POWERRIDE plastic tongues for softboots

[Jianan]

hi @dhamann, would you be able to share what material the powerride is made out of? specifically for the red translucent hard version, is it acrylic or polycarb? 

Edited March 11 by Jianan

[dhamann]

this is a question for the manufacturer. care to share why you are asking? perhaps a PM is appropriate. feel free to shoot me a message.

Edited March 11 by dhamann

[Odd Job]

I think I may have gotten ankle spurs or some bony growths on my ankle/instep area from the Powerrides. I am riding without them for a while but miss the responsiveness.

I may do some modifications or use the liner to alleviate pressure points.

[dhamann]

Sounds like a break from them might be a good idea with the amount of riding you get in. Hit 100 days yet?

[Odd Job]

23 minutes ago, dhamann said:

Sounds like a break from them might be a good idea with the amount of riding you get in. Hit 100 days yet?

Nope. Crappy season and an injury that took me out for 4 or so weeks has me only at 68 days. Facebook memories has me past 100 by now.

My liners may also be pretty terminal at the moment, making the ankle/tongue problem worse, or making it happen outright. May be an improvement with the FIT and/or new liners.

Edited March 12 by Odd Job

[Jack M]

1 hour ago, Odd Job said:

68 days

O the humanity 

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Personally speaking I won’t use anything less than the very finest polycarbonate in my boot stiffeners….for perfect consistent flex in all conditions, just how I need it

[dhamann]

regardless of any boot mods or modding a mod, start from scratch. from my experience, if a rider expects any performance out of a boot with the intentions of the way the boot was designed, then expect not much more than a dozen days before the liner starts to break down, pack out, etc.. Expectations of a boot beyond it's design may require a different boot and/or liner. just as some alpine riders prefer, replacing liners from stock should almost be a standard practice; almost more important for soft boot if performance is high on the list. we all have our preferences and this is just my 2cents. yes, another thing to consider and another piece to buy. there's a trend here. foot beds too. it's another piece of the puzzle that helps enhance our riding experience. it doesn't make or brake things, but can... just like a choice of board for the day, etc.. i ran a stock liner for about 7-8 days before i noticed some slight sliding around in the shell and the flex of the boot braking down. at around ten days, i had had enough. some times stock equipment works for folks that get a handful of days a year. cool. however, if the rider gets out fairly often (idk, 30+? days) and/or considers every piece of their equipment to perform and produce some added benefit (results), then consider changing out the stock liners. for example, i felt 100 days was about max for a powerwrap, but some say 200. there are many liner options out there. start there, especially of any boot mods aren't producing favorable results. somethings got to give. the intentions of the design of wraps are to be more stiff and hold better than tongue liners in my experience. but my boots come with liners. see above. keep in mind, any one piece isn't going to change your world, but can help enhance your experience. there's a tradeoff with everything. you know what i'm going to say now... run what ya brung.

 

[Odd Job]

Update: I've been getting really bad pain on my front ankle. The bone growth there is thicker, and it's without the powerrides. I have no idea if the powerrides caused it initially or not, but the liners were definitely spent. I actually had to ride one powder day with my laces and bindings loosely done.

I molded an old pair of once molded powerwraps from 3-4 seasons ago into my softboots. Holy shit. The response might be too much for me, and most importantly, no pain. I may try the powerrides again once the spur dies down along with a softer, and lower volume liner.

Again, holy shit. The liners are important in softboots.

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Yeah, the PowerRides are causing me some instep discomfort & slight bruising as well just on the inside top of my feet. It’s where the bottom Powerride tongue pushes down when my ankles push forward and flex the top of the insert….so it does mean it’s working! I have a high instep and it’s a pressure problem in many liners/boots. 

I had them in for 5 hours yesterday (in what might be the last day of the season this year) and it was probably too much. Usually I spend an hour or so warming up without them, then stick them in for a couple hours, then remove. They are great for hard carving!

[dhamann]

insightful feedback @Odd Job and @ShortcutToMoncton

i rode six days straight with a couple of 3hr sessions on alpine and didn't feel anything pinpointing what you describe above. my feet measure 28.7 and 28.9 and i run a 29 mondo boot with a lower volume lower and medium volume upper (fx race tongue). however, i like to really snug my liner (wish i could get more, but laces max out with my skinny shins), boot and crank the hell out of my binding straps for the ride down. at times, i do feel my feet almost falling asleep on longer runs, but that also happened without the inserts too. there can be compromises and trade offs. pick your poison, i suppose. i don't ride without these inserts any more and seem to just keep wanting more and more stiffness. double edged sword, pun intended. i've tested some pretty drastic combinations and no it's still not like a hardboot. much more effort is used when riding softboot than hardboot. IMO, the techniques for each are unique in their own ways and can not be duplicated. a carryover of style/habits can be imminent.

i ponder this: are the liners and boots the correct size? when you play a hockey tournament over a weekend with probably at least 3-4 games, the cup may cause some chafing. is the compromise of not running a piece of equipment worth it? decisions decisions... 

glad you guys are liking them overall.

