John E

I've got an old hatchback. I just put my boards, skis, bikes, dogs, etc inside. No dirty boards and no garage height worries.

Custom footbeds & Thermoflex liners? If your boots didn't come with moldable liners, this could add $300 to the boots - right?

Do people often use custom footbeds in cunjuction with (inside) Thermoflex liners?

I have a pair of older Raichle hardboots (not sure of the model). They are size 27.5. My feet measure 27.5 (flat foot - no insole). I have not been able to get them to fit comfortably. I don't have them with me here but when I do the finger test, I recall that I have 2+ fingers of space between my heel & the inside of the shell. I have narrow feet (B width). I have been to 3 places in the Boulder area trying to get Thermoflex liners & they all say the shells are too large for me. Because of my narrow foot, I often find that by the time I get boots that are snug enough, my toes are hard against the front. Larry The Bootfitter commented "wow, you have a low-volume foot". Regarding Thermoflex or Intuition liners: does anyone have experience using an insole between the shell & liner to take up volume - before the liners are formed? Would this be a reasonable approach? I'm presently using high-volume ski boot liners that I got from Larry. They work but not the most comfortable.

Thanks for the input. All are in agreement with what I suspected. More time on the slopes & maybe another lesson. As Lance Armstrong said: "Its not about the bike"

I skied for many years & then started snowboarding (soft boots) about 10 years ago. I was an advanced / expert skier and I'm probably an advanced soft-booter. I've recently started hardbooting. I picked up some used equipment a few years back to see if I would like it. I've got a Nidecker GS board (168 cm, I think), Raichle boots & Raichle X Bone Carbon bindings. I'm on a learning curve but I can't yet carve consistent turns. I've taken one hard boot lesson earlier this season. I only get up 6 - 10 days / year split between soft & hard boots. Am I better off sticking with the equipment I have and spend more time working on technique (& maybe taking another lesson) or should I bite the bullet & buy some better equipment? If I start to upgrade, where is the best place to start? I can wear my boots all day without real pain but they're not as comfortable as my soft boots.

How much do you want?

Looks great - thanks!

Anyone have suggestions for best place(s) to get a base grind & tune in the Boulder, Colorado area? If not, how about in west Denver?

Fin - for 2008, I'd like to lobby for moving it back to Summit County. That way, if I couldn't make it for the entire week, I could make it up for a day or 2. A day trip from Denver to Summit County (or Vail) is easy. Not so easy to Aspen. My 2 cents.

I'm in Golden, Co. I might be interested. I sent you an email.

I often depend on snow reports for conditions at ski areas. These are often wildly optimistic. A co-worker just went to Winter Park (Colorado) last weekend & said it was the worst conditions he can remember (he is an instructor & has been there a lot). There was a little new snow but the wind was howling. I think I saw a news report that they recorded a 108 MPH wind gust on Berthod Pass on 2/3/07. I'm wondering if somewhere on this forum there could be an "Honest Conditions Forum" with postings from members who had recently been to an area. Maybe on the Ride Forum posted by state?

Its interesting to see the wide range of attitudes here - from "go for it" to "its not worth the pain". To some degree, caution comes with age. I just checked the year old thread on the age of forum members and the average is about 35 or so. There are quite a few in their 50s & some in their 60s. I just turned 50. I've done a number of "risky" sports and have never been hurt badly. Part of this is luck & part is calculated risk. I've skied most of my life, then soft boot snowboarding & lately some hardbooting. I ride bikes quite a bit - both mountain & road. I don't think that I take big risks but I don't sit in my recliner all day either. A bad injury might make me considerably more cautious. I like mountain biking but I no longer see it as worth getting hurt for. I LOVE snowboarding and I'm willing to take bigger risks to persue it. A friend of mine is becoming more risk adverse with every passing year to where his main motivation is to avoid injury - even at the expense of excitment & fun. I don't want to get hurt but I don't want to spend the rest of my life being "safe".

Where & when were you riding? What caused you to hit the tree?

I think you should check with members that live near there or often ride there. Better to have realistic expectations than to be disappointed. Check: http://www.snow-forecast.com/maps/colsnow_next3days.shtml Also, the Colorado snow report shows Aspen with only 1" in the last 72 hours. Hope for the best!

