Soft boot set up

[photodad2001]

I'll be getting a hefty sum from my tax return this year and I've got plans for buying a softboot carving set up. I've been able to narrow down my options pretty well from reading response from this site, but wanted one more go before laying down the cash.

Board option 1... 180 Donek Tucker Freeride

Board option 2... 200 Tanker

Binding option 1... Flow NXT FX

Binding option 2... Catek FR2

Boot option 1... Northwave Decade SL2

Boot option 2... Burton Driver

If anyone can come up with a better binding or boot choice I'd be interested too, but I'm locked into one of those 2 board options.

[newcarver]

If you are looking at non step ins, you might consider the Nidecker 900 carbon bindings. For boots, look at the 32. They have heat moldable liners in them and are very comfy. They rate theirs by stiffness. They Forcast is pretty stiff, but I think they have another one that is even stiffer.

[inkaholic]

I ride the Tanker 200 with Flow Eleven bindings and Salomon Malamutes and I love the set up. Tucker not as friendly in the powder as the tanker.

I would check to see if Flow has fixed their hardware problems of last season on the NXT binding before making that purchase. A local shop here sold 16 pairs of NXT and all came back with broken screws which hold the ratchet straps to the baseplate. Flow was very slow in sending new hardware.

I haven't ridding the Cateks but have heard nothing but good things about them...except the price of course.

Good luck and have fun!

Ink

[D.T.]

Board option 1... 180 Donek Tucker Freeride

Board option 2... 200 Tanker

How much do you weigh? How much powder will you ride? Will the short nose on the Tucker matter? If no, then buy the Tucker; if yes, buy the Tanker.

Boot option 1... Northwave Decade SL2

Boot option 2... Burton Driver

As Ink said, consider the Salomon Malamutes.

[lonerider]

If you are looking at non step ins, you might consider the Nidecker 900 carbon bindings. For boots, look at the 32. They have heat moldable liners in them and are very comfy. They rate theirs by stiffness. They Forcast is pretty stiff, but I think they have another one that is even stiffer.

What year Forecasts did you ride? I had the 2005 Forecasts and they are only average stiffness. The Malamutes are much stiffer (I rode the 2006 model). If you have *really* skinny ankles try the Nitro Darkseids (I have the Nitro Team TLS and there are above average stiffness, and very good for skinny ankles... better than Salomon or 32).

[kmartshopper]

Doesn't it suck that you finally get good enough to really appreciate the nuances of the different high-end boards, but there's almost no way to demo them :(

I don't know if this is a consideration for you, but I'm borderline wide board guy, so I try to do what I can to stay on a standard board. I have ridden malamutes for a few years and I can get in to a really small size with them and they are pretty comfy warm and stiff. I had to return some Burton's (ION HD) because my skinny heel getting way too hard point pressure on the back of the boot on toesides.

I finally shot the wad and ordered some FR2's just today actually. I've been booting out on the rear binding loop on heelsides (Salamon SPX Carbon). I like how the salomons ride, but no lift and a bit of a fat loop in back. Cateks should give some extra clearance on the heels plus a little rear foot lift... just in time to save me from wearing through the seat of my pants. We'll see. My wallet's definitely lighter now.

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[photodad2001]

How much do you weigh? How much powder will you ride? Will the short nose on the Tucker matter? If no, then buy the Tucker; if yes, buy the Tanker.

As Ink said, consider the Salomon Malamutes.

A fluxuating 250lbs. 6 inches of powpow is heaven around here and comes around only once or twice a year. We ride machine made 'round these parts.

Have to check out the Salomons.

[Phil]

Have you considered a shorter board like the Incline Wide 169?

You will NOT out-carve this board - it rocks. IMO it is the perfect size for our more vertically challenged hills in the Mid Atlantic. It may also be a little more versatile on the hill. I have done a little bit of everything on mine.

I can't imagine that you could be disappointed with it.

[D.T.]

A fluxuating 250lbs. 6 inches of powpow is heaven around here and comes around only once or twice a year. We ride machine made 'round these parts.

Do the Tucker. It's a fun ride.

Now that I know your weight, definitely have Sean make it stiffer (as we discussed in the other thread).

The 5.7 stiffness was so-so for me (~210lbs) on hardpack.

[martyagt4]

I know everyone raves about the Malamutes, but I hate mine so far. Too many pressure points, pain in the arse to get in and out of. I can not for the life of me keep them tight enough, and I have way too much heel lift.

