Life after Strolz?

[jjsoundoc]

My 15yr old Strolz boots are packed-out and need to be retired. Pads and fillers that have been added, just caused more problems.
Was at a shop yesterday, and was told that the Salomon pro 120's were customizable and every bit as good as Strolz. Would others agree?
I have wide forefeet, narrow heels, xl calves, and weak ankles.
Are the new off-the-shelf boots that good? Other boots I should be looking at? I don't want to go back to the days of buying boots every other year hoping for the "right" one. Cost of Strolz now approaching $1300, would be great to cut that cost in half.
Thanks for any help with this. JJ

 

[coskigirl]

I can't speak to the Strolz boots (heck, I'd never even heard of them) but modern off the shelf boots are extremely customizable by a good bootfitter. I ski in the Salomon QST Pro 110 W and I quite like it. I have a custom insole and I've had heat molding and punches done on them.

 

[Tricia]

My 15yr old Strolz boots are packed-out and need to be retired. Pads and fillers that have been added, just caused more problems.
Was at a shop yesterday, and was told that the Salomon pro 120's were customizable and every bit as good as Strolz. Would others agree?
I have wide forefeet, narrow heels, xl calves, and weak ankles.
Are the new off-the-shelf boots that good? Other boots I should be looking at? I don't want to go back to the days of buying boots every other year hoping for the "right" one. Cost of Strolz now approaching $1300, would be great to cut that cost in half.
Thanks for any help with this. JJ

In a simple one word reply, No, the Salomon Pro 120's are not "every pit as good as Strolz"
I don't have first person experience with Strolz, but I've had customers who brought their kids for boots who have Strolz.
Fischer Vacuum boots are closer to custom than Salomon but the harsh reality is, Strolz boots are Strolz Boots.

You could get a boot that is customizable for your wider forefoot and get a custom liner (something like the Boot Doctor) to snug your heel. But, the Salomon Pro 120's are not the *same* as the fit you've grown accustomed to with your true custom boots.

 

[Muleski]

I might help. I made a brief move to Strolz at about the same time that you did. My first move out of a real race boot ever. I was steered they way by a friend who loves the boot, and by the fact that at that time many WC skiers were using a Strolz liner in other boots. All of the Lange men at the time. The boots were not for me, but they are for many. The liner was great.

There have been, IMO and IME, SO MANY advances in boot design, boot fitting and in particular in my case in boot liners. I ski in a Lange RX130....not a race boot. I have a BD foam liner, and a footbed that works for me. Slight cant on one. Boots work for me.

It could be any number of other high end boots. This shell fits my foot, with minor work. A Head would have been a tough fit, for example. Tecnica less so.

Liners, many tremendous aftermarket options. ZipFit, Intuition, BD. Stock liners of race boots, which can be used in many others are now of great quality: I have used Nordica, and Head in particular. Others are also great.

I think you'll find a better boot today, if guided by a very good fitter.

Editing to clarify perhaps not "better" than your Strolz, but better that the other options which you may have had at the time that you had your Strolz made for you.

You can also go pretty much custom with a Dodge. Fit process has been refined, and price just cut by $300 to $995. Just throwing it out there. Very different boot than a Strolz.

Good luck. If you want suggestions on a fitter, let us know where you are and you'll get suggestions.

 

[jjsoundoc]

Thanks all for the advice. I'm hoping to avoid the "bad old days" when I was having the boots tweaked every other day. With the Strolz, I just skied.
Muleski, I live in W.Concord, tips on a fitter would be appreciated.

 

[Philpug]

Thanks all for the advice. I'm hoping to avoid the "bad old days" when I was having the boots tweaked every other day. With the Strolz, I just skied.
Muleski, I live in W.Concord, tips on a fitter would be appreciated.

You have some great fitters in Vermont, HERE is the list from Masterfit/ABB. You can also look through their directory for other states too.

 

[Wilhelmson]

Got mine at Alpine Options about 15 years ago. About time for new ones. They still fit well but the flex has softed up.

 

[fatbob]

I maintain a healthy scepticism about Strolz despite having browsed their hometown stores. There is very definitely an indulgence of customers who feel they need something "special". There may be a tiny fraction of a percentage of skiers who absolutely cannot use anything else but such are the dark arts of expert bootfitters that I'd wager that a good one could get you just as good a fit in the right stock boot.

 

[Muleski]

Muleski, I live in W.Concord, tips on a fitter would be appreciated.

