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Post by JimRatliff on Nov 29, 2013 18:52:32 GMT -7
Jim, My current ski boot footbeds were made by Glen. Since Harald trained Glen, hopefully Harald and Chris will approve. Jim2: I thought that was the case and think it will be interesting to hear if there are differences. I don't know how much Glen has been isolated from HSS or like minded alignment specialists. I know that Lynn has had moments where Harald had one opinion and Diana had other thoughts on what change(s) to make. My alignment was neutral until they corrected the varus, then I was off a bit (we are talking alignment). In both cases a couple of the coaches discussed what they were seeing and how it should be addressed. That level of consulting with someone with the same vocabulary and paradigm is good I think. Glen seems really knowledgeable and seems to have good results; I wonder if he and Harald still correspond or exchange ideas. BTW, each coach does the alignment and footbeds for their students based on what they see in the first days skiing. There may also be a lot of playing with shims under the heel to see if contemplated alignment adjustments prove their value in the skiing.
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Post by superbman on Dec 1, 2013 19:58:21 GMT -7
Hey Jim, some good tips. Thanks for that. As much as I like the idea of the fat bikes, I have no real desire to own one. But they are a neat idea, and I like that they have caught on and are evolving into lighter frames, etc. Next step: carbon fat bikes. That is really good advice on pedals. I hadn't considered the ice problem with SPD's. Valid issue. I will have to see if that becomes a problem here, as I plan to ride only when the trails are bare, but frozen. As mentioned, we are in a funny snow zone here -- about 40 km north of Lake Ontario; close enough to keep the snows away; but far enough to be colder. Strange micro-climates around the lakes. Some winters we have almost no snow; some winters we have plenty. But drive just 20 km further north, and there is always snow, and lots of it. What are frog pedals? I have never heard that term. If my SPD's ice up, then I would look at putting on some spiky platform pedals. I hadn't seen this post and I just posted up elsewhere about good ole' frog speedplays. I have never had ice/mud or any other issues with modern SPD's. They last for a long time and work great year round. I used to use speed plays, but they got hard to find and were never on sale. Shimano 540's are the best bang per buck in the pedal world (I never noticed any performance differences with XT or XTR pedals). OH BIG PLUS 1 on the aline footbeds--great product.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 2, 2013 18:55:04 GMT -7
Yeah, the A-Lines are really nice. I had a pair in my ski boots for a month or so last season, and they performed great. But they were the model with the rubberized top surface, which seemed to be specifically designed to stick to ski socks like Scotch tape, so getting the feet in and out of the boots was a pain in the rear to say the least. They now reside in my MTB shoes, where they are working out great. Happily, A-Line now makes a model with a flocked fabric surface which solves the in and out problem. My daughter has those in her boots. So anyone considering a good off-the-shelf footbed for their ski boots and is looking at buying A-Line, don't get the rubbery ones.
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Post by JimRatliff on Jan 25, 2014 11:53:22 GMT -7
Back to the winter mountain biking topic. Svend, it's been a snowy, nasty, cold winter so far. How are you doing with your winter biking? I got out one day in Central Park this month, but we haven't been out on our mountain bikes since November. If you have been riding in this kind of weather then I take my hat off to your "cold weather Canadian ruggedness".
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Post by Deleted on Jan 28, 2014 19:45:32 GMT -7
Hey Jim -- my grand plans of riding the snowless trails this winter have not materialized. We had an early snowfall in November, and it's pretty much stayed on the ground since then. As I have no interest in riding in the snow, the bike has been in the basement workshop most of the winter. I tinker with it when time allows (and I'm not waxing skis), doing some long overdue routine maintenance. Too bad, as I was rather looking forward to winter riding.
But on the upside, our local ski hill has had some great conditions. We've had more than our usual snowfall amount. Paradoxically, Blue Mtn. has a deeper base than most western resorts in Canada this winter. I'll take that any time.
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