2016 Powderlife Magazine Article

In Powderlife Magazine's 2016 edition, Owner and Podiatrist Ned Buckley shares his expert advice on choosing the best ski boots for Niseko's unique terrain. 

Why you need Custom Orthotics

Regardless of skiing ability or the shape and mechanics of your foot, every skier and snowboarder can benefit from custom footbeds (or orthotics) in their boots.

Footbeds help to take your boots to the next level by providing superior fit, support, and comfort. They help to stabilise your foot and correct your posture, so that the energy you exert while skiing is transferred directly to your skis, rather than being lost in your boot. This ultimately results in less fatigue, less discomfort and better skiing performance.

The biomechanics

The motion of skiing results in a lot of force directed through the feet in a way that is not the same as walking or during other activities.  During each turn, a large amount of the body’s weight is transferred to the inside edge of the foot, directly down through the midfoot and into the arch. Depending on your foot type, without the support of a custom orthotic, this position and movement may cause some of the following adverse affects: 

• The arch collapses and the foot rotates laterally (towards the outside) in the transverse plane, squeezing the outside of the foot.

• The arch collapsing means that at the same time the tibia (shin bone) rotates medially (inwards) exposing ankle bone to the upper inside of the boot which can rub due to excessive pressure and movement in and out as well as up and down.  

• As the arch collapses and foot pronates (three way movement) in the boot, the bones of the midfoot can unlock and the foot spreads causing increased pressure along the big toe and 5th toe.

• The foot also lengthens as a result of spreading, causing the toes to hit the front of the boot.

• The medial (inside) ankle bone ends up awkwardly positioned on the lower ridge of the boot’s ankle pocket, causing pressure and rubbing.

• The arch is unstable, so it is unable to act as a shock absorber and therefore shock is transferred to the knee.

• The multidirectional movements of the leg irritate the shin and pinch the calf.

• Leg muscles at the front and back of the leg work overtime to pull the foot back and stabilise it in the boot during and between turns, which can lead to shin pain and tendonitis at the front and calf pain at the back.

• Without adequate ankle range of motion, a combination the starting forward lean of boot and the flexing of the ankle in a turn can cause the heel to rise up and shift the weight of the body forward to the front of the boot, increasing pressure to the forefoot, causing pain and numbness.

• Pressure caused by the misalignment of the leg/foot in the boot can lead to impingements of the nerves and arteries, leading to cold, numbness and pain.

Improved Comfort

A custom insole or orthotic that offers the right combination of control, support, and flex, can go a long way in correcting the above fit issues. The insole holds the foot in a powerful neutral pose, which in turn supports all of the muscles and ligaments of the foot. As a result, the foot will stay centred in the middle of the boot and the insole will support and align the ankle bones and instep bones in a comfortable position. 

Improved Performance 

And with the improved fit, comes better performance. A footbed preserves neutral position, stops wasted motion, and markedly improves edging efficiency. A skier will set and release their edge quicker, without over-twisting the knee.

To find out more about the process of making custom orthotics and FAQs, please visit http://www.bootsolutionsjapan.com/custom-orthotics/

The Best Boot Models for Niseko's Unique Terrain

Boot fitters worldwide will agree that accurately matching the size, shape and flex of a ski boot with a skier’s anatomy and ability is crucial when selecting a boot model.  However, a well-fitting boot is only part of the picture. Skier’s also need to ensure the boot they choose is compatible with their type of skiing and the terrain they plan toski. So we’ve put together our recommendations for the best ski boot models for those wishing to make the most of Niseko’s unique combination of lift accessed and short hike-to-powder skiing terrain.

What type of skier are you? 

An All Mountain Traditionalist, an All Mountain Adventurer or a Backcountry Adventurer? By identifying which category you fall into will help guide your choice of ski boot.

Will you be skiing off-piste?

If your answer is yes, whether it be a dabble into knee-deep powder at the sides of the groomed runs, or an aggressive early morning assault of the superidge, you will need something that skis well off piste and ideally matches a freeride style of skiing. Freeride boots tend to have lower ramp angles to facilitate the occasional backseat position as well as allow good close feel of the ski underfoot.  They will also have some inbuilt shock absorbing material underfoot to dampen the jarring forces of rough terrain and variable snow. For those spending most of their time in resort then the All Mountain Traditionalist boot with freeride specs is what you want!

