# Pain from ankle strap...boots or bindings?



## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

iirc there is a nerve that sits on the top of the foot....wiredsport and ba would know. But you might able to adjust the tongue, or adjust your ankle strap to a higher position or get a piece of boot fitting foam to fit on your foot, heat up your liner and mould it while standing and strapped in. Then remove the boot fitting foam on you foot and it will give you abit of pressure relief at that hot spot or shave a bit of the liner where the hot spot is.


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## northidahomike (Dec 29, 2016)

Gotcha I'll look into those. I'm wondering why this has never happened before. I've had hot spots just about everywhere else with other boots, now those fit perfectly but are giving me pain in this new spot...possibly due to the reduced size of the boot (not much padding) they are definitely the smallest profile boots I've ever used


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

dont crank your bindings so hard?

(not responsible for double ejection)


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## SnowDragon (Apr 23, 2012)

Haven't you answered your own question?

You say you are perfectly comfortable when walking in your boots, but feel pain when strapped in at your ankles.
Sounds like a binding problem.
And as mentioned above, you are likely cranking the straps too tightly.


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## datrumole (Feb 2, 2017)

i was able to secure a pair of tactical advs, and i normally wear a 10, but i feel like i could have gone down to a 9.5 in these boots. i too am experiencing 'top of foot pain' which despite everyone saying bindings, do not experience in a pair of TM-TWOs with the same bindings. this seems pretty common for a number of reviews/feedback people are posting about the adidas.

they feel like the most comfortable boot ever out of binding, but once strapped in, pain ensues. again, logic would tell you it's the binding, but i firmly believe it's the boot as i do not get the same pain in another other boot. the binding may simply be exaggerating the real issue which is where the boot naturally bends upward to form the 'nook' for your ankle

what i'm thinking is the following, since we are both getting it at the top of the foot, my theory is that the boot curve is a little too far out. which is why i believe if i had a half size smaller, that would bring the curve closer to my shin/ankle joint, where i actually want that pressure for the heal hold. 

since adidas are virtually impossible to find in store let alone online, finding a 9.5 boot to prove out my theory will simply have to wait until next year. until then, the 10's are headed to the swap (two days of riding, never molded)

i will say, after the second day of riding, the top of the foot pain seemed to have subdued a little, but the TM-TWOs, heat molded, with superfeet greens have been the most comfortable boot to ride in for me. zero foot pain at the end of the long days. the adidas i feel like i could wear as a shoe all day, they are really that comfortable, but once strapped in, the foot pain is unbearable, even worse on the chair


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## heymonroe (Feb 22, 2018)

datrumole said:


> i was able to secure a pair of tactical advs, and i normally wear a 10, but i feel like i could have gone down to a 9.5 in these boots. i too am experiencing 'top of foot pain' which despite everyone saying bindings, do not experience in a pair of TM-TWOs with the same bindings. this seems pretty common for a number of reviews/feedback people are posting about the adidas.
> 
> they feel like the most comfortable boot ever out of binding, but once strapped in, pain ensues. again, logic would tell you it's the binding, but i firmly believe it's the boot as i do not get the same pain in another other boot. the binding may simply be exaggerating the real issue which is where the boot naturally bends upward to form the 'nook' for your ankle
> 
> ...


I literally just picked up some Tactical ADV 10's myself, yesterday. And while I haven't ridden them yet, strapped in at the house bouncing around they feel incredible. I'm on paper a 9.5 as well (27.5 Mondo) but I wore sz 10 Nike Kaijus for years, and these at least out of the box and around the house feel great. I'll keep a look out for this pain you are both referring to since physically I appear to be in the same boat as the both of you. 

I would, if I were you, try some other bindings or swap out the ankle strap just to do a test.


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## auben (Feb 24, 2018)

Hay all, I'm really interested in this thread. i am zeroing in on these(tacical or acerra) as a possible next boot
i read different reviews saying the same thing & heard the pressure was bad on the 17 tacticals but improved for 2018. i dont know if the response adv is the same deal as its a different boot? are you guys rocking 2017s or 2018s?
is there any part of the boot structure which corresponds to that pressure zone? internal harness or something in/on the tongue or lace? 
is the ankle strap of the binding wrapping evenly applying even pressure over that area? or is the leading or upper edge digging in more?(depends on the type of ankle strap).
Can you adjust or reposition the ankle strap to try to apply less pressure in the pain zone by trying different mounting hole positions or flip/swap the straps(left to right foot) like some bindings can do? 
is the tongue creating a pointy corner at the bend which digs in when they're strapped?
Is the tongue hard & can you alter the radius of the tongue or soften/cushion/pad it in that zone somehow? 
Just thinking aloud but trying to think of some things to check ..im no expert.
these boots seem so nice it may be worth it to persevere with some experimentation but it's ultimately your foot & you gotta be comfortable otherwise its less fun.
good luck & let us know if you zero in on the cause of the problem & if you could overcome it as it may help a bunch of people with similar probs.
cheers & good luck.


