# Help with new boots.



## zmac18 (Feb 19, 2019)

hello, I posted this earlier but can't seem to find the post so reposting somewhat.

Had the same boots for 9 years looking to upgrade. When I first started riding I would go 30+ times a year to a small ski hill near my house, very very small, for the first 2 years I was riding. Now I only ride 2-3 times a year most only when I travel to CO or MN usually. shoe size is a 10. I ride groomer, trees, powder, park. Basically everything. I am looking for a pair of boots around the $250 range. I have awful heel lift in my old boots, no surprise after 9 years, but that is something I want to resolve with new boots. Prefer traditional lacing or BOA (double). 

A few boots I have my eye on

2019 DC mutiny
2019 DC Judge (too stiff?)
2019 DC tucknee (love these but can't find much info from actual people riding them, probably not a good thing)
Vans Aura pro BOA
2019 Adidas Samba
Heard good things about 32 lashed but I am just not a huge fan of most of their boots also heard they are bulky, would rather have a lower profile boot.

any suggestions would be awesome and appreciated. Thank you all.


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## Buzzdog (Jan 14, 2019)

I’ve tried on Ride boots that have the boa tongue-tied system like the Lasso, insano, trident and they really hold the heel down. Those would get my vote for heel hold. I think the K2 Maysis have a similar system but their durability is questionable according to some reviews. I have some Burton imperials and the heel pocket is larger than the Rides and I don’t get great heel hold in those. Gonna try to add some J-bars and see. 
I have some thirty two TM-two XLTs on the way and will see how they compare to the last two pair I’ve had. I’ve never tried DC’s or the Vans. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## buller_scott (Jun 10, 2018)

hi zmac, 

whilst not EXACTLY the same as your situation, last season i had to purchase new boots to replace my almost-new 32 binary boas. this was because of collapsed arches and feet that are now VERY sensitive to pressure points in the lacing system. 

combine that with my constant challenges in getting decent heel hold [for years i used to run lace boots, with 2x sets of laces per pair, so that i could get the tightest heel hold possible], finding a new boot that had upper and lower zones that were ACTUALLY independent of one another [ie the top zone did not clamp down on the top of the foot / the lower zone did not creep up past the ankle to the front of the shin], was pretty tricky. 

check out Salomon boots - either the dialogue, or the synapse. the moment i tried my dialogues on, i was like "oh wow!". i yank the shit out of the lacing system [to get good heel hold in the lower zone], and it clamps my ankle down, tightening right across the crest between ankle and lower shin - best heel hold i've had since i dont know when. and the laces are in good nick after 40 days. 

on the subject of DC Judges, my mate has them, and has reported issues with pressure points at the top of the foot - in an effort to get tight heel hold, he has to clamp them down so tight that he now has excess pressure across the top of his foot. i do appreciate that whilst he was supposedly sized properly [his second pair, after returning his first due to incorrect sizing by shop staff], there could still be play in that equation. 

if i had my time again, but now, i'd be eyeing up the salmon range, the nidecker tracer [BOA for most of the boot, and separate fast lace for JUST the ankle - looks very, very intriguing], burton looks to have truly independent lacing and Kevin from Angry Snowboarder lauds the burton fast lacing system as as good as fast lacing systems get. 

food for thought!


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## Kenai (Dec 15, 2013)

Have you read the boot fitting threads? What are your foot measurements? If you don’t know the answer to the second question, do the thing in the first question. Seriously. All the brand advice in the world doesn’t matter until you have the right size.


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## SlvrDragon50 (Mar 25, 2017)

Kenai said:


> Have you read the boot fitting threads? What are your foot measurements? If you don’t know the answer to the second question, do the thing in the first question. Seriously. All the brand advice in the world doesn’t matter until you have the right size.


Especially since there are width differences between companies!


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## zmac18 (Feb 19, 2019)

@Kenai are there certain threads you are referring to? I didn't see much for boot fitting unless you just meant the threads about boots in general. New to this site so still trying to figure out everything. thank you all for your responses though.