Our All Mountain Traditionalist pick:  Men’s K2 Spyne/Women’s K2 Spyre

• Low ramp angle boot board facilitates better weight position for powder skiing
• Rear cuff is forgiving in the backseat (powder seat)
• Rivet free cuff lock allows smoother ride in varied terrain and snow conditions
• Fully moldable Intuition liner
• Varied flex options
• Three last width options: caters for narrow, medium and wide feet
• Dual Cuff alignment: so the boot can be adjusted to perfectly match skier’s leg shape

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Will you want to hike? 

On a good clear day the hike-to-the peak is a must. Also, those who ski at Hanazono will at some stage look out towards the east face of the mountain and want to explore everything there is to offer in that direction. Skiing this terrain will require some extra traversing and a decent hike in and out of some places.  For these All Mountain Adventurers, choosing a ski boot with a “Hike Mode” is highly recommended. Hike mode essentially allows the upper cuff of the ski boot to unlock and allow for the ankle to move more freely, allowing for a more natural walking gait. This takes considerable strain off the knees and hips when climbing or walking in deep snow.

Our All Mountain Adventurer Pick: Men’s Dalbello Panterra/Women’s Dalbello Kyra

• Hike mode mechanism is easy to engage/disengage and offers a good range of motion for easy movement up the mountain when skinning and through deep snow when hiking.
   
• Centre balanced rocker stance: optimum control of wider skis and easy balance in powder ( less back seat) 
   
• High grip rubber soles allow easy grip on packed powder and steep hike ascents Relatively light weight but does not give up downhill performance
   
• Smooth and responsive flex optimized for all mountain skis and powder conditions
   
• Width adjustment from wide to medium fit
   
• Optional custom moldable Intuition liner: (the warmest on the market)

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Will you be going skinning? 

Fancy going a little bit further into the wilderness?  Guided backcountry tours are fast becoming very popular and Niseko is blessed with an abundance of easy access, relatively safe terrain for skiers of all levels to explore and enjoy. If you plan to spend a majority of your time skinning up mountains and hiking from the roadside, then a backcountry-touring style boot is essential. There is a vast range of boots on offer in this category that are really lightweight with plenty of cuff range in hike mode.  However, buyers should be aware that many of these lightweight, easy-hike models don’t perform as well downhill as traditional boots. And considering the majority of ski touring around the Niseko region consists of short hikes with amazing powder filled descents, it’s recommended you choose a model that is light, but still performs to a level that allows maximum powder froth when descending!  

Our Backcountry Adventurer Pick: Unisex Dynafit Vulcan

• Designed for freeriders, this super light (only 1600gms) boot hikes well and skies brilliantly
  
  
• The stiffness of the boot is equal to the most solid of downhill ski boots and can therefore handle fat skis with ease, and skis varied powder terrain with good responsiveness
  
  
• Overall it is a great compromise between skiing well on powder skis, and keeping a light weight boot with high range of motion for fast and easy hike up. Compatible with a large number of touring and freeride bindings
  
  
• Thermomoldable liner

How biomechanics affects your ski game

Biomechanics in sport involves the observation, study and assessment of the way people move in space using scientific principles of mechanical physics. Biomechanics play a major role in skiing, as skiing well requires the body to be doing all the right things at the right times when moving down the mountain. Making turns efficiently and with fluidity on your skis requires balance and coordination, which can only be achieved through the complex interactions that your body has with your equipment as well as the terrain that you are skiing. 

Alignment in skiing can have a huge impact on one's fatigue or ability to perform certain ski movements. If the alignment is too far out it becomes impossible to let your body move in the way it should.  Unfortunately many people do not naturally possess a neutral skiing stance and instead are prone to various degrees of alignment issues such as excessive foot pronation (rolling the foot in), abnormal femoral or tibial torsional issues, problems with their hips and/or lower backs and leg length discrepancies just to mention a few... Just being either slightly knock-kneed or bow-legged can affect skiing alignment. Thankfully, there are a number of ways to overcome this: 

• Custom orthotics: Regardless of the shape or mechanics of your feet, footbeds help to take your boots to the next level by providing superior fit, support, and comfort.   They help to stabilise your foot and help correct your foot posture, so that the energy you exert while skiing is transferred directly to your skis, rather than being lost in your boot. This ultimately results in less fatigue, less discomfort and better skiing performance.

