An Award Best Not Bestowed

An Award Best Not Bestowed

How Not to Buy a Ski Boot One of Realskiers’ core missions is to recognize and reward excellence in product design. We’ve created a sophisticated protocol to identify the best alpine skis, sorted by terrain preference, skier style and gender. This means we end up with...
In Praise of the Apprentice

In Praise of the Apprentice

Every day of every ski season, well meaning but untrained bootfitters at general sporting goods stores cheerfully guide skiers into the wrong boots. This is not due to any inherent wickedness of 20-something man, but because real mastery takes time to...
Beat the Bad Bootfit Blues

Beat the Bad Bootfit Blues

The device responsible for making skiing an accessible sport instead of a risky form of recreation is the alpine boot.  If it isn’t set up to function properly, the expensive slat it’s meant to control and the binding to which it’s connected won’t operate as their...
Saving Skiing One Skier at a Time

Saving Skiing One Skier at a Time

Tales from the Front Lines: Saving Skiing One Skier at a Time This week the American branch of the world ski market reconvenes in Denver at the annual SIA show.  While the engine that drives the show is commerce, its machinery is oiled and fueled by personal...
Worst Boots Ever

Worst Boots Ever

It may seem mean-spirited to pick on dreadful alpine boot designs, until one remembers the pain and/or terror such boots inspired.  Because mankind is a richly varied species, some skiers may vigorously protest the inclusion of one of their favorite pieces of footwear...