Salomon Impact 10/Intuition Liner

[jclawson01]

hey everyone, with the ski season beating down our front doors i thought i would share my experience w/my salomon impact 10 boots. I have the 07/08 season model.

my feet are an odd mixture of everything almost, my foot is not wide but not average, narrow heel, and low instep.

1. I had to have the boots punched out at my pinkie toes and inner ankle.
2. custom molded foot bed
3. removed 2 bolts in the back of the heel to soften the boot (most people think they need a stiffer boot than they actually need, the new skis don't need forward stiff boots)
4. quater moon shape of foam on top of my foot

I have skied w/this setup for a couple season and have about 40 days in these boots, but my foot is still slipping due to my instep being so low. So what i have gotten in hopes to fix this issue is a full custom heat molded boot liners. I have gotten the Intuition liners with the power wrap, I went with the power wrap for myself because I have the narrow heel issue.

I am hoping to get these molded later this week I will post up the results. Below are some basic boot fitting rules.

1. When trying on new boots you should be able to feel (not be jammed) the end of the liner when standing straight up.
2. Buckling your boots should not be super difficult, if you feel you have to clamp them down super tight you are stiffing the boot up and cutting off blood flow to your foot.
3. When fitting new boots you should wear the thinest sock possible

[jclawson01]

So I thought I would post up some pics of my boot and the old liners compared to the new ones. I will be getting fitted on Mon so I will posting an update then.

My Salomon boot w/the stiffning bolts in the back removed



Salomon liner w/the foam pad to try to hold my foot down



My new Intuition Power Wrap liners, the black is the power wrap. These liners will save about 1 lb per boot!!!!

[jclawson01]

Ok, I just got back from getting my boots fitted and I have to give a big thank you to Jeff for doing such a great job over at Foot Dynamics. (fyi they don't sell boots just the intuition liners and do the fittings)

It was a great time, Jeff took me into the back and showed me the work shop of where my custom foot beds were being made after he molded it to my foot. I enjoyed watching him and his assistant work on my foot beds, doing this is a skill and care and watching them work I could tell they have both.

If you plan on or have some liners that need molded I have to say going to Jeff is a must. The reason is that when you bake the Intuition liner it becomes very soft and pliable so keeping it in the form you want is very difficult. Other shops correct this issue by using straps, and velcro. Now I'm not going to give Jeff's secrete away but I will say that it is much easier and cleaner, and keeps everything where it needs to be so you can get the correct fit.

After we were all done I put the boots back on and I have to say that I am sold on Intuition liners even with out skiing in them yet. Just the firm hold that they give and the ease is it to flex the boots being how the boots are now almost a pound each lighter, and yes I did notice that.  Hopefully we get some snow tonight and tomorrow that will allow Bogus to open so I can give these boots a true tests.

I will post more on my thoughts and my experiences with these liners as the season goes.

Thanks again to Jeff at Foot Dynamics, and Bryce at SVST 

[jclawson01]

Hello again,

I went up on opening day and it was great, the snow was nice dry and fluffy in the morning. I was even skiing off trail a bit, didn't find any rocks thank god .

The new liners did great overall, I will be going back and having Jeff re-mold a bigger space for my left big toe. My toe was fine when I was flexed into the boot or turning on the groomers. Once I stood more up right or leaned back and bit for the powder my toe was being jammed into the liner. But, that is an easy fix and when you do custom work you normally have to do things a couple times, so to have that be my only comfort issue I'm stoked.

Now if you look at my other posts you will see that I have the Power Wrap Intuition liners, the work great for me since my issue was keeping my heels down and that I have a narrow heel. I can totally feel the pressure on the back of my heels with these liners. So I only recommend the Power Wrap liners for people that have narrow heels like myself, if you have normal or wide heels these liners will not work for you get the normal liners.

One thing to keep in mind when you switch from your stock foam liners to the Intuitions, is that the Intuitions are not a soft cushy feel like your stock foam ones. These are molded to your foot so there is no reason for the liner to absorb your little pinky toe (lol). So do keep that in mind when you get yours molded and on the hill they are a snug, firm fit that won't be letting go of you any time soon.

The other thing that I noticed w/the liners is that they do stiffen my boot up, I like a soft boot personally. So for me I will probably be taking my boots into Greenwoods to have the Rylie or Rollie help soften my boots up a bit.

Food for thought when getting Intuition liners:

• They are fully heat moldable (and make sure you take them to someone that has experience with these)
• Will save dramatic weight in your boots
• Keep your foot at a stable temp
• Liners dry soooo much faster than the stock foam liners
• Firm feel, no more cushy slopping around
• Stiffen your boot up a bit
• Be prepared to have to have them molded more than once to get the fit correct.

Final product