DIY Molding of MIMIC liner

[Near Nyquist]

shock horror, skier goes into generalist store and expects high level boot fitting

unfortunately ski boot fitting isnt regulated anywhere, its like the wild west out there, if you go to a specialist store you stand a far better chance of getting the job done right, even then there are a lot of stores claiming to be specialists.... believe me the real specialists are picking up the pieces every single day, trying to get skiers into the right size and volume of boot with proper support and a good set up, but every day some smart ass kid in a big box store or a slope side boot seller will tell the customer its wrong and they need a size up, is it any wonder more and more good boot fitters are leaving the profession, its not the job, its about having to convince people to actually believe you are doing the job properly when the "sellers" are shouting loud from the roof tops that the pros are wrong.

@onenerdykid described is perfectly, as a brand they can only do so much, but when you have high staff turnover and stores who because they have been in business for 20 years they know better, its a losing battle

Yesterday for entertainment value

A customer rumbles in with my favorite statement

“I just wanna try on boots”
And this gem
“I’m a size 9”

I unfortunately have to tell him the facts of life as it relates to ski boot fitting

Mainly we can’t handle him today and these ain’t no tennis shoes either

Customer started in with the same old tired stories we all hear

had to tell him to

!!! SOD OFF !!!

He was so impressed he left a one star no comment review

Yeah, I’m OK with that

 

[ScottB]

Wouldn't it also be possible to maintain a list of recommended shops/stores/fitters or does that get too political at the brand level? There are lists maintained by 3rd-parties to help skiers find the better fitters/shops.

Atomic has a list of retails on their website. Some are marked as "Race Centers" and those would be the preferred ones. Rating them or otherwise singling them out would get too political. There is always "ask ONK on Ski Talk" approach.

 

[Near Nyquist]

Atomic has a list of retails on their website. Some are marked as "Race Centers" and those would be the preferred ones. Rating them or otherwise singling them out would get too political. There is always "ask ONK on Ski Talk" approach.

Let’s face the cold hard facts here

there are shops that just do lousy work

is it ignorance, laziness or unbridled greed

who the hell knows

but if that’s the work you do

it’s fair game to call your ass out on it

you can’t hide from the internet and it sure ain’t political

if you pay cold hard cash you deserve the work you paid for period

 

[Uncle-A]

Let’s face the cold hard facts here

there are shops that just do lousy work

is it ignorance, laziness or unbridled greed

who the hell knows

but if that’s the work you do

it’s fair game to call your ass out on it

you can’t hide from the internet and it sure ain’t political

if you pay cold hard cash you deserve the work you paid for period

I have probably said it before but just like any other profession there are good workers and those that are less skilled. Maybe it is lack of training or they don't care as much as others but it is just a fact. I am guessing that we have all ran into one of these less skilled or less caring coworker from time to time, so why would it be any different in the ski shops. Finding the good ones is what we all want, it is not always easy and the best way is to get recommended to a specific boot fitter from someone we trust. There have been several threads asking the question, "Looking for a good boot fitter in (some location). To find a good boot fitter just find one of those threads or stare a new one.

 

[Noodler]

Atomic has a list of retails on their website. Some are marked as "Race Centers" and those would be the preferred ones. Rating them or otherwise singling them out would get too political. There is always "ask ONK on Ski Talk" approach.

That's great, but it's probably not a "curated list"; a list that truly represents where the "good ones" are. Dealers should have some level of "fear" that they will be removed from the "recommended list". So we need something more than an authorized reseller list.

 

[Zirbl]

Some are marked as "Race Centers" and those would be the preferred ones.

Dunno, I've been in one when a junior racer tried on a boot with the liner, said it was too tight, and the staff just said of course it's tight, it's a race boot.

 

[onenerdykid]

Dunno, I've been in one when a junior racer tried on a boot with the liner, said it was too tight, and the staff just said of course it's tight, it's a race boot.

That answer is better than immediately running into the back to get the next bigger size

 

[Mike Thomas]

Dunno, I've been in one when a junior racer tried on a boot with the liner, said it was too tight, and the staff just said of course it's tight, it's a race boot.

That answer is better than immediately running into the back to get the next bigger size

Let's be real, what really happened-

Bootfitter assess the kid's feet, determines best size. Gets that boot, does shell check, explains what the kid will feel when the boot is first put on assuring that more room will be felt after a few moments, puts boot on foot and buckles the upper cuff buckles and power strap.

"What are you feeling?"

No immediate response, kid gazing at the floor, desperate to be able to get back to playing with his phone... "I guess if feels ok."

Mommy and Daddy immediately jump in with "are you SURE they're not too tight? Are you sure? Are you sure? Are your toes touching? Remember what happened last year? You said they felt ok and then we had to drive ALL the way back here and exchange them" (they own a second home in town, two minutes away and they need to drive past any time they go to the mountain) "we don't want to go through all that again this year, so are you SURE that you have enough room?" "you should try the next size." Turning to now helpless boot fitter "can he try the next size up? He's just growing so fast, how do you even know which size is right??"

Boot fitter goes into the back shop and hangs himself with a heat gun chord.

