The aussieskier Bootfitting Process

One of the best ways to improve your skiing and increase your enjoyment of the mountains is to have professionally fitted ski boots. Here at aussieskier.com, we have developed a 3-step process to give you confidence in your ski boot selection.

STEP 1 - ANALYSIS

Aussieskier has the most advanced technology available to ski boot fitting in the world, the Sidas Feetbox 3D Scanner. Pictured above, the scanner spins 360 degrees around your feet whilst you're standing on highly sensitive pressure pads. Once the scan is complete we are provided with 8 different measures, your gait angle and pressure distribution to analyse, as well as a 3D rendered image of your foot. 

Whilst we start the process of scanning your lower limb we'll also be having a conversation about your skiing. It can be worthwhile to think about some of these questions before your appointment.

  • Where do you ski? Australia? Overseas?
  • How often do you ski? Think days per year.
  • Do you like to mainly ski on or off the groomed trails?
  • Do you have any current or future goals for your skiing?
  • Are there any injuries or medical conditions your ski boot fitter should know about?

Once you're off the Feetbox 3D Scanner we'll assess the biomechanics of your ankle and foot. This generally involves a Windlass mechanism test to check the flexibility of your arch, and a dorsi-flexion test to check the range of motion through your ankle joint.

 

STEP 2 - SELECTION

The company behind the Sidas Feetbox 3D software has scanned the inside of nearly every ski boot on the market. After adapting the selection parameters to your requirements, we can virtually overlay the 3D scan of the ski boot onto the scan of your lower limb from the analysis stage. Pressure areas are identified straightaway, as are areas where there may be too much room in the boot for you. Your boot fitter may also recommend some ski boots based off their own intuition and knowledge regarding shell manipulation and modification.

Your boot fitter will usually start with two ski boots for you to try. Before the ski boot even goes on your foot, the boot liner is pulled out and we perform was called a shell check or shell sizing. This is crucial to the process as it allows your boot fitter to see if the shell is a good match for your foot. It also removes the liner from the equation which is important because the shell is the true indicator of the size of a boot and a liner will mould and compress throughout its lifetime.

If the choice in size is looking good then it’s time for a direct comparison between the two initial options by putting one of each boot on your feet. Based on your feedback at this stage in the boot fit you will now either try on the pair ‘winning’ boots or compare to a third option. Trying on more than three boots can lead to confusion and will unnecessarily lengthen the process.

At this point, the best solution should be clear, and now it’s time to move forward onto customising and personalising your boots for the ultimate in comfort and performance.

    STEP 3 - CUSTOMISATION

    Now we’ve worked through the appropriate options for your biomechanics, foot shape, skiing type and you’ve selected an appropriate boot, it’s time to start customising your fit. There are three areas we’ll look at when personalising your boots to increase your comfort and performance.

     1. Footbeds 2. Shell Customisation 3. Liner Customisation

    By this point, we’ve spent a good period of time fitting a boot around and on top of your foot and lower leg, but every boot is still essentially flat underneath your feet and not customised to the unique shape of your foot. Given we are fully weight-bearing when we ski, it makes sense that underneath your foot is equally as important to the fit around your foot. The impact that footbeds will have on the performance of your skiing and your all-day comfort cannot be emphasized enough. At the aussieskier.com showroom, we use the top of the line Sidas Custom Fit Station for this process to ensure we have the most accurate mould of your foot possible and can create the most comfortable footbed for your new boots.


    From here we need to finish off your footbed. This can take up to 30 minutes, and if we’re busy we may have to book an appointment for you to come back another day. If we can do it on the spot you’re more than welcome to have a look around the store for any other gear you need, go explore the Prahran Markets or Greville St.

    Once your footbeds have been made and your foot and lower leg is correctly aligned inside the shell we’ll look at performing any necessary shell modifications. Modern ski boot plastics can be stretched a significant amount to accommodate bunions, protruding or accessory bones, foot deformities, or even just to create more room and volume in the boot. As plastic has a memory to make these changes permanent we will need to hold onto your boots for a few days so we’ll book an appointment for you to come back for another day to finish off the fit.


    Some ski boots also have the ability for the cuff to be aligned to the angle of the lower leg, so we’ll check if that’s necessary here as well.

    		 Your footbeds are dialled, your shell customisation has been finished, so the last piece of the puzzle is mould to your liner. This involves heating up the liner so the moldable foams become soft, malleable and take the shape of your heel, toes and tibia (shin bone). It’s going to accelerate the breaking in process of your new ski boots so you’re able to get to a high level of comfort and performance faster.