Skiing at your best can only be accomplished when the base of your skis is flat on the snow when you are in a comfortable balanced stance. Proper alignment of your bone structure from your feet to your neck is important in achieving a flat ski. This alignment begins at the top sheet of the ski. Properly fit boots will improve blood circulation and help keep your feet happy and warm!
Foot beds
Custom foot beds are the first step in positioning the foot properly inside the shell. The foot beds stabilize the 26 bones in the foot, preventing the foot from growing in length with the foot under load. That causes black toe, cold feet and heel blisters. Often due to a boot that is too big. Foot beds will increase your edge control by reducing the collapse of the arch during lateral movement (edging).
Off the shelf foot beds are an upgrade from the ski boot manufacturers foot beds, but very rarely do they stop foot migration. With 25 years making foot beds, Jim can make your feet happy!
Stance Analysis
Stance analysis is done to diagnose poor structural alignment and the resulting bio mechanical loss of leverage.
A weak turn to one side, difficulty skiing powder and soft snow (crud) and the frustrating intermediate plateau are all symptoms of poor alignment. At the completion of a stance analysis, stance adjustments can be made through boot balancing, canting, cuff alignment and shell manipulation. This will help you ski up to your greatest potential, and that's what will be fun for you.
Boot Balancing
Proper positioning of the foot inside the shell will improve balance and leverage on the ski. Warmth can be increased by enhancing circulation and keeping the foot in a comfortable position. If you don't feel comfortable standing in your boots, this may be all you need to get comfortable in changing conditions.
Canting
Canting is done below the boot shell to flatten the ski base to match the snow interface when standing neutral. In our experience over 80% of skiers need some canting to make turns in both directions effortlessly. Habitual edge hooking or a ski that drifts outward in powder are symptoms of a need for canting.
Traditionally, canting has been done with a small wedge placed between the binding and the ski. Some ski boot soles can be canted enabling any ski to be used with great performance.
Base edge bevels
Base beveling is tapering 1/2 to 1 degree, the base edge to make the ski less twitchy and less likely to hook edges, but slower to hook up.
Side edge bevels
Side edge beveling makes a ski increasingly snappy with increased angles. Standard edges had been 90 degrees, but 89 degrees to87 degree side edge angles are common on newer shaped skis. These increased angles hold an edge better on hard snow and quicken turn initiation. Increased side edged angles also are more likely to be catchy and will dull more quickly when skiing icy conditions.
Cuff Alignment
Shell Manipulation
Shell manipulations are helpful in positioning the foot inside the shell (boot balancing) as well as comfort and warmth. Your foot may not be the same shape as the last that the shell was molded around, stretching the shell to match your foot will make it more comfortable and increase blood circulation and therefore, warmth.
Boot Repair
Ski Tuning
Your skis should glide smooth and predictable edge to edge with nice hook up ice and hard snow. We use the same time tested hand-tuning techniques as the pro racers. we will help you decide what edge bevels you want. Then we take our time tuning the skiis your specifications. We are accostom to performing core delamination, and sidewall repairs.
Many shops quickly roll the wax on. We bake the wax into the base 3 times, working it into the base structure. Base structure is added to the plastic to take friction generated water molecules away from the ski to reduce suction.
Adaptive Equipment Design
Ski Shop Open November 3 - April 15
Bike Shop Open April 15 - Sept 25
10am-7pm Wed. thru Sunday
Closed Mon. and Tues
- sometimes available with prior appointment
Closed Holidays
