Boot Woes, Help!

First of all, hi! I'm new around here. Second of all, I'm having a bit of a nightmare with boot sizing and I'm hoping some of you will have some advice. This is gonna be long, sorry in advance hwell:

Here's the background: I'm in my early thirties returning to skating for the first time in 15 years or so. I skated at the pre-preliminary/preliminary level as a teenager, but had to quit due to expenses. I decided now that I'm a grownup I can take lessons if I want to and signed myself up for a beginner class in January.

Back when I skated before, I had Risport boots that fit well, but I grew out of them. I wasn't about to try to learn anything on rental skates, so I went and got fitted at my rink's pro shop and ended up getting a pair of Jackson Elles to start lessons with. And I have been having fit issues with them since the moment I got them.

I got a 6.5 C width boot. First of all, my feet are pretty narrow (but not crazy narrow) so I probably should have gotten a B width, but the fitter recommended a C so I went with it. And the C actually is okay for the ball of my foot, but WAY too wide for my heel. I slip around like crazy. The boot is also too long, but maybe not a full half size too long, because I went back and tried the size 6 to double check, and it definitely felt too small. Possibly that little bit of extra length would not make a big difference if the heel fit properly, but it doesn't.

After having the boots heat molded twice, adding extra insoles, changing my lacing technique, and stuffing heel grips into them (three on the right, two on the left) I have come to the conclusion that these boots just are not going to work for me. The heel grips actually do stop the heel slipping for the most part, but they don't provide the ankle stability that a properly fitting boot would. I tried just some small bunny hops to test, and I could feel my ankle buckling just from that.

SO! With that all said, I need to buy new skates. After two months. I've already decided I need to go with a higher level boot. For one thing, a lot of skills are coming back to me faster than I expected, and I want something that will last me a while, since I don't have to worry about my feet growing anymore. But if I'm going to dive in and buy the investment skates, I really need to make sure the fit is right this time. So that brings me to a few questions.

A) Is it even vaguely advisable to go back to the pro shop that misfitted me the first time? The woman really did work on the fit with me in terms of heat molding and stuff, but I said I thought the boots were too big the first time I put them on and she kind of brushed me off. Which made me assume I shouldn't worry about it, when clearly I was right the first time. The problem is, my only other option is to go somewhere 2+ hours away that was recommended to me. And I know that I will need to make at least two trips up there if I do that, maybe more, which is ... pretty inconvenient. I would like to avoid that if I can, but I really, REALLY need my skates fitted correctly.

B) Regardless of where I go, what can I do to ensure that I get the right brand, size, width of boot? An experienced fitter is helpful, but at the end of the day I'm the one feeling how the boot fits my foot. So what should I look out for to make sure I choose the right boot this time around?

C) Does anyone have any experience/thoughts on the best brands or how to best fit for a narrow heel/ankle? I think the ball of my foot is pretty standard, so that does present a fitting problem. From what I've read here and elsewhere, squeezing the heel of a boot in is iffy at best, so I don't think buying for the widest part of my foot and hoping for the best is going to work. But I'm hoping with heat molding and maybe punching out the sides a little bit that I could get a size that fits my heel and can still accommodate the ball of my foot without pain. Custom boots are seriously not in my budget right now, so any advice on how to best make a stock boot work would be appreciated.

Thanks for any help you guys can give!

See if the first shop will take your boots back - if they stand by their products, they should recognize that they put you in a boot that doesn't fit. It probably wouldn't be a total mistake to go back, given that it sounds like you now know a good fit from a bad fit, and they were competent at heat molding, punching, mounting, etc. Why not try Risport again? Don't by shy about having them order a B width, and half sizes up and down in boots you want to tr.

Yes, definitely go back and try to get a refund, if not, try and get part of your money back on eBay? As far as new skates, I would go the extra mile (lol) and go to the other shop, but that might just be my trust issues. I personally wouldn't recommend Jackson's, I think edeas may work well for you! I would recommend preludio for a similar feel to the elles, but if you are progressing well, overtures would be better. Although you could try ripsport, your feet have likely changed over the years. Riedells may work, but you may need split width, available past the gem series. Your best bet is probably 233 stride if you want riedell.

