 15 minutes windows.”

And if my first day skiing on boots that fit properly is anything to go by, it is worth every cent. For years, every time I’ve taken my boots off the thought has crossed my mind that taking your ski boots off is the best part of skiing. Not today. And never again. 

Thanks Cam!

To learn more about Skiis and Biikes, visit their site.

Total
3
Shares
Share 3
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Share 0
Share 0
Ben Osborne

Previous Article
Eddie Bauer Powder Search reviewed by Mountain Life Media
  • THE GEAR SHED

Happy Legs: Eddie Bauer Powder Search

  • January 7, 2020
  • Ned Morgan
View Post
Next Article
CarGenerator reviewed by Mountain Life Media
  • THE GEAR SHED

The CarGenerator: Hassle-Free Backup Power for Days

  • January 9, 2020
  • Ned Morgan
View Post
You May Also Like
Skiing at Hudson Bay Mountain in Smithers
View Post
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding

Where Eagles Dare

  • Mountain Life Media
  • March 27, 2023
Powder-Highway-BC-ski
View Post
  • Rockies
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding

Powder Highway Revisited

  • Mountain Life Media
  • March 21, 2023
rope-tow-Vancouver-Island
View Post
  • Skiing
  • Trips & Expeditions

Poached Winter

  • Mountain Life Media
  • March 7, 2023
Ryan-Osman-ontario-splitboarding
View Post
  • Ontario
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding

Off-Piste ON

  • Mountain Life Media
  • March 6, 2023
Skiis-and-Biikes
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Ontario
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding

Skiis & Biikes Looks to the Future

  • Mountain Life Media
  • March 6, 2023
Baker-Boyd-Rossignol-Discordance
View Post
  • Skiing
  • Videos

Friday Flick: Discordance with Baker Boyd

  • Ned Morgan
  • March 3, 2023
Quebec-Colin-Field-ski
View Post
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding

La Belle Verticale

  • Editor
  • February 16, 2023
Rossignol-XP-100-positrack-snow-terrain
View Post
  • Skiing
  • THE GEAR SHED
  • WINTER GEAR

Cover More Terrain: Rossignol XP 100 Positrack Nordic Skis

  • Ned Morgan
  • February 10, 2023

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Featured Posts
  • Skiing at Hudson Bay Mountain in Smithers 1
    Where Eagles Dare
    • March 27, 2023
  • Mountain-Life-20th-showreel 2
    20 Years of ML
    • March 24, 2023
  • Mustang-Survival-WOMENS-HELIX-CCS 3
    Gear Shed: Our End-of-Winter Picks
    • March 23, 2023
  • natural-selection-Redbull 4
    Friday Flick: Natural Selection Tour Highlights
    • March 17, 2023
  • Powder-Highway-BC-ski 5
    Powder Highway Revisited
    • March 21, 2023
RECENT POSTS
  • AleTrailsSouthernInterior_Vernon_MikeGamble_LookoutTrail_BenHaggarPhoto
    Ale Trails: Southern Interior Part 1, Vernon + Shuswap
    • March 20, 2023
  • Elements-Outfitters-Filson-cabin
    Elements Outfitters Partners with SALTS to Protect Alberta’s Incredible Landscapes
    • March 16, 2023
  • Bora-Boreal-Quebec-winter-cabin-stars
    Bora Boréal: Frozen in Time and Ice
    • March 14, 2023
Social Links
Instagram 22K Followers
Facebook 25K Likes
Twitter 5K Followers
Pinterest 1K Followers
Vimeo 34 Followers
LinkedIn 0
INSTAGRAM
mountainlifemedia
22K Followers
No one called me Feet Banks back in 1987. In those days, most people called me by my given name—except for my ski buddies, to whom I was known by the most badass moniker to ever schuss the slopes: Twinkle Toes.
We’re celebrating 20 Years of Mountain Life!
From The Gear Shed: Last Monday was the official start of spring, but we know there’s still some winter to be shredded. So ML staff and partners have picked the latest jackets, lanterns, bindings, mugs and drysuits for winter-spring.
Exploring the sights around beautiful Sutton, Quebec with ML creator @adv_bird ❄️🫶
Back on the road with three generations, dancing lifties, best-on-planet pizza and elusive-but-exquisite pow days.
Live It Up EP 24 is out now!
The Southern Interior region of BC holds an ecological cross-section of the province with alpine meadows, arid Douglas fir grasslands, damp cedar and hemlock forests of the Columbia Mountains and the warm expanse of Shuswap Lake.
Do Not Disturb mode activated ✅ #mountainlifer
Conceived by superhuman snowboarder @travisrice, the @naturalselection Tour highlights earth’s premier riders, from big-mountain mavens to Olympians, all competing on the most stoketastic—and unpredictable—terrain known to humankind.
Built upon a shared desire to enjoy, respect, and advocate for Alberta’s incredible landscapes, it was a natural fit for @elementsoutfitters to work with a local conservation organization @saltslandtrust to highlight the province’s rugged beauty and outdoor apparel to match.
Follow

Subscribe

Subscribe now to our newsletter

No one called me Feet Banks back in 1987. In those days, most people called me by my given name—except for my ski buddies, to whom I was known by the most badass moniker to ever schuss the slopes: Twinkle Toes.
We’re celebrating 20 Years of Mountain Life!
From The Gear Shed: Last Monday was the official start of spring, but we know there’s still some winter to be shredded. So ML staff and partners have picked the latest jackets, lanterns, bindings, mugs and drysuits for winter-spring.
Exploring the sights around beautiful Sutton, Quebec with ML creator @adv_bird ❄️🫶
Back on the road with three generations, dancing lifties, best-on-planet pizza and elusive-but-exquisite pow days.
Live It Up EP 24 is out now!
Mountain Life
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Advertising

Input your search keywords and press Enter.