ghettoraid

Anyone know of a shop that rents hard boot gear in Mammoth? I'm headed up but my boots and binders aren't in yet. Google is giving me nothing. . .

I'm strapping up the pow stick for some freshies. Guess I'll get one last good trip out of this season. . .

Looks like there's some snow coming in, and I could stand to get a few more days on the mountain before the long hot summer. . . anyone else?

Nice info. The doc's article is a wealth of knowledge.

Just waiting on my boots to arrive so I can have sole measurements. Thanks all. PMs responded to.

I'm in the market for a pair of binders that will fit a mondo 29.5 AT boot. Bomber says TD2 will work and TD3 may work if they have the long baseplate. Other brands are fine except Burton. Looking to get something on and ride before the end of the season. I'm new to hard booting but have 25+ year of riding under my belt. Reply or PM

What size is your foot normally, in a shoe?And how wide, if you know?

Does it come with binders? How wide is the waist?

Can you post a photo? It sounds like you didn't scrape and brush the base after you waxed it. . .

Thanks for all the input and advice. I ended up grabbing the Scarps boots. STP had a flash sale and they're $150. They Dynafit toes were a clincher, since I want to run hard boots on my split board, at the very least. I'll make sure they're fitted properly. I already tore up one of my toes in soft boots this season (my brand new Deeluxe soft boots, no less). I'm aware of how critical boot fit is. STP has lifetime returns if I smash them. Tried to find info on Deluxe hard boots, but there's nothing on the Deluxe web site. So, I guess I'm in the market for some binders. . .looks like the bombers are gonna be the way to go. . . The maybe do the snow dance for a spring dump at Mammoth. . .

Done.

How much wax is on your board? You should not be able to notice a hole it it. . .

Since I'm not willing to modify my feet to carve better (please excuse my lack of commitment to the cause) I'm just going to have to live with teh size 12. . . I used to love the Palmer power plates when I had them, and I'm assuming that the plate bindings will lift me up off the deck quite a bit. amirite?

I had mine made for an AK trip in 2010 and now it's all I ride. I think with hard boots to reign things in, I could be much faster all over the mountain. . .

Would something like this work for boots: http://www.sierratradingpost.com/scarpa-flash-alpine-touring-ski-boots-dynafit-compatible-for-men~p~7988h/?filterString=s~at-boots%2Fsizefamily~mondo%3B29dotdot5%2F&colorFamily=01 I can get them on coupon for $180 right now. . . I'm showing Mondo 29 on a yardstick, but it's tough to say without trying things on. My current soft boots are mondo 30, but are packing out longer than I'd like.

So, I'm looking to make this transition over to hardbooting and carving, and I'm trying to figure out where to start. I've got 25+ years of boarding of all kinds under my belt, on and off piste, splitboarding/backcountry, AK heli, etc. . .but no hardbooting. I also own plenty of gear already. I should start by saying I'm a big guy. . .6'4" 270lbs 12-4E feet, so finding used gear is a real PITA I have a super stiff custom built 181cm Prior pow-stick that I'm really comfortable on, it has quad glass and extra carbon stringers for my size. 11m sidecut and a 26cm waist. It's the stiffest board I own, my old burton boards fold up even with soft boots on.I was riding Burton Driver X boots for a while, which I understood to be about the stiffest I could get outside hard booting. . . I'd really prefer not to drop a grand or more on a brand new rig that I may not like, and I don't feel like I can get a used board that's anywhere near stiff ehough for my size. The question. . . If I grab a set of plate bindings and an old set of ski boots (likely AT or something), would this be an acceptable entry intro to the hardboot/carving experience?

Craig Kelley used to ride hardshell boots on his splits, don't see why you couldn't still do that for the alpinism benefits. All you would need to purchase is the split deck and some bindings. As for riding down the mountain on a splitty, if you're a solid snowbooarder, I can't imagine having too many issues with controlling the board, especially if you're wearing a hard boot setup. The only downside I can see would be missing out on some of the surfy fun to be had riding a softer setup in powder. If you're riding sktechy, icy pitches, I'd think the hard boot rig would be a huge help. I'd also think that riding a standard split with the extra control from teh hard boots would be a winner all the way around. I know Prior will whip you up an extra stiff deck if you ask (they did for me). I'd imagine you could rip up the mountain on a hybrid setup like that. In fact, this is a big part of why I came to this forum. . .to explore a hybrid BC rig.

What a trip. . . Started boarding in winter of 1987 riding down hills in Missouri with the trucks taken off my sakteboard and paracord through the holes to hold my combat boots on. Got on my first real board in 1988 at Big Bear on a rented Sims. My parents gave me a board for xmas the following year. Since then I've been lucky enough to live in some fantastic spots for progressing my riding. . .made a couple life changing trips up to AK and now I'm back in CA living in the desert, but I can see Bear Mountain off in the distance and I get plenty of time to hit Mammoth. I love riding pow and backcountry when that's an option, but this last couple of seasons has me yearning for something new on all these sunny days we seem to have here. I've been running into more alpine guys out and about, lately, and they sent me here.