I was sold skates that did not fit my feet so I understand how frustrating that is. Having said that, I was able to sell those skates to another woman in my class and I got about 80% of what I paid for them. I think it was a win / win for both of us.

My problem was with Jackson Mystiques. I should have gone with the Jackson freestyles. Yes they are more but you are getting a better quality boot with a leather sole. My problrm was the plastic sole did not allow the blade to be adjusted and the pre-mounted blade was slightly off kilter for me. Others say you can adjust blades on plastic soles but that was not my experience.

Most of the U.S. and Canadian boot brands offer a split-width boot for just around $50 more. And I would go to a different fitter, since the first one clearly didn't get it right.

vlaurend said:

Most of the U.S. and Canadian boot brands offer a split-width boot for just around $50 more. And I would go to a different fitter, since the first one clearly didn't get it right.

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You sure about that? I thought split widths tended to only be offered on higher level skates. I know that Jackson does not offer them until about Premiers unless that changed in the last 6 months or so.

The first time I went back to skating (I've had a few breaks... some literally), I was in my 30s and had not skated for 17 years, so I kind of understand where you are coming from on that. I had every intention of getting back into freestyle, so I bought boots that were at my previous level of skating (according to the manufacturer description of the boots).

It sounds like you need a split width, which you can't get in low level skates.

Given that the shop clerk kind of ignored what you said about the size, it may be that the person is actually a good fitter who was trying to push inventory with fingers crossed.

Regarding the far away place, perhaps you could get a fitting there and order the skates with those measurements from somewhere else, then you won't have to drive there a second and third time (any skate tech stuff could be done at your local shop if you feel the person is able to do a good job). A good fitter will probably charge for the fitting service, if you are not ordering the skates there. (I order my skates from Kinziescloset.com; just have to send her a separate email with the customizations desired, and she will put in the order. The disadvantage to ordering that way, is that customs can't be returned as they might be in a physical shop).

treesprite said:

Given that the shop clerk kind of ignored what you said about the size, it may be that the person is actually a good fitter who was trying to push inventory with fingers crossed.

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Actually, this would be a worse scenario. I think I could forgive a person who was honest but incompetent; however, I would want to fry a person who was competent but deliberately dishonest. Either way, definitely a person to avoid ... unless he stands behind his actions and takes back the improper skates; then, maybe worthy of a second chance if you don't find the alternatives palatable either.

concorde said:

My problem was with Jackson Mystiques. I should have gone with the Jackson freestyles. Yes they are more but you are getting a better quality boot with a leather sole. My problrm was the plastic sole did not allow the blade to be adjusted and the pre-mounted blade was slightly off kilter for me. Others say you can adjust blades on plastic soles but that was not my experience.

Click to expand...

I know this is a bit off topic, but it doesn't make sense to me. As long as the blades are mounted to the sole and heel with screws instead of rivets, you should be able to readily adjust the mount of the blades, regardless of the material that the sole and heel is fabricated from. Logically, if the manufacturer attached the blades to the sole and heel with screws, then you should be able to remove the screws, reposition the blade, drill new holes into the sole and heel, and reattach the blade with screws.

Typically, not all mounting holes on the blades are used. If that is the case, you reposition the blade and drill fresh holes in the sole and heel for the previously unused mounting holes on the blades. If you do need to reuse the previous mounting holes on the blades for any reason, you can plug the old screw holes in the sole and heel and re-drill as needed (you plug the old screw holes with suitable material and suitable adhesive, depending on the material of the sole and heel; you can't simply pound a peg [or rolled-up scrap of leather] in, the way some skate techs do). I personally have worked only with leather soles and heels, but most plastic soles and heels are made of PVC or similar material. And I've previously done a lot of machine shop work with PVC and similar materials.