I'm not sure which eye is dominant. There aren't many ball sports I play (mostly snowboarding & cycling) so "kicking foot" isn't a measure. I think if someone pushes me from behind, I'm more likely to extend my right foot - though it is not a strong tendancy. The sliding exercise was so dramatic that I think its the most applicable. Another thought: If one were to slide in shoes on and icerink until they stop, and note their stance, wouldn't this be the best measure of the best stable position for this person (width & angels)?

How do you know? I have been soft-booting for a decade or so. I've tried hardbooting several times in the last several years. The first time I took a lesson soft-booting, the instructor had me try regular and I've stuck with it since. That's as much thought that went into it. Someone since told me that the best way to determine is what foot you put forward when you slide on ice. Today at lunch, I went for a walk. We have some snow on the streets. Like a kid, I got a running start & slid on my sneakers. I put my right foot forward every time. I tried sliding with my left foot forward but I had to think about it and it felt akward. Right foot forward felt natural and stable. Could I be goofy and living as a regular all this time? Would I be a fool to switch now? Would I be a fool not to? I'm thinking it would only take a few runs - a day at most before I could re-learn back to my present ability. What is the "best" way to determine goofy -vs- regular?

Too bad that all ski areas aren't as open about their recent snowfalls as Loveland, Colorado: http://www.skiloveland.com/snowrep/snowreporthistory.asp

I guess that I'm spoiled & looking at the conditions through the eyes of a soft-booter. I can't carve well enough to enjoy "hardpack". Until I started attempting to carve, I always evaluated conditions based on how much powder fell in the last several days. I need to go up in non-powder conditions & work on my technique so I can enjoy a wider range of conditions.

I haven't been up in 4 weeks. Denver has been getting some snow & lots of cold weather. However, the mountains haven't been getting much. I talked to people who went to Loveland & Winter Park last weekend (January 27 & 28). Both of them said that they really need some snow. I think the coverage is OK on the intermediate runs but pretty hard-packed. Areas near the Front Range (within 1 1/2 hours of Denver) haven't had any significant snow since January 5th or so.

I live about 1 hour from Eldora. It is about 45 minutes west of Boulder. I haven't been there in years. It is a small ski area - maybe 5 chairlifts. I went there one day some time ago to work on my softbooting technique. I went over to the Corona lift (all the way around to the right). The run under the lift is a wide blue run that would be great for carving if it has been groomed. The upside is that the Denver area has gotten slammed with snow in December and January and because Eldora is in the front range, it has gotten a lot of snow as well. Most of the areas farther west have had almost no snow since the 1st week of January. So, Eldora probably has some of the best snow in the state. Plus, it hasn't been warm so very little melting has occurred. I'd say it's worth a try if you have time.

Definition please (for a newbie): Tanker? Is this a term for a non-alpine (softboot) board?

Big Mario - I am a novice hard-booter so I was on my softboots on Saturday. I spent most of the morning on Lift #8 with a few runs in the PM on Lift #2. I still have the attitude that if there is soft snow to be had, I go for that. I get out my alpine board if there is no soft snow. Maybe another storm on the way later this week but its supposed to be cold (sub-zero). I'll look for you in the future.

I notice that the weather in Denver has been getting a lot of national press lately - 3 big storms in 2 1/2 weeks, avalanche on Berthod Pass, etc. I think most people outside of Colorado assume that what happens in Denver is happening in the mountains. This year however, that's not so true. We have had 3 large storms in the Denver area in the last 3 weeks. I've lived here 37 years and I don't recall any winter like this. However, at least the first 2 storms were "upslopes" where the moisture came mostly from the east & south. When the front encounters the foothills west of Denver it dumps its load. We've had about 45" of snow at our house (north of Denver) since December 20th. However, most of these storms don't get very far west before they peter out. The ski resorts haven't had such luck. The snow at the resorts this winter is probably average. I was at Loveland (the nearest ski area about 60 miles west of Denver - just east of the Continental Divide) the last 2 Saturdays and the snow was good - not great. As of Saturday morning, they were claiming 15.5" of snow in the previous 48 hours but the wind had been blowing pretty strong and it was pretty wind-packed. I guess the east & other areas in the US are having no winter and if you're jealouse of Colorado or if you're planning a trip out here, my message is that it is an average year out here - not great. How are things in Utah, California, Washington, British Columbia & the Canadian Rockies?

Allee - I live near Denver. I have been to Calgary and Banff in the summer (really beautiful). Why would you travel so far when you have so many ski areas close by? How is the snow around Banff lately? I was at Loveland Basin last Saturday and I'd rate the snow as "fair". They had 9" new last Friday (12/30) but none since.