SKI BOOTSTHEY OCCUPY AN ENTIRE WALL in the store: glistening and gleaming, plastic icons to our modern sports world. Velcro straps. Titanium buckles. Buttons to adjust tension and tighten fit. Unseen within are padded liners for comfort and adjustable insoles to make certain your knees point the right direction and your arches are fully supported. Prices range from $149 for an entry-level model to nearly four times that much for top-of-the-line.
J. V. Peacock, owner of The Outpost store on Grape Road in Mishawaka, Indiana, sells a lot of ski boots over a season. He takes pride in fitting his customers well, because he wants them to enjoy skiing and return to purchase other items from ski poles to jackets to hand-warmers, and if you want to return in summer, he'll even sell you a canoe.
But what do you look for when you go to the store to purchase a pair of ski boots? How many of those toggles and bolts are really necessary to your skiing enjoyment? And how much should you pay? On a day when the snow was falling lightly, covering the beach volleyball court beside the parking lot, I asked some of these questions before purchasing a new pair of boots.
Hal Higdon: I was in Chicago last fall and went into a sporting goods store, and even at the beginning of the season, everything was marked down and on sale. When you purchase a pair of ski boots for $149, what are you buying? Are you going to be disappointed two weeks later when you spend a week skiing at Crystal Mountain and discover they don't fit?
J.V. Peacock: People come into our store, and they'll be standing looking at our array of boots. They're overwhelmed. I'll say to them, "Would you like to try a pair on?" In skiing, it's the only item you can't look at and make a good decision. You have to try them on. Every brand we sell is going to fit a bit differently. The first thing we always do is sit down and measure the customer's foot. The biggest problem people have is that they buy boots way too big, so we spend as much time as we can with the customer to avoid this. Last week, I had a kid in here, 14 years old. He had bought boots in the fall, went out to Colorado last week, and was swimming in them. He had a 28 (metric size), and when I measured him, he was 25.5. I know for a fact that the kid probably put those boots on and said, "Oh, this is a great fit." But kids don't know. We sometimes compensate when a kid is growing, and age 14 is a total crapshoot where the kid's foot will be in a year, so I don't know what happened, but I was real disappointed, because he was way oversized.
I remember one time last year a lady came in and said, "I know you don't have a boot to fit my son." Why? "He's a 14." First of all, we stock 14s, and second, I asked to measure his foot. I measured him, and he wasn't even a 12. What is happening is that many manufacturers in their sizing of sports shoes are off a full size. So these kids get in their mind that they're a 14, because that's what they wear in a Nike, but I sold him a 12. Because oversizing is such a problem, we put the person's foot in the boot. There are several ways to do it. One is to pull the liner out and make sure you have a finger in the back. I always size so the toe is touching the inside tip of the boot. Then I have the customer wear the boot for 15-25 minutes, flexing the boot. The longer we can do it, the better fit they'll get.
And 90 percent of the people, when they put the toe at the end, say, "It's too small." And I say, "Let me buckle it up and have you bend forward." The idea is that when you're standing upright, the toes touch the end, but when you bend your knees forward, it shoots the heel in back and pulls the toes off the tips, so they're not touching. And in skiing, you better have your weight flexed. You can't make a turn unless your knees are bent. It's impossible. When they do that they say, "Gosh, it does fit."
HH: Last winter, we purchased skis and boots for our oldest grandchild for Christmas. He wore them last year a little big, this year a little tight, and next year will pass them on to his younger brother and maybe get a new Christmas present. Skiing can be a very expensive sport? What do you tell parents operating on limited budgets, who still want to fit their kids properly?
JV: We have a children's' trade-in program. Parents can buy either new or used equipment, and we'll try to fit them so they can get two years out of both skis and boots. After one year, we'll offer 66 percent of what they paid in trade for a new or used pair. After the second year, we give 33 percent. That helps keep the price of skiing down. New boots for kids cost about $110; used boots, about $55. So your kids or grandkids can use the equipment for two years and still get some value in a trade-in. It has been a highly successful program for us.
HH: What are you selling in ski boots today?
JV: We sell a lot of sizzle. Ski boots today are mostly front-entry; no more rear entry. You might encounter rear-entry boots if you rent them at a ski resort, because they're simpler getting on and off, but they don't perform as well. As a matter of fact, I don't know of many companies making rear-entry boots any more other than bottom-of-the-line for beginners. The problem with rear entry was that you didn't have enough control over fit. The reason front-entry boots with four to five buckles are more popular is that they hold the foot so much better. The tighter the fit and the stiffer the boot, the more control you'll have over the ski. The foot also is lower in the boot in today's models. Some models allow you to control the flex, so the boots are more comfortable to walk in. You can adjust the cant of the boot to align your feet over the skis. Buckles are microadjustable. For skiing Michigan, you want the boot as stiff as you can get it, because you need all the edge hold you can get on hard snow. Skiing Colorado, you can back off.