 

[Uncle-A]

Let's be real, what really happened-

Bootfitter assess the kid's feet, determines best size. Gets that boot, does shell check, explains what the kid will feel when the boot is first put on assuring that more room will be felt after a few moments, puts boot on foot and buckles the upper cuff buckles and power strap.

"What are you feeling?"

No immediate response, kid gazing at the floor, desperate to be able to get back to playing with his phone... "I guess if feels ok."

Mommy and Daddy immediately jump in with "are you SURE they're not too tight? Are you sure? Are you sure? Are your toes touching? Remember what happened last year? You said they felt ok and then we had to drive ALL the way back here and exchange them" (they own a second home in town, two minutes away and they need to drive past any time they go to the mountain) "we don't want to go through all that again this year, so are you SURE that you have enough room?" "you should try the next size." Turning to now helpless boot fitter "can he try the next size up? He's just growing so fast, how do you even know which size is right??"

Boot fitter goes into the back shop and hangs himself with a heat gun chord.

Growing feet are a parents and boot fitter's nightmare. I remember when my daughter made the jump from a kids boot to a women's boot. Especially when you have to buy boots at a September ski swap and don't get a chance to ski them until January.

 

[Near Nyquist]

Let's be real, what really happened-

Bootfitter assess the kid's feet, determines best size. Gets that boot, does shell check, explains what the kid will feel when the boot is first put on assuring that more room will be felt after a few moments, puts boot on foot and buckles the upper cuff buckles and power strap.

"What are you feeling?"

No immediate response, kid gazing at the floor, desperate to be able to get back to playing with his phone... "I guess if feels ok."

Mommy and Daddy immediately jump in with "are you SURE they're not too tight? Are you sure? Are you sure? Are your toes touching? Remember what happened last year? You said they felt ok and then we had to drive ALL the way back here and exchange them" (they own a second home in town, two minutes away and they need to drive past any time they go to the mountain) "we don't want to go through all that again this year, so are you SURE that you have enough room?" "you should try the next size." Turning to now helpless boot fitter "can he try the next size up? He's just growing so fast, how do you even know which size is right??"

Boot fitter goes into the back shop and hangs himself with a heat gun chord.

I tell em to take a picture of the box and buy the next size off the internet
So I can go drink some more coffee

I’m ok with that

 

[Vestirse]

To better prevent this from happening again, when you speak with a shop about customizing your ski boots, ask to speak with the main fitter. The average employee at REI or EVO is not going to be an experienced boot fitter. They are mainly boot sellers, and there is a big difference. EVO sometimes has really good fitters on staff, but not REI. The larger/more generalist retailers often don't have great boot fitters. You should look for a more specialist shop that focuses on ski boots and boot fitting. Find the main fitter and book an appointment with them, not the average employee. Even the best shops have fitters who are more experienced than others, and push to have an appointment with the most experienced ones. If you just walk in and ask to be fit, they will most likely hand you off to a less experienced employee. Booking an appointment with a trained fitter is currently the best guard against things going the wrong way.

Just to add in my agreement by experience and a vote of confidence for EVO. I had my bootfitting done at EVO Seattle, paid extra for the EVO Signature Fit service and got an experienced bootfitter. He did indeed put me in the Atomic Hawx Ultra after we tried several brands. He followed the process I saw in the YouTube video a few pages back, though caveat not all with Atomic branded stuff like the toecaps and ice bags. The Signature Fit service includes multiple moldings and other customization that I have fully taken advantage of since I have pretty fussy feet/legs, and I've been back four times so far for small mods. I also did it during their spring sale, so my boots were 20% off and if they hadn't had my size in stock, it was no problem to buy online from EVO and schedule another modifcation session. You can get an awesome fit at a big retailer but double check that the fitter is experienced.

 

[Tony Storaro]

I unfortunately have to tell him the facts of life as it relates to ski boot fitting

Mainly we can’t handle him today and these ain’t no tennis shoes either

Customer started in with the same old tired stories we all hear

had to tell him to

!!! SOD OFF !!!

 

[Zirbl]

Let's be real, what really happened-

Bootfitter assess the kid's feet, determines best size. Gets that boot, does shell check, explains what the kid will feel when the boot is first put on assuring that more room will be felt after a few moments, puts boot on foot and buckles the upper cuff buckles and power strap.

"What are you feeling?"

No immediate response, kid gazing at the floor, desperate to be able to get back to playing with his phone... "I guess if feels ok."

Mommy and Daddy immediately jump in with "are you SURE they're not too tight? Are you sure? Are you sure? Are your toes touching? Remember what happened last year? You said they felt ok and then we had to drive ALL the way back here and exchange them" (they own a second home in town, two minutes away and they need to drive past any time they go to the mountain) "we don't want to go through all that again this year, so are you SURE that you have enough room?" "you should try the next size." Turning to now helpless boot fitter "can he try the next size up? He's just growing so fast, how do you even know which size is right??"

Boot fitter goes into the back shop and hangs himself with a heat gun chord.

Haha, nope. Just yeah it's meant to be tight, no talk of punching or grinding.

Besides, this is Austria. Your dialogue is enough talk for a year.