And not the boots fault, but they don't interface well with the two sets of Flow bindings I own. If they're tight enough to get rid of slop, I can't get in and out of the binding easily. In and out easily gets me back to slop. Obviously my Flow boots worked great, but I can fold them over like I'm wearing wet newspaper.

I have about 10 days on them so far this year.

That being said, not every boot fits every foot. I haven't given up on them quite yet. Hoping I can find the right combo of padding/insole/binding tightness. No doubt they are stiff.

[photodad2001]

Have you considered a shorter board like the Incline Wide 169?

You will NOT out-carve this board - it rocks. IMO it is the perfect size for our more vertically challenged hills in the Mid Atlantic. It may also be a little more versatile on the hill. I have done a little bit of everything on mine.

I can't imagine that you could be disappointed with it.

I'm not familiar with that board and I googled it but didn't find it. Do you have a link with more info?

[photodad2001]

Do the Tucker. It's a fun ride.

Now that I know your weight, definitely have Sean make it stiffer (as we discussed in the other thread).

The 5.7 stiffness was so-so for me (~210lbs) on hardpack.

I was thinking somewhere between a 7-8 stiffness.? I'm in the process of coming down in weight so by next year I plan on being around 220-230.

[photodad2001]

And not the boots fault, but they don't interface well with the two sets of Flow bindings I own. If they're tight enough to get rid of slop, I can't get in and out of the binding easily. In and out easily gets me back to slop. Obviously my Flow boots worked great, but I can fold them over like I'm wearing wet newspaper.

That'll be something to keep in mind since I'm leaning toward the flow binding because of price and I can buy them at a local shop.

[refried]

I know everyone raves about the Malamutes, but I hate mine so far. Too many pressure points, pain in the arse to get in and out of. I can not for the life of me keep them tight enough, and I have way too much heel lift.

And not the boots fault, but they don't interface well with the two sets of Flow bindings I own. If they're tight enough to get rid of slop, I can't get in and out of the binding easily. In and out easily gets me back to slop. Obviously my Flow boots worked great, but I can fold them over like I'm wearing wet newspaper.

My Malamutes were a real pain to get on and off when they were new but they did finaly loosen up. no pressure points for me, but I did have to do some work on the right boot to stop heel lift. I tried a set of Flows and had the same problems and gave up on them after a few days.

I have the Tanker 200, Catek FR2, Maaimute combo and it works real well I'd recomend it in a minute.

[Fastskiguy]

I'm not familiar with that board and I googled it but didn't find it. Do you have a link with more info?

One of the versions of the Freeride....actually I think he means "Freeride, wide" vs. "Freeride, incline" vs. "Freeride, sasquatch"

http://www.donek.com/01_products/freeride.htm

The thought crossed my mind too....only $450!....but how do they carve the machine made stuff? And plates are OK?

[Phil]

Sorry, yes, I meant the Freeride Wide I guess.

The thought crossed my mind too....only $450!....but how do they carve the machine made stuff? And plates are OK?

I am not sure why machine made stuff is different to carve, but they carve it superbly. I thought that I recalled hearing that they reinforce the wide if you want to ride plates (I believe that it is out of the question with the Sasquatch). If I were going to ride plates with it, I would not get the wide - I would get the Incline. Actually, I would just get the Axxess.

Photodad - seriously, make sure you weigh people's experience on our vertically challenged mountains against their suggestions about boards - especially with the diversity of your riding.

BTW, do you really want to be forced to ride the angles that the Tucker 180 would make you ride? A 24 waist is really narrow for a big guy on softies.

If I lived anywhere with real vert, I would be rocking the Tanker 200, but it is just overkill here. YMMV

[Fastskiguy]

Actually, what about the Razor?

http://www.donek.com/01_products/razor.htm

[lonerider]

I know everyone raves about the Malamutes, but I hate mine so far. Too many pressure points, pain in the arse to get in and out of. I can not for the life of me keep them tight enough, and I have way too much heel lift.

And not the boots fault, but they don't interface well with the two sets of Flow bindings I own. If they're tight enough to get rid of slop, I can't get in and out of the binding easily. In and out easily gets me back to slop. Obviously my Flow boots worked great, but I can fold them over like I'm wearing wet newspaper.