One of the very few knocks that I have heard about Strolz is that some skiers feel as if the are a very "high volume" boot and fit. The foam liners tend to be fairly thick. I recall when mine were built, that the shell seemed big. They were not for me. I had some idea that maybe I needed a more gentle boot, as I hit a big birthday. For me, a mistake and waste of a lot of money. But they do have a following. We're all different.

Certainly a 180 from my plug boot ski experience. I could not ski them. I do think you'll find a lot of thought and work into fitting the shell first these days. And BTW, in my most recent boots...I have had zero tweaking done after the initial fit. I have done some myself, but minor stuff. They do have a foam lining, the fitter had worked with me for 20+ years and knows my needs.

I presume it's West Concord, MA? I agree with Phil's comment that VT is just loaded with very, very good fitters. Where do you ski most often, or do you spread it around?

If it were me, I probably would start with Nick Blaylock at Mt. Snow Bootworks. Benny Wax at Inner Bootworks is great, as is a guy who I believe doesn't participate in ABB, PJ Dewey, who owns Race Stock Sports in Waterbury. A half hour apart.

If you want to head to Southern VT, in addition to Nick, you have GMOL. Many have had Bill do their work "forever". Nick worked for him at one point. Another shop near Stratton in The Starting Gate. Gary Longley is the owner, and has fit a lot of boots. Very good.

If you have a interest in having this done near Killington, Okemo or the Warren/Waitsfiekd area....many others.

I would personally drive to VT. If you ski in Maine, and want to make that drive, or NH, we can make suggestions. Did you have your Stroltz built at Strand's, BTW? Just curious.

Just my personal thoughts. Having the right person, who you are confident in is "money."
Our adult daughter lives in the Rockies, and still has all of her boot work done in Maine. Same guy has fit her since she was six. Over 20 pairs of boots.

I would start this process with a phone call, or a few. Then if one strikes you, make an appointment and make the drive. And see how it goes. It will take some time.

I also would not discount Dodge. They keep refining the boot, and they have quite a following. Not inexpensive. If I were buying boots {I luckily don't need to}, I would look into them as one option. Good people.

Weekend drive to VT.......

 

[jjsoundoc]

The "eureka" moment when skiing with Strolz boots was probably from the foamed liner more than anything else. Before the Strolz, always had a hard time keeping my ankles stable, even managed to sprain an ankle while in a boot!
I do live in MA and ski in NH and VT. A call and trip to a fitter at Mt. Snow sounds like a good start. Btw, the Strolz boots did come from Strand's.

 

[Muleski]

The "eureka" moment when skiing with Strolz boots was probably from the foamed liner more than anything else. Before the Strolz, always had a hard time keeping my ankles stable, even managed to sprain an ankle while in a boot!
I do live in MA and ski in NH and VT. A call and trip to a fitter at Mt. Snow sounds like a good start. Btw, the Strolz boots did come from Strand's.

Thanks for sharing that. I didn't want to assume a thing, but I sort of thought it might be the nice fit....firm-ish but comfortable. There are after market liners that are going to give you BETTER performance fit with just as much comfort and as you say "support." The technology and materials have improved a great deal. As much as you have loved the Stroltz, I bet you'll be blown away by your next boots.

I chuckle to think of the fitting at Strands. Was there with a friend once. I'd describe it as a lot of art and experience, and not so much science and precision. I recall a lot of toking around for tools, the finicky oven, etc.

You'll be quite impressed with any of these guys. Nick is a real star in the field.

Good luck, and welcome to PugSki!

 

[jjsoundoc]

After seeing a heated (empty) rum bottle used on my boots, I realized some of the dark arts do come into play at Strand's.
Glad to be here, good to know there's life after Strolz, and the Barking Bear Forums.

 

[Philpug]

After seeing a heated (empty) rum bottle used on my boots, I realized some of the dark arts do come into play at Strand's.
Glad to be here, good to know there's life after Strolz, and the Barking Bear Forums.

Barking Bears, what that?

Strolz started in a time where there were not many options, now there are. As as as using the rum bottle, real boot fitters use scotch bottles and a variety of them in fact...all personally emptied.

 

[Muleski]

Funny stuff.
Think you'll see a bit more precision this time around.
This is a great online community; I bet you'll like it!

 

[KingGrump]

Boots had changed a lot in the last 15 years. Gone through 8 pairs in that period. Each new pair seems to fit better than the last and less work to get there.

