John H

The Il Moro is a great boot to ski on, if it fits. The Dalbello's have the ability to change flex by changing the tongue and adding/subtracting flex stiffeners. Thats why the flex index is a range. I spent most of my ski past on race boots which had a flex index of 150(really bad on a snowboard!). I found the Krypton Pro's to be softer than what I was used too but they looked like a good idea as a cross over boot. Since I've had them I went from full stiff while skiing (140) to now using them as soft as I can (100) for both skiing and boarding and I'm not finding any problems with them at all for general skiing. The only time I miss the extra stiffness while skiing is on those really icy days when the extra response from a race boot would be nice. So to make a long story short, yes the Il Moro with an 80-110 flex would make a great boot, if it fits. It's not really wide but a good boot fitter can blow out the shell for more space if needed. The other thing is that the Dalbello Thermo liner is very thin compared to what comes in a Deluxe boot. Best thing is to try them at a ski shop to see how they fit and get a size that works for you before ordering online. Any ski boot will fit into a hard boot binding but many are so stiff that they wouldn't ride well for most people. Ski boots, as mentioned, are stiffer sideways and most lack the needed forward flex.

Another model of the Krypton. The pro is stiffer. The pro goes from 100 to 140 in flex depending on which tongue and stiffeners are used. The Il Moro, I'm guessing, is 80 to 110. It is softer than the pro by quite a bit. The silver liner is softer than the gold liner also, but is a bit more comfortable than the gold. If you are prone to getting shin bite, the Il Moro with that big shin pad is the way to go. Really distributes the shin pressure nicely.

The top and bottom buckle are "solid" but the middle buckle uses a cable and has the ribs which allow for smooth flex. There are a few models of Kryptons. and they have different flex indexes. Ski boots use a flex index to give a reference point for stiffness. I would guess that a least one of the Kryptons would have a flex number similar to a Full Tilt boot. The Full Tilt boot is a narrower fit than the Krypton. Kryptons can also be ordered with a thermoflex liner which will give more room in the boot, as well as a better fit, but depending on which liner is ordered it will affect the flex. The gold thermo liner will make the boot a bit stiffer. Having said all this the best thing to do is try the boots on. I would get the one that fits the best. I got my Kryptons at Kenmark and they had a good selection last time I was there plus they do a good job of boot fitting.

I tried my Kryptons a few weeks ago to see how they rode compared to my Head Stratus pros. They have similar forward flex to the Heads but are quite a bit stiffer laterally. I ride steep angles so the lateral stiffness worked well for me. I still use the Heads for riding due to the shorter sole length and I like the convenience of step ins but I would be very happy riding in the Kryptons and will use them on days when I'll be doing both skiing and riding.

I've also ridden both boards. I liked the Team Tantalus more than the Gladiator.

I tried a new Prior 169 metal board last week and it is considerably stiffer than last years board. Both boards are Chris H.'s boards and both were built to his weight specs. The new one rides very well, great edge hold and so easy to ride. It's my first experience with a metal board and now I understand what everyone likes so much about them.

Neil pretty well covered it. I left my carving stuff home and took skis. Lots of steeps, trees and untracked. The bottom half of the mountain had some reasonable groomed runs but the upper half didn't have much to choose from. Upgrade all runs one rating from what you are used to, eg black =double black Great mountain but not what I would recommend for carving.

Nice boards! I found the 202 has such a smooth ride, it's like nothing else I've ridden. It's very fast, stable and has incredible edge hold. What's really surprising is how manouverable it is for a board this long. Has to be ridden to appreciate it.

Got a set of unused blocks. I sent you an e-mail.

I've got a Burton E-deck 147 and a FP 157. If you're interested in either send me a pm. I'm located local to Toronto.

I had the fun experience of having them take everything that I had in my board bag out and scan and check all contents. That was at the Kelowna airport. Just so that I didn't feel special, they did this to almost everyone with a board bag. Delayed check in to the point that our flight was almost delayed.

The Thermofit liners that I got in my Suzuka's (from YYZcanuck) measure 11.5 inches inside height at the side and my Dalbello Gold Intuition liners measure 11.5 inches inside height at the side. The Dalbello liners are much thinner and are quite stiff considering how thin they are. I haven't tried the Dalbello Silver liners but they are supposed to be a bit softer, thicker and more comfortable than the Golds.

If flying in Canada, West Jet is great. No hassles about skis or boards. Kenmark in Toronto has hard cases.

I use the same tune on my skis and boards. .5 degree base and 2 degree side without any detune to speak of. With the weather we're having ice would be nice, it's mainly mud around here.

Take the Donek, easy to rent softies.

I think the forecast is for snow almost every day next week. It would be worth bringing a powder board. For protecting the boards while traveling, have you considered the double size SkiTube. It works great and so far no damage to the boards.

If you can't find socks that help you could try "bootgloves". They are a neoprene over the boot cover. I've used them with ski boots and they helped quite a bit.

Mike, I agree if they explain why they don't like something thats fine but that was not the case here.

Phil, I'm obviously the one who pissed off Bob. I just don't think anyone should blatantly critisize a product that many people use and are very happy with. Bob, I never said you personally were responsible for the departure of Bordy and Dave. I stated that it was comments like yours that can cause people to get upset. And yes I've been on this site a long time, even though that shouldn't make any difference to how people react, and I've seen a lot of very knowledgable people leave due to "poorly worded" responses and silly arguments. Sorry if I pissed you off, it wasn't you I'm pissed at, it is the general commentary of late on this board that I'm getting ticked off with.

Having both Suzuka's and UPZ, my experience is that the Suzuka's are a better fit at the boot top(less likely to cause shin bite) but are a narrower fit in the foot area. As I have a double e width foot I'm finding the fit of the UPZ to be better for me than the Suzuka's. The Suzuka's are fitted with thermoflex liners and I've replaced my UPZ liners with Lange ski boot liners. I believe that the ski boot liner is what is eliminating any shin bite as the factory liners seem quite thin at the boot top. Both boots were used with Booster straps against the liner. Both boots work well and fit well, it's just a matter of which fits your foot better.

"yeah, avoid UPZ until you really know what you need, don't mind doing a ton of boot work and love discomfort." I've had Deelux, Burton and UPZ boots and the UPZ's are the best fit of all for me. I haven't tried the Head boots because Head Canada didn't come through with their order, boots ordered in the summer and promised delivery, but no boots. Maybe you don't like UPZ boots but other people do. Maybe it's attitudes and ignorant comments like yours that have caused people like Bordy and YYZ Canuck to not bother with this site anymore. Sorry having a bad day and needed to vent and stupid comments like this just p*** me off.

One more to add to the list. Ken McCutcheon.

Please add myself and Imo to the list. We are looking forward to another good day at Osler.

I called them earlier today and their plan is to be open this weekend.

I don't know about that date yet. When do you have to know by? I'll be seeing Imo this weekend and I'll ask him and Ken.