That being said, not every boot fits every foot. I haven't given up on them quite yet. Hoping I can find the right combo of padding/insole/binding tightness. No doubt they are stiff.

Yea, the main good thing about the Malamutes is their stiff flex. You are on the right track with trying to get some bootfitting done. Some things you could try

1.Replace the liner with an Deeluxe heat moldable liner (better than Salomon's)

2.Replace the liner with a Zip-fit foam liner, my bootfitter at Elite Feet said he did this for a guy in stiffer soft boot shell and the guy really liked it.

Either of these won't fix the fact they don't fit your FLOW binding well. As a final alternative... you could try on a pair of Nitro Darkseids... they are about as stiff as the Malamutes, but have more contour in the liner to help lock down your heel. I have the Nitro Team TLS (slightly softer for freestyle), and I like them better than my Malamutes. I don't know what stores are near you, but you can order them at backcountry.com and return them if you don't like them (you can even return them after using them on the mountain). Go to backcountryoutlet.com for cheaper price AND to read some reviews on them (notice that the two reviewers compare Nitro to 32 and Salomon).

[Budge]

I got Malmutes for use with my Nidecker 800 bindings and really like the combination. The Malmutes however had the traditional tongue arrangement that caused me all kinds of discomfort on the top of my foot. I had some Intuition liners in some old ski boots that I tried and they solved the problem. They don't have the fancy lacing and velcro but they don't need it and are lighter and much more comfortable. This arrangement has worked well for me for several years now.

Budge

[kmartshopper]

The Malmutes .... I had some Intuition liners in some old ski boots that I tried and they solved the problem. They don't have the fancy lacing and velcro but they don't need it and are lighter and much more comfortable.

Hey Budge. I was just about to try this... I just recieved some power wrap liners and was going to do it this weekend.

So you aren't having heel lift issues even without the ankle strap being used? That was my only worry. I've been really trying to think of a way to be able to still use the heel strap, but haven't come up with anything yet... might actually route the strap up and over the tonge of the boot shell... but still nowhere to secure it externally.

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Lovely Wendie99

[inkaholic]

Hey Budge. I was just about to try this... I just recieved some power wrap liners and was going to do it this weekend.

So you aren't having heel lift issues even without the ankle strap being used? That was my only worry. I've been really trying to think of a way to be able to still use the heel strap, but haven't come up with anything yet... might actually route the strap up and over the tonge of the boot shell... but still nowhere to secure it externally.

My malamutes are 05'-06' and the velcro strap is attached to the shell, not the liner so it would still be usable with the liner switch. Definately a good suggestion.

I believe DaKine used to make an ankle strap to keep your heel in the pocket. You might look into it to ease your worries.

Ink

[kmartshopper]

I think I have the same year.... maybe a year older, but as you say - the strap is still attached to the shell. The problem is that once you tighten it down, the loose end of the strap gets attached by velcro against the stock liner. Sounds lame/weak, but it actually holds tension just fine. New liners though, no velcro on them - so no attach point. I thought of gluing a little velcro to the new liners with some hard core glue.

I figured that the worst case, if it doesn't work out, I'll reform the liners into my hardboots to replace the aging thermoflexes.

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[photodad2001]

One of the versions of the Freeride....actually I think he means "Freeride, wide" vs. "Freeride, incline" vs. "Freeride, sasquatch"

http://www.donek.com/01_products/freeride.htm

The thought crossed my mind too....only $450!....but how do they carve the machine made stuff? And plates are OK?

Ahhhh! Now it makes sense!:D

[photodad2001]

Actually, what about the Razor?

http://www.donek.com/01_products/razor.htm

I looked at it, and I think it'd be a great carving board if that was all I was planning on using it for. Still like to freestyle every once in a while, so until that's out of my system... Next season maybe.

[inkaholic]

I think I have the same year.... maybe a year older, but as you say - the strap is still attached to the shell. The problem is that once you tighten it down, the loose end of the strap gets attached by velcro against the stock liner. Sounds lame/weak, but it actually holds tension just fine. New liners though, no velcro on them - so no attach point. I thought of gluing a little velcro to the new liners with some hard core glue. QUOTE]

K,

I forgot about the fact that it attaches to the liner but that would be an easy fix with adding velcro to the new liner. Good point. You could make a velcro band that has the appropriate side as the majority that could wrap around the top of the liner to hold it better against the shin/calf area and then attach the heel strap to it from there.

Ink