@Muleski is spot on for the three recs in SVT. Gary has been my boot guy for the last 39 years. He does lots of boots for the Stratton Mountain School athletes. I remembered Greg H. used to work there before he started GMOL up at Stratton. Can't go wrong with either Bill or Nick. A quick hop between all those.

To paraphrase George Zimmer, "You're going to like the way they fit. I guarantee it."

 

[PTskier]

Do Dale Boots ski well?
http://www.daleboot.com/root.html

Weak ankles---do your ankles pronate or supinate? Pronation is when your foot rolls inward and your arch flattens, creating a tendency to walk on the inner part of your foot. Supination is the opposite. The ankles are not straight due to the rolling inward or outward, and thus weak. Posted footbeds that get everything straight and aligned would be a big help (helps my pronation).

For my narrow heels, "The Eliminator" tongue shims holds my heel back in the pocket rather than try to hold the heel down by pasting something on the outside of the liner. Your XL calves might not have room for the thick Eliminator, but something in the right spot on the inside of the boot tongue to hold the ankle back might work for you.

Wide forefoot---high or low? A friend with feel like pancakes--wide but very flat--needs a low volume boot with the sides blown way out to give him a fit with control. Measuring his feet with a Brannock device indicates that he needs a high volume boot, and that gives him so much excess volume that his feet can swim inside those boots.

Ankles:

 

[jjsoundoc]

Looking forward to checking out some of the fitters in VT and the boots they suggest.
PT, I do have pronation and have had posted footbeds for a long time. My feet aren't like pancakes, more like thick swim flippers.

 

[David]

DaleBoot...100%

 

[graham418]

I keep getting emails from Dodge boots. not sure how they got me on their list, but they look very interesting, with a 3D modelling done with pics from your phone. Im sure someone here has experience with them. Although they probably aren't much cheaper than the Strolz

 

[TrickySr.]

I'm surprised that you have not heard from more Strolz skiers.
They truly were extraordinary boots. I skied in them for about 10 years after going through many different boots. I worked in the ski industry and pretty much had my choice.
As previously mentioned, there have been some dramatic improvements in boots through the years. However, the Strolz liners are still probably the best there are (leather.) 1 major caveat is you must have someone that knows how to properly foam a pair of boots.
I am relatively certain that Strolz is still in business in Europe; US, I don't know. The distributor was a man from your region that I believe was named George Kennedy. I was told by his dealers that he was a pain to deal with( and probably caused the demise of Strolz in the US.)
There is/was an individual in Oregon (I believe) that was dealing in Strolz foam liners(boots I'm not too sure?) I spoke with him several years ago via The Barking Bear Forums. (I have an extra pair of liners for myself.)
There was a foam boot on the market about 3 years ago that was comprised of a Salomon shell with a foam liner. I cannot remember the brand name. SEVAS maybe.......?
I have the opposite fit to yours with very low volume feet. I can tell you that it is still a challenge to fit my feet but it has gotten much better for yours.
Other liners were mentioned above. There are some foams( although, EPA regs on chemicals have affected the longevity that the Strolzs used to have.)
SUREFOOT has foam liners and a variety of boots but make sure you have a fitter that knows what he is doing. From what I've heard, some of their people don't. Every store is different. I have a good friend out here that has had a couple of pair of foam Langes that they made, that he has loved! A ski school director that spends lots of hours in his boots.
If you look at Intuition liners, you should know that they make the liners in several thicknesses, that in the past, have not been brought into the US by the distributor. Go to their web sight In Vancouver, B.C. and you can find info.
Strolz were exceptional also because you could get shells with various stiffness of plastic and change the forward lean and flex with springs. The spring thing has now been used by other mfgs.They also made different widths in their shells which most mfgs. do now, however, it may be hard to find in the particular model or flex that you desire.
All that being said, I probably wouldn't worry about buying another pair of Strolz(other than liners) because there are many very good skiing( and fitting boots) out there.
Fischer and Salomon have really pioneered heating shells and liners for difficult to fit feet. As mentioned above, Mel Dalebout(sp?) of Daleboot has had many good ideas regarding fit and skiability with his products(has held many patents that other mfgs have had to pay him for.)
All mfgs. have really improved the fit and skiablility options by many times since you last bought boots. As mentioned above, many good boot fitters in your area.
Be sure to take your time!!!!!!