There's nothing magical about leather when it comes to holding screws. In fact, I wouldn't consider leather to be a robust structural material.

jf12 said:

See if the first shop will take your boots back - if they stand by their products, they should recognize that they put you in a boot that doesn't fit. It probably wouldn't be a total mistake to go back, given that it sounds like you now know a good fit from a bad fit, and they were competent at heat molding, punching, mounting, etc. Why not try Risport again? Don't by shy about having them order a B width, and half sizes up and down in boots you want to tr.

Click to expand...

Yes, definitely go back and try to get a refund, if not, try and get part of your money back on eBay? As far as new skates, I would go the extra mile (lol) and go to the other shop, but that might just be my trust issues. I personally wouldn't recommend Jackson's, I think edeas may work well for you! I would recommend preludio for a similar feel to the elles, but if you are progressing well, overtures would be better. Although you could try ripsport, your feet have likely changed over the years. Riedells may work, but you may need split width, available past the gem series. Your best bet is probably 233 stride if you want riedell.

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Do you guys really think they would take the skates back after I've been skating on them for 8 weeks? I was kind of under the assumption that once I had them heat molded twice and skated on them for a while they're kind of mine. I definitely do think I could sell them, though. They're good skates, and practically new. They just don't fit me. I guess if I did try to go back to the same shop I could at least ask.

concorde said:

I was sold skates that did not fit my feet so I understand how frustrating that is. Having said that, I was able to sell those skates to another woman in my class and I got about 80% of what I paid for them. I think it was a win / win for both of us.

My problem was with Jackson Mystiques. I should have gone with the Jackson freestyles. Yes they are more but you are getting a better quality boot with a leather sole. My problrm was the plastic sole did not allow the blade to be adjusted and the pre-mounted blade was slightly off kilter for me. Others say you can adjust blades on plastic soles but that was not my experience.

Click to expand...

Yes, I'm hoping I'll be able to sell mine as well since they're practically brand new. I still have the box and everything! I definitely know where you're coming from. The Elles were honestly more expensive than I felt comfortable with, but after skating again for even a short time, I know the bigger investment will be worth it.

tstop4me said:

Actually, this would be a worse scenario. I think I could forgive a person who was honest but incompetent; however, I would want to fry a person who was competent but deliberately dishonest. Either way, definitely a person to avoid ... unless he stands behind his actions and takes back the improper skates; then, maybe worthy of a second chance if you don't find the alternatives palatable either.

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My honest feeling about this is that she is way too busy. The woman who does skate fitting is also the skating director for the rink, and I have never seen her when she wasn't trying to do three things at once. That doesn't really excuse the situation, but I don't think it was malicious on her part. I think maybe I will at least try to talk to her about the situation and see what options I have.

Thank you guys so much for your responses! This really helps me kind of think through the situation. I will definitely ask about split widths at whichever shop I end up going to.

ifshehadwings said:

My honest feeling about this is that she is way too busy. The woman who does skate fitting is also the skating director for the rink, and I have never seen her when she wasn't trying to do three things at once. That doesn't really excuse the situation, but I don't think it was malicious on her part. I think maybe I will at least try to talk to her about the situation and see what options I have.

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Hey, it doesn't hurt to ask. The worst that can happen is she'll say, "No, sorry, I can't take them back now." Or, she can pleasantly surprise you and say, "Sorry, mea culpa. I'll take them back and make it right."

ifshehadwings said:

Thank you guys so much for your responses! This really helps me kind of think through the situation. I will definitely ask about split widths at whichever shop I end up going to.

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I also have a narrow heel relative to the ball. I have Jackson Elites, which come stock in split widths, so they are a good fit for me. Previously I had a Riedell in a narrow single width. I needed the narrow to give a snug fit in the heel (critical), but the toe was slightly cramped.

Don't guess as to whether a split width is appropriate. A good fitter should take proper measurements and tracings of your feet and send them off to the service department of the boot manufacturer. A service rep should be able to tell you whether a particular model can be sized properly for your feet.