Hello,
I'm 6'3'' tall, I weigh 185ish lbs, and ski mostly in variable (almost never fresh) snow conditions in trees, sidecountry and some backcountry tours. I love playful skiing and fooling around off-piste, doing also some backcountry booters. Currently I have 182 Line Sir Francis Bacons and I'm also going to throw some sidecountry binding on them (MFD, Barons, Guardians or - God forbid - Trekkers).
I decided to buy new boots for the next season to get something that actually fits. I'm looking for a backcountry-boot that can handle variable conditions and even some charging, but still be playful and forgiving, as I am not an expert skier. I believe that the on-piste capabilities of this type of boots are good enough for me in any case.
So I'm guessing around flex 110-120(?) as a starting point if not taking into account the hugely variable flex indexes between brands. Unfortunately, I cannot say which brands I fit into (my current boots are old Dalbello Voodoos that are overly comfortable and I'd say too loose, can't make any tests atm), so I might have to find myself a boot fitter (which is pretty damn hard here in Finland).
While doing my research on brands that might suit my foot before trying to get a hold of a bootfitter, I came across these bad boys. Everything about the Vacuum Ranger sounds exactly perfect for me - too good to be true -
so I would like to hear experiences from someone who has these boots, or some other Vacuum fit boots from Fischer.
Also experiences/opinions of the 4-buckle design vs. the common
3-buckle, and the functionality of the 3-position touring/riding switch.
These boots would supposedly even remove the need to try and find a bootfitter - I would just have to make sure the shellsize is right.
Blister already praised the Vacuum technology in their review:
http://blistergearreview.com/gear-reviews/review-2011-2012-fischer-vacuum-130
Other boots I have considered (depending on what fits me):
- Salomon Quest Max 120 also with the semi-universal fit due to the moldable shell - although not quite to the same degree as Vacuum
- Dalbello Krypton2 Pro/Fusion / Lupo SP / Il moro
- Atomic Waymaker Carbon 110
- K2 Pinnacle 110
- Tecnica Cochise 120/110
The boot does not absolutely have to have a touring mode, but it is a big plus, the priority is to have a boot that fits.
Of course, if some of these boots' soles have compatibility problems with any of the bindings mentioned earlier, I'd like to know that too.
Tl;dr: Gief experiences of Fischer Soma Vacuum Ranger 12 or other Vacuum fit boots
Thanks.