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## heymonroe (Feb 22, 2018)

@datrumole & @northidahomike

Approximately where are you getting the foot pain. These are Size 10 and strapped in to my M Atlases:


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## auben (Feb 24, 2018)

Hi guys, when i did a search i found these quotes from an earlier thread..

..I find that hotspot in the Tactical as well, but if you tie loosely at the ankle, where the loop is that's attached to the tongue, it totally relieves that hotspot, and then continue tying as you like.

..I also found that if you take the laces straight from that looped strap that crosses over the ankle, and then directly up (rather than across) to the lace-hook above them, that alleviates some of the pressure as well.

dunno if/how it affects heelhold? but maybe worth a try.

cheers


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## heymonroe (Feb 22, 2018)

So, just got back from my first day with the tacticals. I can confirm this same exact pain under the ankle strap on the instep. I can say 100% without a doubt, that it's the boot. Specifically, where the tongue curves up with the natural curve of the foot into the ankle. I replicated the pain unstrapped as well by walking like an idiot leaning forward with each step as if I was turning. 

I'm only experiencing the pain on my left (front) foot, which makes sense since it's a tad bigger.

On my last run, I re-laced my left boot and when I did it, I was leaning forward as much as I could (basically, on my toes) as I tightened them. This seems to have given the tongue enough room to be pressed down without pushing into the instep, and fixed it, as I experienced no problems on that last run. I think heat-molding these while leaning forward will actually help break that portion of the boot in. I'm going to try that tomorrow.


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## auben (Feb 24, 2018)

awesome HM sounds really promising, thanks for the update & congrats on getting up the hill.
glad you managed to dirty it down some, cos those pics of your rig looked far too shiny.:grin:


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## northidahomike (Dec 29, 2016)

Wanted to update this thread Incase anybody does some searching and is looking for info on this boot. I’ve tried them with several different bindings and the pain stays the same. The only way they are not painful is if I leave the ankle strap loose enough for my boot to move around in the binding. They are supper comfortable boots until you strap in in them. I think it has to do with the shape of the boot where it comes over the top of your foot and up the ankle like somebody else mentioned. Also the boots are falling apart and getting holes in them after one season. 
Don’t be fooled by the rating of 4.5 snowflakes from suuurfey to butterz


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## heymonroe (Feb 22, 2018)

northidahomike said:


> Wanted to update this thread Incase anybody does some searching and is looking for info on this boot. I’ve tried them with several different bindings and the pain stays the same. The only way they are not painful is if I leave the ankle strap loose enough for my boot to move around in the binding. They are supper comfortable boots until you strap in in them. I think it has to do with the shape of the boot where it comes over the top of your foot and up the ankle like somebody else mentioned. Also the boots are falling apart and getting holes in them after one season.
> Don’t be fooled by the rating of 4.5 snowflakes from suuurfey to butterz


I can't speak to the holes, but I've managed to get around the pain by doing some lace hacking. I've taken out the top lace cross from the lower section, and when I lace up I go straight up each side on the hooks, and then cross over at the top hook. My foot is still in the boot securely but there are no laces crossing over my foot's instep, this allows me to crank the ankle strap down enough and I don't feel the pressure point. YMMV.


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## northidahomike (Dec 29, 2016)

Right on. I should’ve specified I have the boas. I’ll see if I can mess around with the Boa system and try to get something similar to what you’re doing


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## Vegasrob (Dec 24, 2019)

northidahomike said:


> I just got a pair of adidas response adv boots. Size 9.5. They fit perfectly, very comfy walking around. My feet have normal arches. I use union atlas medium bindings. I get pain in the top of my foot right where the ankle strap comes across. It goes away when I get out of the bindings. Anything I can do to fix this? Is this a boot or binding problem?


I just googled tip of foot hurting from bindings and this pops up. I actually have the same bindings. I never had issues with other bindings


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