• Cuff alignment:  Available on most ski boot models, cuff alignment specifically deals with the inward or outward angling of your upper cuff; it does not involve an adjustment to the lower shell. The purpose of this adjustment is to match the angle of the upper cuff to the curvature of your lower leg so that you're able to apply equal pressure to your skis when standing in a natural stance.  This results in greater comfort, control, and more responsive skiing.
   
• Canting: Canting refers to tilting or angling the entire ski boot laterally to achieve a neutral stance, meaning your heels, ankles, knees and hips are all correctly aligned.  Initially this is done by placing temporary wedges under the boot. Once the skier is happy with the adjusted angle, the boot fitter will grind the sole of the boot to create a permanent cant.    A properly canted boot will bring your knee into its natural position, vertically above the centre of your foot and will provide much better precision on the slopes.

An experienced boot fitter will be able to conduct a comprehensive biomechanical assessment and then implement the appropriate measures to get you all 'dialled in' so that your whole body is correctly aligned. This will set you on the right path to achieving your full skiing potential and ultimately just having more fun on the mountain!

Why Shape Matters

In last week's post, we looked at the important of choosing the correct size ski boot.  Today we are going to focus on boot shape. Many of the common problems related to discomfort in ski boots stem from a mismatch between the shape of the boot and the shape of the leg/foot. Many people have variations in their foot shape like bony prominences or small anatomical peculiarities that make it necessary for them to have some customisation done to increase their comfort and performance. 

For ski boots to be comfortable and perform optimally,   there must be a certain degree of compatibility between boot shape and foot shape. Incorrect shape can lead to many of the painful conditions that our bootfitters regularly encounter in their clients.

Boot shape is a highly personal thing: Some skiers want ultimate performance and are willing to forego a certain amount of comfort to achieve this by squeezing their feet into a smaller, narrower boot that will provide ultimate energy transmission from leg to ski. On the other hand, some skiers are happy to forgo a certain amount of performance to achieve a higher level of comfort. Going further with this, there are also individual tolerance levels that come into play; some people simply don't feel or distinguish discomfort in the same way that others do, or they have conditioned their feet due to many hours in ski boots.   

It is very difficult to perfectly match the shape of boots to each foot, as the manufacturers make a standard mould, and for this reason we often customise the boots to further match the individual shape of the foot. 

Many of the models that we carry in stock now have customisable shells, making it further possible to provide the ultimate in customisation. See our page on boot fitting options. 

Some common Foot/Boot Shape considerations:

Foot/Toe Length: People vary in the length of their feet and individual length of the toes. They may have longer first or second toes or they may have all toes of closer length to each other.

Toe Box Shape: The shape of the boot toe box should match the overall curve and shape of the toes as a whole. A couple examples might include a pointed shape vs a squared-off shape: The pointed shape might have a longest second toe and other toes that each fall sharply shorter in length compared to the other, producing a situation where a more tapered toe-box is better. Alternatively, the person with toes thar have a squared-off appearance due to less variation in toe length will require a boot that is more squared-off at the toe box, or may indeed need a slight modification to make the shell wider in key areas.

Width: All boot models fit slightly differently in width. Often the overall width of the boot is advertised and classified as an overall last size. Some boot company websites display last sizes in millimetres. As a general rule, boots classified in last size 98mm or narrower may be recognised as a narrower fit. Boots ranging from 99mm-101mm are medium and anything 102mm or above fall into the wider fit category. 

There are no hard and fast rules with regards to what last size one should ski in, however for general comfort with maximum performance, a closer fit is desirable.

Arch Height and Instep: The amount of space provided over the instep of the foot is a very important consideration. There are various anatomical structures over the dorsum (upper surface) of the foot, which require the boot to fit correctly to prevent impingement and pain.

If the boot is too tight over the dorsum, then the skier may experience symptoms that are due to nerve, and blood supply/return impingement. It is also common for people to have bony prominences over the dorsum, which rub against the tongue of the shell. These problems may be combated by appropriate selection of boot shell and liner combination along with further modifications if needed.

If the boot is too roomy over the dorsum of the foot and anterior ankle, then people may experience muscle and tendon pain, shin pain and soft tissue problems, from excessive rubbing and movement as well as incorrect conformity of the curve of the boot with the position of the feet.     

