All About Boots and Bindings
Things to know before you make the big choice - step in or strap in

  

Buying a good pair of boots and binding is definitly just as important as the board itself. Here are some things to keep in mind when shopping for them:

Boots:

  1. Make sure you don't have any heel slide in your boot. This means it should snuggly fit. Your foot shouldn't slide around in the heel or towards the toe when you carve/learn foward/turn/move. Airwalk now makes a freestyle boot with a thing inside that straps around your heel to keep the boot from sliding. Other companies also make straps outside the boot for a tighter fit or have speciall shoe lace design. Having a boot that doesn't fit is the worst- so be sure it fits!

  2. Make sure the boot is going to keep you warm enough. Is it water repelent? Will it wear down easily? Is it thick enough, or too thick?

  3. Although you want a snug fit, don't get your boot skin tight. Take into consideration thick socks you might be wearing or anything to keep your feet warm. It's best to wear your snowboarding socks when shopping for boots.

 

This is a K2 Step-in boot. Two things to notice:

1.) The thick strap around the middle to create a better fit and more support.

2.) The high black strip on the back that looks like a binding. This is also there for support, to replace
a typicall strap in binding.

  1. If your skepticall about what to buy, you might want to stick with a reliable brand. They've been around longer, and might have longer warranties or more product support.

  2. Make sure the boot is right for you. If your a small person, try to stay with the lighter boots. Ask the sales person what they recomend for you and your type of snowboarding.

  3. Ask around. Go to different stores and see if you any of them all carry a certain boot. Get all their oppinions on it and compare. If only one store carries a certain boot, ask the other stores what they think of it.

 

Bindings:

Two types of bindings:

1.) Step in

2.) Ratch-teck (regular strap around bindings.)

Things to know about all bindings:

  1. You want a light weight binding. Although the weight of your binding alone won't make that much difference, it's when you add everything together that counts. The weight of your board, boots and bindings affects how much air you get and how easily you can spin your board. The weight of your board is most important.

This is a freestyle/freeride strap in

binding made by Sims.

  1. Step in bindings are improving and gaining popularity each year. When they first came out nobody wanted them. They got snow clogged in them and didn't work very well. They're much better now though and save you the time of strapping your bindings in everytime you get off the ski lift.

  2. Bindings come in the sizes Small, Medium, and Large. Medium is the most universall, and if you plan on selling your board later and they fit, go with these. If you know you have small or large feet, go with these sizes. You don't want your bindings to just barely fit, or not fit at all because they won't close all the way around your small feet.

This is a step in binding

made by K2.

  1. Always ask a sales associate. Your not a bindings expert. They're paid to be, ask them about the newest binding and what's so great about it.

  2. Find out a lot of information and buy a great binding. Bindings change, but not drastically. If you get a binding ahead of its time you'll save a lot of money by not having to update to soon.

  3. To find out if you want step ins or ratch-tek go see if you can find a place that rents snowboards with both kinds of bindings. Ratch-tek just means the kind of strap in they use now. It's designed to give you the tightest fit using a ratch-tek technology.

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