Boot Advice Sought

I’m an alpine skier of many many years and just got an AT setup except for boots. Skinned up to Pineapple Pass on Sunday and whew… I acquired some nice blisters on the inside of my heels.  Yup there is bit of room there for movement. Really revealed with uphill travel in my alpine boots.

Yeah… they are use to traverses… but not pushing gravity upward.

I now want to get AT boots for tours… rather than think my alpine boots are adequate to get by.

I want a boot that is considered quite light, stiff when locking down and comparable to what I use in my alpine gear.  I’m not hucking off cliffs, but I am an aggressive skier and enjoy good technical runs. My alpine gear is a racing setup. So I’m use to stiff and rigid.

The AT gear I bought are Freeride Pros on 174 Coombacks. I’m jazzed.

Looking at the price point of new boots makes me dizzy.  I just dropped a bundle on the skis, bindings and skins.  Thought I could wait till next year for boots… current thinking… no way!

Would love to get a used pair or year old pair, but don’t know which brand and model to consider.

My alpine boot is 27.5 on a sole length of 314mm.

I watch the yard sale closely… but don’t know enough of history and choices to know what a potential match is for my needs. I’ll consider a pair of last year boots from a vendor if they work… but don’t want to buy on speculation and hope.

Lastly... want it to be useable in alpine mode as well inbounds.  Won't replace my other setup... but it will be my go to set for pow daze.

Looking for your advice and wisdom. Can you help a blistered guy out?  Thanks!

-tob

Scarpa are for wide feet; Garmont are for narrow feet.
You can blister your feet quite capably in touring boots.
It's the motion of the ocean, not the boat.

You can probably make a season in alpine boots, but touring boots are much more comfortable for a variety of reasons. You can't safely use all touring boots in alpine bindings because of the vibram sole.

Things to reduce blistering: I've heard all manner. Tighten boots, loosen your boots. I like to tour with my boots fairly tight, and I like to wear thick socks. Some people say thin socks are better, but they weren't for me.

Pay attention to the rubbing. If you feel rubbing and irritation in the first few minutes, then figure out how to stabilise your foot. Also, if you tour enough, the boot/motion will rub away a lot of the leg hair on your shins.

If you're a women, this could be wonderful. If you're a man, it can result in teasing.

My advice is to get the most tourable/walkable AT boot that fits and that your skiing style and ability allow.  90%+ of touring is uphill or flat, even for the strongest tourist, so you'll be glad you have tourable boots.  It's also very fun to hone skills necessary to ski the new ultralight ultratourable boots (e.g., TLT5, Maestrale, Rush), which ski way better than you might think at first glance, especially with easy-to-turn skis like the Coomback (relatively tight radius, rocker tip, soft tail).  Some will likely disagree with me, but I can tellya you'll see 10X more of those ultratourable boots than stiff (e.g., Titan, Zzeus, Mobe) boots once you get more than a couple miles away from the car.   

An AT rig works great for lift skiing on powder days. 

Agree with CM that generally Scarpa = high volume/wide and Garmont = low volume/narrow.  There are exceptions, e.g., Scarpa F1, F3, Rush, Maestrale are lower volume than other Scarpa boots which are boxy.  Most but not all Dynafit boots are medium width and medium volume.

ETA: Oops.  TLT5 and some other ultratourable boots are compatible only with tech (e.g., Dynafit) bindings and won't fit in your Fritschis.

Thanks guys.... good stuff for me to chew on. Stopped by Marmot today and Eric was great. I think the next step is literally spending time trying on different boots and zeroing in on a fit.

Curious... do folks modify their fit before they get on a mtn? Or... find they need to mod it after a trip? How likely is a boot going to give an ideal fit at the store? Obvious ones get ruled out.... but others?

How do I know someone is competent to punch and more on a new set and I'll achieve nirvana?

Any boot gods you recommend to see and buy from?

thxs

I use a bootfitter; and what i do is tour a day, then take them in, the adjustments are made, and sometimes repeat the process. Pat Sullivan of Alpine Pro Performance is whom i know and recommend, but he is in Post Falls, Id.

And then custom orthodics made by a bootfitter. For me what happens is skinning and uphill travel push my feet to the insides of the boot-which causes problems if i go a lot.

and my heels are narrow and instep is wide-so i appreciate the bootfitters

* I wouldn't modify your boots until you've skiied on them a few times.
* You're going to experience some initial discomfort even if the "in store" fit is great.
* You might find an ideal fit and still get blisters until you figure out why you're getting blisters.
* Learning how to skin correctly is tremendously valuable.
* BigSteve's advice: go lighter and softer is absolutely right. Especially for calf comfort ( which is important ).
* Skiing in light/soft touring boots usually requires attention to balance and centre. Much more forward lean as well.

If you haven't already purchased a copy and want to boost your technical skills:

* Backcountry Skiing: Skills for ski touring and ski mountaineering by Volken, Wheeler, and Schell.