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Ankle positioning: Boot manufacturers will often place a small indent in the position where they envision the ankle bones to be positioned in the boot. Due to anatomical variation, every skier's ankles will be slightly differently positioned in their boots, meaning that sometimes these simply miss the spot, or are so far off so as to cause a problem. There is also often a hinge point in the boot with rivets close to the ankle bones that can cause a rub. The combination of correcting footbeds/orthotics, the choice of most appropriate shell and further modification as needed can overcome these issues.  At the front of the ankle it is important that the boot bends in concordance with how you foot bends - this is crucial to prevent lower shin bang!   

Heel contour and retention: Heel retention is a desirable aspect of a well fitting boot. The heel retention in ski boots is achieved through a combination of the shape of the contour inside the shell, as well as materials used in the liner to effect a good heel hold. All boot brands have different combinations of these in the various models.  An often overlooked circumstance is the fact that behind the ankles, either side of the heel is where a considerable number of anatomical structures exist: The main nerve, arteries and veins as well as the tendons all pass by the heel and into the foot. For this reason it is very important that the boot fits well in this area! Not too tight, not too loose. It is important to note that for anatomical/mechanical reasons, it is sometimes impossible to keep the heel from lifting, regardless of how firm the boot is in this area. In this case, modifications can be made to help combat this problem. 

Forward Lean:  The amount of forward lean or angle that the boot is set on  compared to the surface the skier is standing on plays a significant role in your skiing style. Thiswill be further discussed in next week's post about Flex, however, for some people the forward lean is an important consideration: People with limited amount of natural ankle flexion, or people who are just learning to ski might want less forward lean in their boots. On the other hand, skiers who are likely to be flexing their ankle a lot in their skiing action, such as bumps skiers or instructors might prefer a boot with more forward lean. There are some circumstances where the forward lean of the boot is a crucial consideration in the overall comfort and performance.

Upper Cuff Volume: Narrow, slimmer-legged people require boots with less volume in the upper cuff and/or more padding. People with wider, more voluminous calves/lower legs often require lower cuffed, wider fitting boots in that area. 

Boots can easily be modified to provide extra padding or more room around the calf area provided that  the overall starting shape is within acceptable limits.  

Tune in next week for our article on understanding ski boot flex. 

Choosing The Correct Boot Size

The correct boot size is one of the most crucial things to get right!

While shape and flex are  important factors when choosing the correct ski boot, for this article we will focus on size considerations. Having the wrong size may lead to many problems and ultimately the premature need to have new, correctly sized boots fitted. Incorrect sizing from another retailer or boots purchased online is the number one problem encountered by our boot fitters.  

There are many considerations to be made depending on the shape of the foot and the skier type as well as personal preference, however, as a general rule, the boots must be as close to the correct size in length as possible. Ideally the skier will have just enough toe room to keep warm and prevent the toes from pressing into the end of the boots. Quite often your ski/snowboard boot size will be smaller than your shoe size.

When a ski boot is brand-new, the liners have not been fully moulded to the contour of the shell, and so it is very common for people to perceive the out-of-the box fit as too small. All good bootfitters will double-check the available room that your foot has by removing the liner and placing the foot in the boot shell. This enables them to examine the interface between the foot and the interior shell of the boot, taking into consideration not only the length, but also the width and height of the boot, as this ultimately determines the fit.

Other considerations:

1. Your foot size may change with added orthotic support. 

Your foot type can also have some bearing on the right size for you: Some people's feet can splay significantly without innersole support. The addition of a custom footbed/orthotic can often significantly alter the size of the foot due to splay-reduction to the point where a smaller size may be more appropriate.   This is a consideration any master bootfitter will take into account after assessing your feet.     

2. Not all boot brands and models have the same sizing standards! 

Most boot companies display the sizes of their boots in mondopoint, which is a standardised measurement system, however, there is slight variation from brand to brand and model to model which makes physical assessment of the foot in each boot a necessity. In some circumstances, you may have a foot which suits two different sizes depending on the different models. 

3. Ski boots are often made in full sizes

Ski boots generally change their shells in full sizes. Most companies make boots that go up a full size for each change in sole length (the actual length of the plastic shell from heel to toe), ie 26/26.5 = 305 mm, next size up 27/27.5 = 315mm, 28/28.5 = 325mm etc. This means that essentially there is little difference in half sizes in ski boots.  Some brands chose to split the half sizes, ie 27.5/28= 320mm, 28.5/20=330mm etc.