jim_s

FWIW, it might be worth contacting Dan at UPZ (yoja@upzboots.com) - I was between sizes, and he gave a lot of thought and consideration in making a size recommendation. He recommended the smaller size for me, and I was admittedly dubious about it, but went with his advice. In the end, its worked out very well - I've got a great-fitting, warm set of boots! I got the RC10 boots, and ultimately went with an Intuition tongue liner ("Luxury") and Superfeet carbon insoles. It took 2 heat-mold cycles and several days of riding to get it all worked in, but they're now almost as comfy as my old favorite Burton Shadows, but with the full-on responsiveness of a 5-buckle boot. (In truth, the stock UPZ liners kinda sucked. Bad.) Anyway, I suspect that nobody is going to be able to help you out w/ UPZ boots like Dan would be able to!

That's what I'm hoping for on the MK - I love a board that is good for both an aerobic and anaerobic workout! :-) You guys have me convinced - I'm gonna go with the full edge, and see if I can work it (without getting completely worked myself :-) I tend to get into a bit of a lull in my biking in the fall, but step things back up again in December, so that I'm in sufficient shape to ride my stairmaster SL board - I'm counting on the MK being much the same way!

Timely discussion - I've recently received an MK from Donek, and Sean had mentioned that the tip and tail would need to be detuned a bit. (he sent it with 1 deg base and 2 deg side) Years back, I stopped detuning my SL board after a base grind and edge sharpening (also 1b/2s) - I sometimes catch a few edges early-on, but seem to either adapt, or (more likely, I suspect), our lackluster mid-Atlantic conditions do a bit a detuning on their own. Anyway, I'd read that boards with decambered noses (such as the MK) shouldn't be detuned, and I'm actually kind of fond of hooky tails, so I'm inclined to give it a go with the full monty, and see how it goes, and hopefully not eat it too hard. (That having been said, I fully trust Sean, and if he says it should be detuned, I probably ought to pay some attention to that. :o) Any thoughts or admonitions on this? (sounds like this group tends toward the full monty approach...)

LoL - I already laugh and giggle like a schoolgirl on the way down most every run on my SL board. (I have friends who can literally attest to this! :-) I'm sure the MK is everything that everyone says it is, but I've always maintained that Sean's 158SL has been an unknown jewel - if he'd made more than a small handful of these, I suspect people would have been raving about it much like they're now raving about the MK. :-) It sounds like the MK has an advantage in edge hold on ice (the SL isn't stellar on ice - good, but still chatters out frequently), but I'll be impressed if the MK will beat the SL in terms of spine-compressing, tooth-filling-pulling, oh-my-gawd-I-really-think-Im-gonna-die-this-time twists, turns, and edge transitions. :-) (I really, really hope it will!!! :-)

Hoping the new MK will be my one-board quiver, after about a decade on a Donek 158 SL board as my one-board quiver! (I love tight, twisty rides!!) Anxious to try out the MK, but here in VA/WV, we're still a few weeks out from rideable coverage. (especially on a new board...) Really interested to see how the MK compares to the SL - SL was 8.5m radius, MK is 9m. SL had no setback, and full-width tail, MK is has significant setback and taper. (Sean assures me it'll be awesome, and I trust him, but the SL will be a very tough act to follow!)

Woo Hoo! Just stumbled on BOL from a Google link (almost all carving-oriented links on Google seem to lead to BOL!) - so glad the site is back up!!

I'm loving my new RC10's (rode for many years on Burton Shadows, so its like night & day!) One problem I'm having is that the tongue is rotating around to the side of the boot as I ride, leaving me pressing my shins against the edge of the liner cuff in the front, until I stop and shift the tongues back into place. I tried putting some self-adhesive velcro on the front of the tongue (small/narrow piece, so it fits between the liner cuff edges in the front), matching up to the other velcro piece adhered to the inside front of the shell, but I invariably detach one or both pieces of velcro (the sticky stuff just isn't that sticky, and the cold makes it even less so), when getting the boots on or off. Next thought is to glue some 1/8" or so soft foam onto the front of the tongue, so it'll sort of seat into place between the front edges of the liner edges, and maybe that would keep the tongue from rotating. (Don't imagine that'd affect the flex at all, but not sure it wouldn't, either...) Does anyone else have this problem, and if so, what have you done to resolve it? My poor shins are pretty sore by the end of the day, as mid-run, I'm having too much fun making trenches to stop and adjust the cuff! :-)

AccousticBoarder - PM sent! Neil - Thanks for the pointer - I'll contact Dan tomorrow, and see what he has to say. Sounds like the UPZ are probably the right boot for my skinny feet!

Scott - yes, from everything I've read, it sounds like if you've got a narrow foot (which I do), that the Deeluxe boots are likely going to be way too loose. (Like yourself, I love the Shadows because they hold my foot snugly - I even added insoles to them, to get further snugness and comfort, which was one of the best things I ever did!) I'd be keenly interested in your experience with the UPZs, if/when you get to try them. (I'd also be curious to know, as a fellow US resident, where you manage to source them from.) Thanks for the reply and info!

Broke a buckle (the center plastic piece) on my Shadow boots this weekend. I can mill up a replacement part, but between the buckle, packed-out liners, worn soles, etc, I may need to move on in life. I'm a lightweight at 140 lbs, and ride a 158 SL board (Donek), with an 8.5m radius. The Shadows are definitely a bit on the soft side, but between my light weight and the super tight turns of the SL board, soft works for me. (I run them very tight - likely the cause of the eventual buckle failure, so its not like they're floppy, but they're definitely not a high-cuff, 4-buckle boot :-). So, whether its now, or next season, the Shadows are going to eventually take up residence in the corner of the attic where all the stuff goes that I'm too emotionally attached to actually get rid of quite yet. :-) Thoughts/suggestions on a replacement boot?? My Shadows are a Mondo 27, FWIW. (Liners have '270' stamped on them, so I'm assuming that's a 27.0 mondo size? The shell has "25.5-27" stamped inside it.) I've got Burton Race Plates on the board. Thanks!

Are these by chance still around?