Bootfitting

The most important piece of equipment when skiing, even before the safety half, is the complicated part that enables your legs and feet to connect to the gliding plates. Although all of the skier's movements are transferred to the skis via this connection and this influences the quality of the skiing, too little attention is usually paid to the exact fit for your feet.

Toni and I (Klara) are visiting Sport Conrad with the mission of getting advice on ski boots. We want to pass on to you, what to look out for when making a purchase. Most people are probably familiar with Sport Conrad as an online ski retailer, but it originated as a family business over 128 years ago from a specialised cobbler's shop.

Many manufacturers are endeavouring to conquer the fine line between downhill and uphill performance, be it in the textile sector or with classic hardwear such as skis, bindings or ski boots. Today, we would like to introduce you to a special piece of equipment that has been developed as a result of this endeavour in our test report: The Tecnica Zero G Tour Pro. The ski boot impresses with its low weight, high walking comfort and also cuts a fine figure downhill.

The pin technology, which was once only of interest to very experienced tourers and above all racing bunnies, has now become an integral part of the touring boot market.

The Booster Strap was invented by Ray Fougere in 1999 and park and pipe skiers quickly realized that the strap stopped ski watch bruising. Nowadays, almost every ski boot manufacturer has its own strap technology, but nothing beats the original.

PowderGuide reporter Basti is a material fetishist and always on the lookout for interesting new developments. He recently discovered something exciting on the feet of his gondola neighbor: Self-made ski boots from a 3D printer. He did some research and paid a visit to the Swiss company Tailored Fits.

Once again this year, PowderGuide partner companies UVEX, Blizzard and Tecnica invited a number of journalists from the sports and outdoor industry to get to know their latest products - even before the presentation at ISPO. This time the test took place in Zürs am Arlberg. PowderGuide was of course also there to take a look at the new products.

The Marc Achmüller shoe laboratory is a traditional business in its fourth generation. Master shoemaker Achmüller took over the business in Steinach am Brenner from his uncle and master Herbert Auer in 2011. Before that, grandfather Hermann and great-grandfather Josef Auer ran the business. Achmüller makes all kinds of custom-made shoes, but his main business is ski boots all year round, which he specialized in fitting during his apprenticeship. We talked to Marc Achmüller about his trade and learned a thing or two about ski boots.

The conditions are not exactly Christmassy at the moment. No snow means that it's also time for contemplative activities such as baking cookies and fitting ski boots. In both cases, the essential utensil is the oven and that's why it's our Gear of the Week!

Versatility and the freedom to ride what you want. This requires freeride boots like the Movement Antidote. We have tested it.