October 12, 2004, Muir Snowfield

Indeed a gorgeous day, though the snow pretty much met expectations - the new was patchy and gluey, the old was rather scratchy.

Good views of St. Helens and a nice gentle venting of steam to be seen throughout the day.

Lowell: Thanks for reinforcing my assault on my complacent behavior which caused me to clear that melt crack of snow.  Perhaps my actions can serve as a warning to both myself and others.

-Dave R

But how were the boots?

But how were the boots?

Wow David, you don't miss a thing.  ;)

Over the past couple winters, I've converted from Ramer and Silvretta bindings to Dynafit bindings. But I've missed the ability to use mountain boots with these bindings on certain tours. So I snapped up the last pair of Dynafit Mountain Lite boots that Marmot had. (They've been discontinued.)

They ski like crap--I mean--like a mountain boot. Being an inveterate tinker, I've already swapped out the liners and chopped off the useless high-back. Dave was jealous of how I was able to fit them inside my little daypack for the hike up to Pebble Creek. When I'm done messing with them, Dynafit probably will disown them (and me).

Are those the lace up AT boots?  They tried to sell me on them last year since I was moving from leather.

You mentioned that you still packed them for the hike. They tried to convince me that they would hike well.  Obviously your experience is otherwise.

Alan

I've got a pair of the MLT's.  I've skied with them exactly once - in breakable crust.  It was sketchy!  They really offer no support. (I got them for snowboarding - for which they work well - and thought I may as well get something that fit my ski bindings too).
And yeah, they don't hike much better than a real ski boot with the buckles loosened.

Are those the lace up AT boots? ... You mentioned that you still packed them for the hike. They tried to convince me that they would hike well.  Obviously your experience is otherwise.

Yeah, the lace up ones.

With modification, they should hike better than AT boots. I'm rehabbing a knee problem, so I didn't want to hike too much in them this time.

I cut off the high-back and put my Scarpa Inverno liners in them. The high-back added nothing to skiability, since the cuff doesn't lock, but it limited the ankle flex while walking. I've also split the lacing so that the lower and upper laces can be adjusted independently. This enables you to have a larger range of ankle motion than any AT boot. I like boots like this for "flow days" where you're covering a lot of distance on moderate terrain. That said, I'm not satisfied with the MLT's yet (particularly the boxy fit) and I hope I can get them to work as well as my old Invernos.

4 lb. 9 oz. per pair!

I can see why you want to make them work...

Link

I am thinking to buy one of those! ???
Lowell_skoog, could you please tell me what was alternative for you when you were looking for to find extension of your Inverno's? Why you picked MLT's?
I asume it's step forward from Inverno's.
MLT's are designed for middle ground between skiing and climbing. If you like to climb in them you have to give up some downhill performance. Do you think that make sense?
Do you think that TLT4 is better choice that MLT for climbing/skiing?
Kind regrads,
Z

Though they share much of the same shell, the difference between the TLT4 and the MLT is night and day.  I've got both - the (unmodified) MLT skis like a running shoe, while the TLT4 is relatively stiff with good downhill performance...

Are you happy with TLT 4's?
My friend told me that boot is not step-in crampon compatible. When I look in the model (picture) I can't see why it's not.
I am looking for boot that I can climb some moderate snow and ice routes in SW BC and ski back.
Another boot I am reviewing is Garmont Dynamite. What do you think?
Thanks for your help.
Z

I am thinking to buy one of those! ???
Lowell_skoog, could you please tell me what was alternative for you when you were looking for to find extension of your Inverno's? Why you picked MLT's?
I asume it's step forward from Inverno's.
MLT's are designed for middle ground between skiing and climbing. If you like to climb in them you have to give up some downhill performance. Do you think that make sense?
Do you think that TLT4 is better choice that MLT for climbing/skiing?
Kind regrads,
Z

I already own a pair of Dynafit TLT4 boots. I like them a lot. They are compatible with many step-in crampons, but perhaps not all. I recommend trying your crampons on them before buying because it is possible that the hinge lock may prevent the crampon heel piece from flipping up all the way.

I bought the MLTs because I wanted a mountaineering style boot that worked with my Dynafit bindings. Scarpa Invernos aren't Dynafit compatible. If they were, I wouldn't have bought the MLTs. Another alternative was the Scarpa F1, but I dislike the cable and lever system used on that boot. (Too clunky for climbing.)

My intention is to use the MLTs for trips where I'll be hiking or touring a lot and I don't need the extra control of the TLT4s. Examples would be the Snoqualmie-to-Stampede Pass Patrol Race route and other long day or overnight trips that are dominated by touring, not downhill skiing. Mountaineering style boots tour better but ski worse than regular AT boots like the TLT4. But I've been skiing in mountaineering boots for 25 years and I'm comfortable with what they can and cannot do.

Here's a shot of some friends skiing in mountaineering boots on the Forbidden Glacier in 1987, which I recently posted over on cascadeclimbers.com in a similar discussion thread. Mountaineering boots can take you farther than you might think. I hope Charles won't scold me too much for stretching the one-picture-per-thread rule.

Thanks alot.
In Vancouver BC canada I have no option to see TLT 4's in stores. Only I can order them over the NET. I have Grivel G14 step-in crampons.
One more question and I am out of here:
I heard Dynafit TLT 4's you should buy half a size bigger than your regular boot size because of different shell design.
Are sizes of your Inverno's and TLT's and MLT's the same?
Did you go for 1/2 size bigger?
Thanks for your time. :)
Z

One more question and I am out of here:
I heard Dynafit TLT 4's you should buy half a size bigger than your regular boot size because of different shell design.
Are sizes of your Inverno's and TLT's and MLT's the same?
Did you go for 1/2 size bigger?

I don't know a lot about boot sizing, so I just pulled the liners out of my boots and looked at the numbers molded into the shell. Here's what they say:

Inverno: 10
TLT/MLT: 28-28.5

I believe that Mondo 28 is equal to US 10, but I'm not sure. So it looks like I bought basically the same size boots, but erred on the large size for the Dynafits.

Thanks so much. You helped me a lot.
I will probably go for MLT 4 with Goretex liner, even tough some people are against that. Many preffer Termoformable liner but I think for my kind of skiing really doesn't matter.
Cheers.
Zoka

I agree with Lowell about the Scarpa F1 hardware, even though I really like the boot otherwise - the bellows is great and they ski fairly well for a light boot, but the lever hits you in the butt when you squat down, catches on clothing, is hard to close (you have to hit it squarely with a ski pole handle to latch it when it's cold) and hard to open (requires 2 fingers most times). I wish Scarpa had an AT boot with a bellows and a conventional heel latch, it would probably be just as fast to simply undo the top buckle. Although I've had no cable failures, I also don't especially trust the thin cable connection and carry a spare all the time.