[Spiny Norman]

When I upgrade my boots I'll be checking these out. I still have the tongue stiffener from my old Driver SIs.

In the meantime keep this in mind.

https://www.verywellhealth.com/dorsalis-pedis-artery-5097663

 

My kid's artery is very close to the surface of the foot. It took forever to find ski boots that didn't cause much pain and suffering.

[Odd Job]

I downsize on 25.6 cm foot to 25MP boots for softboots. 24 hardboots. 

Still feeling my ankles and it has died down, but I'm waiting for it to totally go away.

In the mean time, I gave the reds to someone who hates leverage if it compromises their riding for freestyle maneuvers. The red tongue doesn't affect them at all.

[dhamann]

@Odd Job i wanna try to help and like i've shared in private messages, i am not a boot fitter but here's my 2 cents of rambling:

downsizing in softboots can be done. obviously. use with caution and understand the tradeoffs. but why and how? the why is obvious for less heel drag and/or lower binding angles. could also be the preference of fit to performance. i'll assume the stock liner is probably pretty snug when new, but you prefer a performance fit of sorts. molding with toe caps, etc. can help with the fit. maybe you do this to make them work? meanwhile the rest of the liner also packs out while riding. support is lost. some folks may call this "broken in" while it is in fact just "broken". excessive riding and use will turn most boots into uggs as you've mentioned before. more physical effort is required and additional forces are transferred to the body. tradeoff. pretty straightforward. when downsizing like this, an aftermarket liner such as intuition should probably be a low profile liner to get into a shell as the numbers show above. it's been said before to abide to intuitions sizing recommendations and i will have to agree. read up and understand the differences of the liner options available; another rabbit hole. also, mold the liner for the boot shell you intend to use it in. transferring liners boot to boot doesn't always work that way. since we're getting so technical with this, that's worth mentioning. however, the limits will be pushed by nerds like ourselves. sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. trial and error with such technical requirements that each of us have as individual riders and our individual needs is so dam specific, nothing is a one size fits all. this may be why such specialty equipment is not offered to the masses; it's not for everyone. we may need to adjust along the way. i am well aware you are not new, but it does not take a year to 'figure it out', it takes many. for instance, i have a low profile mondo 29 liner in a UPZ 28-28.5 boot shell. yes this is an alpine boot and the buckles really hold my foot down and back into the heel pocket that allows this to work for me. this liner does not work for me in my 29m softboot. it's not exactly the same with softboots because of the tightening with laces/boa/etc. can't be achieved as with the buckles of a ski boot or alpine snowboard boot. plus, the molding thing i mention above. therefore, maybe a double toe cap while molding a low profile liner that actually fits your foot may allow a "proper" fit into a downsized shell. its risky business and this is of course understanding the tradeoffs, as with anything. using any kind of plastic insert ontop of a liner that is extremely packed out as most stock liners can get and riding almost every day can have it's affects as you've pointed out. could be underlying issues and/or maybe the artery thing mentioned above? as we age, things change. i hate to admit it, but it's the truth. just changing the liner can make a difference as you mention the importance of above. adding anything into a boot is yet another adjustment/tweak. i can ride about three days on alpine before i start to get some blistering on my rear heel due to a bone spur. great heel hold, binding lifts and know i'm in the correct size boot, but the extreme forces while carving can take their toll. i can ride three days on softy before my knee's tell me to f off. my back screams. i just adjust accordingly. we all need to find our own way and a lot of trial and error/experimenting may be the only way. keyboarding about it helps, but we don't know until we test to find our own limits/comforts. i've had a few boot fitters say, try this and come back if adjustments are needed. around and around we go. i'm not going to say, stay within your limits because i never have. adjusting to that mantra is sometimes needed, but a tough pill to swallow no doubt.

(a 25.5m or even 26m boot/medium volume liner combo for softy may be worth trying. and a stiffer boot shell than a 6/7 flex. remember wrap liners are typically stiffer and hold better than tongue if those are the rider preferences; i now prefer a very stiff tongue liner in softy and play with the inserts to desired flavors.)

Edited March 26 by dhamann

[Carvin' Marvin]

I really like my medium/mediums but I had to cut out a half moon on the inner part over the top of the foot to relive pain.  After that they are great.

[slabber]

My .02 - my first take was to put mine on the outside of my OG Burton Driver boots (from 2002).   The boots came with a much softer plastic tongue stiffener there to start.  So it was just a swap of the two parts. 

While I can feel the pressure of the lower end of the Powerride on my instep, it's not uncomfortable.  I expect it could be more of an issue if I put them inside the tongue above the liner.  

I'll continue to run them on the outside.  They're working well for me configured this way.  

Edited March 26 by slabber
model year reference

[dhamann]

heads up to the community:

these inserts are a seasonal item and will be going off sale some time in May. for this season only, these have been offered at a discount here for ASB members. they will become available again some time late 2024.

thanks for all the purchases and support this year. as a portion of each sale going to help support the USSRT, they appreciate it too!

have a great off season.