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## Kenai (Dec 15, 2013)

zmac18 said:


> @Kenai are there certain threads you are referring to? I didn't see much for boot fitting unless you just meant the threads about boots in general. New to this site so still trying to figure out everything. thank you all for your responses though.


Here is a good place to start. 

https://www.snowboardingforum.com/boots/157737-snowboard-boot-size-web-tool-mondo.html

Also the sticky in the boots section. 

https://www.snowboardingforum.com/boots/51066-boots-faq-etc.html


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Z the default presumption is that you will need to mod any boot. It might be heel lift, hotspots, a slight bit too much or not enough volume, insole/arch and seemingly endless issues. For most there is only so much the correct size and fitting boot can do. So then you must also continue into the realm of "what are and how to do the boot mods" to get boots fitting like slippers and giving the performance that is required? Patience and determination are key.

However if you only ride a few days a season...ya might be doomed to ill fitting boots. I just fitted and modded a new pair of boots...took me 6 days of riding and additional...a total of 15-20 hours of mod and going to the bootfitter....but now they fit and perform great and these particular boots are expected to last me a few years of solid riding.

edit: btw...so you got 9 years of riding 3 days/year...so 27 days on boots...that's a rather poor return on yer investment. If you are only getting heel lift and otherwise the boots are in good condition...it might be worth figuring out some mods.


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## zmac18 (Feb 19, 2019)

Thank you I will be sure to look into those.


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## zmac18 (Feb 19, 2019)

hey wrath I take back the 2-3 times a year somewhat, when I first started snowboarding I use to go probably 30 plus times for the first 2 years because I had a small snowboard "resort" if you want to call it that, so I use to go all the time, then moved for college and barely went, when returning home the place decided to stop doing ski and snowboard and only do tubing and crap like that so now I only go when I can travel to CO or MN usually. most of the damage was done the first couple years. Sorry for the confusion I should update that. But excellent points you made I never really even thought of doing stuff like that instead just dealing with what I had lol. Appreciate the quick responses.


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## buller_scott (Jun 10, 2018)

wrathfuldeity said:


> Z the default presumption is that you will need to mod any boot. It might be heel lift, hotspots, a slight bit too much or not enough volume, insole/arch and seemingly endless issues. For most there is only so much the correct size and fitting boot can do. So then you must also continue into the realm of "what are and how to do the boot mods" to get boots fitting like slippers and giving the performance that is required? Patience and determination are key.
> 
> However if you only ride a few days a season...ya might be doomed to ill fitting boots. I just fitted and modded a new pair of boots...took me 6 days of riding and additional...a total of 15-20 hours of mod and going to the bootfitter....but now they fit and perform great and these particular boots are expected to last me a few years of solid riding.


Wrathful has a point, and as he points out, it might be something you have to "push through", given how few days you ride per year. 

one suggestion i will make, perhaps not specific to heel hold but certainly to overall foot comfort, is proper footbeds. 

here in australia, you can drop more than half a grand on a pair of boots, and the footbeds are about as good as the ones you get in $15 shoes from k-mart. 

do yourself a favour and get good footbeds, with proper arch support and heel cupping, and that will make a positive contribution to your overall comfort.


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## Oldman (Mar 7, 2012)

Don't lose sight of the fact that it is not a question of which brand, it is all about which boot fits you. 

You are not shopping brand, you are shopping fit.


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## DBusby (Feb 23, 2019)

It's great that your having a look around at some different boots. Heel lift is normally caused because the boot is to wide for your foot. I'm a similar way bumps on the feet from swelling and varakas veins can come from a boot that's too tight. Any good boot shop should take you and measure your feet. They will get the length and should get the width at 3 points along the foot. From there they can get a boot that fits and gets rid of the heel lift. As you like all mountain riding there's loads of boots that are great for that.


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## cliffjumper68 (Nov 30, 2018)

FYI Adidas Sambas run wide, I'd say atleast EE, so if you have regular width feet you might get some slop.


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