# How to test for heel hold and heel lift when trying on boots?



## RayzTheRoof (Mar 10, 2014)

Ordered 3 pairs online, time to try them all on. But how do you guys know whether or not your heel is gonna lift while riding? What kind of position and tests do you try out when trying boots on?


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## bazman (Jan 15, 2017)

Wear your (thin) snowboard socks.
Put the boots on, kick your heel into the rear of the boot.
Bend your ankle a bit to match the forward lean of the boot, then tighten the inner harness.
Do up the outer lacing (or boa, etc)
Stand in athletic position and see how the boot feels.
Your toes should be touching the front of the liner, but there shouldn't be any pain points.
To test for heel lift, balance on the balls of your feet on a step, and bounce up and down on your toes
Some heel lift is normal, but there shouldn't be much

Be aware that the liner will pack out and the boots will get looser over time.
They should be very snug (or even too snug) to start with so that they loosen to the perfect size


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## Radialhead (Jan 3, 2018)

I just hold the boot heel down with my other foot & try to lift my heel. I have basically zero heel lift. One important point is to push the top of the liner's tongue down hard so you're pushing the liner into the front of your ankle & top of your foot before tightening it. Then do the same with the boot tongue. That makes the difference between zero heel lift & too much heel lift in my boots.


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## Myoko (Dec 11, 2018)

Some things you really need to try on before you buy, snowboard boots are one of those things. I think it's a mistake randomly picking boots online and hoping they fit your foot, but I hope it works out for you.


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## ridethecliche (Feb 27, 2019)

Myoko said:


> Some things you really need to try on before you buy, snowboard boots are one of those things. I think it's a mistake randomly picking boots online and hoping they fit your foot, but I hope it works out for you.


Which is why he's buying lots of boots from places with a decent return policy and trying them all on so he can see what works for him...


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Thin socks on, boots on and tightened, strap in board to ride the carpet. Have someone step on your board...placing their foot between the bindings on the heelside to hold the board down. Then you move around like you are riding/carving toeside...got heel lift? You could even do this at a store when trying on boots. However, imho, most all boots will have some heel lift or at least develop some as the liners pack.

Side note, if you got heel lift...newbs try to compensate by going tippy toes instead of squatting into the binding ankle strap. So sometimes, if you notice that you are tippy toes, it can indicate that you have some heel lift.


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## Myoko (Dec 11, 2018)

ridethecliche said:


> Which is why he's buying lots of boots from places with a decent return policy and trying them all on so he can see what works for him...


Yup, I still think a good boot fitter is worth their weight in gold and this is not a good way to get well fitted boots.


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## MrDavey2Shoes (Mar 5, 2018)

Myoko said:


> Yup, I still think a good boot fitter is worth their weight in gold and this is not a good way to get well fitted boots.


There it is...

my boots have discontinued and my boot fitter left the state. Going to be fun.


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## Myoko (Dec 11, 2018)

MrDavey2Shoes said:


> There it is...
> 
> my boots have discontinued and my boot fitter left the state. Going to be fun.


So that raises an interesting question someone might be able to answer as it affects me also atm as I have no snowboard boots currently having thrown mine away last season. My feet seem to fit ThirtyTwo boots (3 out of last 4 times anyway) of which there are so many models. Is it safe to assume if your exact model no longer is available then you start the search all over again?


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## ridethecliche (Feb 27, 2019)

MrDavey2Shoes said:


> There it is...
> 
> my boots have discontinued and my boot fitter left the state. Going to be fun.


Why haven't you bought multiple sets of those Adidas NOS yet?!


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