UKH

Please Advise

Was reading an article on lightweight skiing and boot set ups, I'm really interested in ski mountaineering so this raised a few questions. Is it possible to use my B3 boots in a ski binding? I think it might work in some of the dynafit ones.

Would really appreciate some advice as am using some really heavy ski boots binding and skis, hardly ideal.

Thanks ED

In reply to edward22:

Depends; how good a skier are you and what kind of terrain are you skiing?

Personally I dont think I could manage it on anything other than a blue run, especially with a pack on. Not that I am a great skier or any benchmark but I live in Switzerland and have skied approx 200 days in total, including touring Mt Blanc and some mild extreme stuff like the Cosmiques.

I would have thought light touring boots and skis would be a better approach.

In reply to edward22:

Why bother....there are so many good light ski boots out there that climb well. I'm thinking nearly all of the dynafit range just for starters.

In reply to featuresforfeet:

Thanks for the swift reply, I'm an ok skier, I taught and raced for a couple of seasons in Canada, but I take your point, not sure i'm quite at that level.

am just trying to avoid another pair of ski boots, as love my B3's and have seen a climber skiing in them.

Any ideas?

In reply to edward22:

How would you use a B3 boot with a Dynafit binding? Are you talking about modifying the sole and putting in your own inserts?

I think a lightweight touring boot can be almost as good to climb easy snow in as a B3 boot.

In reply to edward22:

I've managed to clip my leather B3s into a pair of Fritschi Diamirs. The support is all wrong; there is no lateral support for your ankles so it's really hard to use edges or even turn the skis and I felt very uneasy. You can't really flex the skis like you would with ski boots either, again because the boots aren't stiff enough. That said, I'm not a strong skier.

I've seen setups that can be added to mountain boots that allow you to ski more normally. I think they date from a time when ski boots were dreadful to climb in and nobody spent even a fraction of what climbers seem willing to spend now. Today the obvious choice is to buy a lightish pair of touring boots and check your crampons fit them!

In reply to Bob_the_Builder:

yeah was thinking of getting the sole modified, but I think your right and that a light weight touring boot would be best as you all suggest, it would also mean I don't have to butcher my boots.

thanks, any other advice on ski mountaineering appreciated.

In reply to edward22:

I've climber in Scarpa Maestrales (easy stuff admittedly) but I'd say they were at least as good as the plastics we all used to use in the old days (But sadly not day-glo, like my old Koflachs!)

In reply to edward22:

on the odd occasion I ski in my plastic B3's I use a ski boot liner. Big improvement.

In reply to edward22:

This should help.

http://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/page.php?id=6078

In reply to edward22:

Sorry to jump on your post Edward but has anyone managed to snowboard in B2's? I was thinking of, for example, walking up Cairn Gorm with my board and then sliding back down.

In reply to alanthomas:

That is a far better idea !!! I recon you could easily snowboard in b2 or b3 boots

In reply to edward22:

HI
I am not professional skier still now I am able to manage it properly. I find B3 boots really comfortable for skiing. I make sure that I have comfortable & fitted ski clothing, for this I always hire Twinner Avoriaz ski rentals. Check their latest collection at http://www.twinner-avoriaz.fr/.

In reply to blurty:


My Maestrales are bright orange (and black). Not day-glo, but still not really a subtle fashion statement...

In reply to angelaholmes:

Subtle.

In reply to Martin W:

My Maestrales are white! A little more subtle... And yeh, great to climb in. They're certainly not the limiting factor in my climbing talent! I struggle to lift them high (i.e. a rockover) but what do you expect? For ice and moderate mixed they're fine. They are a little hard to traverse a snow slope though as you can't roll you ankle to get the crampons flat to the snow like you can with B3s. It's fine unless the snow is particularly hard though.

In reply to edward22:

It's one of those questions which if you're asking us lot, you should probably not be doing it. It gets asked so often and there is no right answer. Either you need to buckle up and lay out the cash for proper kit, secure in the knowledge that you're not going to f*ck your ankles, or you have to accept that you may hurt yourself, ski very conservatively and buy old silvretta bindings with a toe and heel bail. However here's something to add to the mix which I'd not really thought about till just now:

http://apexskiboots.com/the-system

They fit boarding boots, so I'm wondering if you could fit climbing boots into them too...

In reply to edward22:

It is very very diffecult to ski in climbing boots. In fact it is dangerous. But it is much easier to climb in ski boots. There are so many light weight touring boots out now.

In reply to edward22:

Check out the La Sportiva Spectres or Dynafit TLT6's. Both suitable for skiing and climbing.

In reply to John Cooke:
From my experience (~40 years of skiing from the doorstep)

Actually B3s or even La Sportiva Nepal Tops work quite well in combination with Diamir Pro and suitable skis (e.g. Nordica Burners) as long as you do not hit steep and icy terrain. This setup teaches you a lot about skiing, especially how to keep your weight centered and how to actually bend ze knees. It's my favourite setup for long walks or winter climbs as the walking comfort is fantastic and the skiing, well... different.

However, if you get onto steep (>40) and hard surfaces the game changes and becomes challenging and dangerous.

Binding settings have to be tested individually as the system reacts different and is also not "safe". But in return old greyhaired ski instructors will look at you with respect )

Z.

In reply to alanthomas:

I snowboarded once and did it in Salamon SM Lites (B2)

In reply to edward22:

People used to use silvretta bindings and B3 boots. I have done a route from the VB in Chamonix this way, then finished the VB later. Very hard not to rock back in B3 boots with a sack on. We used to wrap 2 inch wide climbing tape around the ankle to help.

But as other people have said there are so many very light ski touring boots now.

In reply to Ian Carr:

That's right but that setup is crap. The old Silvrettas are really heavy
and the new ones are instable. I smashed my radius with Nepal Top & Silvretta Pure Tec.......