Are you heading into Granite Chief for a Custom AM-Fit boot fitting? Be sure to make an appointment by calling us at
(530)587-2809
The boot fitting process takes upwards of an hour but you only need to be here for 15-20 minutes while we scan your feet and get exact measurments.

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By Gunner Wolf

Your ski boots are the connection to your skis. Even the best skiers in the world can improve their skiing performance by dialing in the fit and alignment of their boots and if custom fitting can give them the edge think what it can do for you.

This is not only what we do but Granite Chief is where it all started. We are the pioneers of ski boot-fitting; we developed fitting techniques out of sheer necessity. Many of those early techniques are still used today by boot fitters across the country. Out team of ski boot fitters is always innovating; inventing the Laser Guided Balance System, a recent brainchild that has proven to be more precise then the old plumb-bob technique. Many shops and fitters are still using this antiquated technique, something that we backed away from years ago. Our Laser System allows us to line up the center of the knee and the mid-mold mark on the ski boot. We have also developed a caliper used to definitively find the center of the knee mass. As boot fitters, the tools and techniques we have developed allow us to work within micro tolerances, something no on else can achieve.

With our Laser Guided Balance System and our Tipping Technology we are years ahead of our competitors. What really puts our work head and shoulders above the others is our experience, and that experience has taught us that there is no wham-bam fix-all system. Many shops have adopted a set system of fitting and run with it on all skier types, all types of fit issues and problem solving. We've been around long enough and we have a high volume of repeat customers to know that one fix solution does not work for everyone. An example is boot planing; yes boot planing is a great new technique especially for elite skiers and racers, we do a lot of boot planing. But after talking with some of the best coaches in the area we have found that planing may not be in the best interst of young athletes that are still growing. With these athletes we may be better off achieving balance and alignment from the inside of the boot. This is true for a couple of reasons; as a developing athlete's technique improves the skier may need to be at a different balance point in order to ride a flat ski and make an effortless, smooth edge transition. Once you have planed you have moved the ski boot to the foot verses when working inside the boot you are moving the foot to the boot, both accomplishing the same end result. Ski boot planing is an expensive endeavor, if your young racer is still growing how much irreversible boot fitting are you willing to sink into a new pair of ski boots every few months. Coaches are telling us they will ski behind an athlete to view stance and balance, what looked good early in the season can be way off by the middle of the season. Concerns expressed to us are that planing in many cases is too permanent and changes in the young skier's technique often overrides the previous balance point of the boot and if the ski boot has been planed the feel the skier once felt is gone, simple solution new ski boots otherwise we are faced with having to reverse the planing by working inside the boot which is what should have been done in the first place. In these situations we feel it is better to achieve balance with a less permanent technique.

Once we have the absolute leg shaft alignment we then use our Tipping Technology to achieve a neutral and comfortable balance point. We do this by adding shims bit by bit to match the predetermined alignment points. But again there may be a need to move slightly beyond or behind the alignment points. We are striving to achieve a smooth transition from an on edge position to a flat ski and vice versa. When we use shims to tip the skier's stance to balance boot alignment and ski feel we can apply micro adjustments to maximize comfort and performance.

If we are working with an accomplished skier we can start planing the boot from there but if the skier isn't quite sure of the on snow feel they're looking for we will work from the inside of the ski boot. This way the skier can experiment to establish their optimum balance and alignment point. When working with the boot's inner-footbed, (most likely custom/personalized footbeds), we can continue to make adjustments to accommodate what the skier or the coach is trying to pinpoint with stance and balance. This is where we like to start even with the most experienced skiers, that way the skier can go out on the hill and verify the balance, alignment and the required ski feel. From there we apply the more permanent planing process. Work done on the inside of the ski boot can be un-done, re-done, and adjusted. That's why we typically recommend starting here when working with young-skiers and more recreational skiers.

All in all our boot fitting and selection process is an educational one. We will take you through the basic boot selection process choosing the manufacturer and the boot model according to your skier profile; including your foot shape, skier type, where you ski, what you ride and how many days a season you're out on the hill. Yes it is a process but an informative one and truly custom one, that's what we do. You won't find a blanket fix-all, fit-all solution at The Chief.

And if you think for one minute we haven't seen everything in our 36 years of ski boot fitting, you could be right. We have built ski boots that have won gold and silver medals on the World Cup and the Olympics, built boots that have skied Mr. Everest, not to mention thousands of happy recreational skiers, we know that there is always a ski boot challenge out there. We are looking forward to putting our knowledge and expertise into action, helping you select your ski boots and helping to achieve a comfortable performance fit.