HH: Here on the top shelf is a boot for $549. Underneath it is a model costing $299, but they both look about the same. What are you paying for?
JV: As you go up in price at almost every price level, you run into significantly more stiffness. Recreational models want to be snug, but high-performance skiers want the boot to fit the same a month or a year from now as it fits today. The liners are firmer; the boots are stiffer. The Tecnica Explosion 8 is the flagship boot on the market this year. We sell it for $495. There is also a Tecnica Explosion 10, that we don't carry. It is significantly stiffer and costs maybe a hundred dollars more. But there are probably only ten people in America that can fully take advantage of it. Your level of ability partly determines how much you want in a ski boot. It's the difference between buying a Ford Escort and a Porsche.
HH: For the average serious skier, there's probably a dotted line in the area of price. Below the line, you're not going to be happy. Above that line, you're going to get a boot to enhance your skiing.. Where is that dotted line in ski boots?
JV: I'd say you can pay $250 and get a really good boot. This is the first year where we haven't had any entry-level boots at $110. We finally decided we didn't want to do that to our customers. We had them last year, and they didn't sell. The minute someone puts on even a slightly more expensive boot, their eyes light up, and they're willing to pay more. So we start our boots at $149, but you have to be careful when comparing prices in sporting goods stores. When you look at sale prices, you may think you're saving money, but you're not. One problem we have in this sport is we have inflated retail. Everybody marks up, so they can mark down. If there's a sale at L.S. Ayers, the price you pay is the price it normally should be. Ski manufacturers do the same. I don't necessarily like it as a retailer, but that's the way it's done now.
HH: What can the buyer do to insure obtaining good value? Also, what about waiting until the end-of-the-season, when prices come down for all ski equipment? Can you get a better buy in March than you can in December?
JV: You can, but by then you'll find slimmer pickings. We started our sale two days ago on Thursday, and guys are coming in wanting to buy the hot skis--but they're gone. It's like going through the smorgasbord line at 9:00 in the evening. You get to eat what's left over. So, if you're a bargain shopper and are used to limited selections, you can pick up some good buys. If you're concerned with quality, fit and style, you need to buy earlier in the season.
SKIING ON A BUDGET: Skiers looking to enjoy their sport more and spend less money doing it may benefit from a new book written by Claire Walter, Western Editor for Skiing. In Skiing on a Budget (Betterway Books, $15.99), Walter tells you how to get the most from your skiing dollar. Her tips:
1. ATTEND SKI SHOWS: At shows you encounter giveaways and discounts and a chance for prizes. At some shows, every attendee receives a free lift ticket to a nearby ski resort.
2. START SMART: Letting a friend "teach" you to ski offers a false economy. Sign up for low-cost or no-cost lessons on learn-to-ski days, which sometimes feature rental equipment and beginner lift tickets.
3. DON'T FEAR THE GEAR: When starting, rent equipment to make certain you like the sport. When it's time to purchase, buy well-fitting boots first. New skiers can buy "packages" that include skis, bindings, boots and poles. Shop at ski swaps and pre-season sales for good buys, or opt for a season-long lease.
4. GET CARDED: Frequent skier programs reward loyalty. National ski cards net discounts on lift tickets, accommodations, rental cars and meals.
5. VALUE YOUR FAMILY: Most ski areas offer free skiing to preschooler and children until age 12. Some resorts promote kids-free offers. Teenagers can obtain student tickets. Pre-schoolers and seniors usually ski free.
6. STRETCH YOUR SKI VACATION DOLLAR: Ski resort central reservations numbers, or tour operators specializing in skiing, offer the best deals. Well-priced lift-and-lodging packages are the basics, and you can often tack on everything else needed, including airline tickets, rental car, bus transfers, ski instruction and rental gear.
7. JOIN THE GROUP: America's 3,500 individual ski clubs provide money-saving benefits to more than 1.25 million skiers. They may offer economical day trips to nearby mountains or vacations to major resorts at prices almost too good to be true.
8. SLEEP CHEAP: The easiest tactic is the one ski clubs use: Pack the most number of bodies into a condominium that management allows for the lowest per-person cost. Budget dorms and bunkrooms can still be found across ski country. If you ski the same area all season long, consider a house share or timeshare.
9. SKI LIKE A CONTRARIAN: To get in the most runs, be ready for the first lift. Avoid the major lifts when ski classes load. Take lunch early--and ski when everyone else is eating. Keep going until the lift closes--but be sensible to stop if you run out of gas before the lift does.
10. WORK TO SKI: Ski areas hire many seasonal employees: parking lot attendants, cafeteria workers or instructors. Ski shop employees often reap discounts on skiing and purchases of equipment.
Skiing on a Budget is available from Betterway Books, 1507 Dana Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45207 (800/289-0963).
Copyright © 1997 by Hal Higdon. All rights reserved. Requests to reprint will be considered.
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