Dostie's View #65 | Should I Wait for The New Telemark Boot?!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ก.ย. 2024
- On this week's Dostie's View, Craig shares his thoughts on the ever evolving conversation about Telemark boots: possible release dates, what's currently on the market, why first releases are sometimes troublesome, and the economics of Telemark boot making.
As Craig suggested, it may be a little while before we see a new boot on the market so if you need to replace or upgrade you can order boots here: bit.ly/ScarpaT...
I'm 70. I don't have another 30 years to wait for Scarpa to come out with a new boot.
Yeah the math doesn't work out on that one. - Madsen
Great discussion. The way to grow in a flat market is to come up with something innovative, like a light-weight NTN boot! I run into bondage-binders in the backcountry all the time who spy my tele setup and they say “man I sure miss tele, but the weight! Yikes!” . Drop us some lightweight boots Scrapa, and you’ll win some of them back. A recent piece on Outside Mag claims now that AT technology has peaked, manufacturers will turn their R&D efforts back to tele to bring it up to par and grow that market. Let’s hope!
P.S. I thought Asolo produced the first plastic tele boot? Or did you mean SUCCESSFUL plastic tele boot? The Telebreeze sucked (sorry Paul P.).
I get the idea of not buying first iteration but at the same time if no one buys them there is no reason to release them. I think we need new boots so getting a pair to support and give feedback is definetly what i will do.
Agree on that for sure. - Madsen
I made the decision to get what I need now 5 years ago... and I had to get what I need again this season...but, I'm still happy to wait for the new new. It's gonna be good!
I haven’t, but I will pick one up once it drops.
I just want a T2 with Pins on the toe and carbon cuffs.
For now it’s 75mm for me.
Part of the challenge is the vast amount of high quality lightly used 75 mm gear available. Until that supply dries up, new tele equipment will struggle to be profitable.
For those of with a fleet of interchangeable 75 mm tele equipment, replacing everything is expensive and only marginally beneficial. Lots of us are enjoying what we already have.
Can’t beat NTN-tech in the uptrack, and the added measure of control vs. 75mm on the descent. Way more than marginally beneficial. Total game changer!
@@jasonwooden Not to argue against technologic improvements, however every skier's needs and terrain are different. I may switch to NTN when my tele skills improve, but for now 75 mm meets my needs.
@@WildMidwest1 The added edge control provided by NTN will boost your tele skills! I started on leather when Reagan was president and with every technological leap (including Superloops, plastic boots, BD 01s, NTN) my skills improved by serous margins.
@@jasonwooden Excellent points.
Seeking your opinion, I currently have five pair of tele skis with a combination of Axl bindings (2 pair), Hammerheads, Switchback X2 (1 pair) and Voile cable bindings. I have old Scarpa T2 boots, Crispi Freeride XP 75 mm boots, and Heirling leather 75 mm boots in mint condition - all of which I love, and fill different niches. [I also have K2 Mindbender tech boots and one pair of 124 mm fat DPS skis set up for AT. I skinned all of them. I prefer using Nordic wax on one pair of old alpine skis with tele bindings for rolling terrain when edges are necessary and I don’t want to use skins. I have several pair of alpine skis and boots for resort skiing.]
I recently bought a pair of RMU Professor 120 mm x 185 mm skis at a great price. I originally intended to pair those skis with BD 01s, but those are hardly light weight. The Professors are becoming a dilemma: do I install 22D Lynx, or ski them as AT, or install BD 01 as first planned? The Professors are extremely lightweight and delicate. They were apparently drilled for Salomon Shift bindings. Installation of the next pair of bindings will require stainless inserts and careful hole placement. I completed most of the prep work of hole filling, etc.
My goal for the Professors is a strictly touring deep powder touring ski and not push them hard - shallow vertical. I have other skis for black to double-black powder. Aggressive bindings such as Axl or Outlaw X would likely pull out of the skis, even with inserts epoxied.
My current thoughts are mid-weight AT bindings with stainless inserts, however that would preclude tele turns. Alternatively switching to Lynx might be an option, albeit much more expensive with NTN boots and bindings.
Do you have any thoughts?… AT bindings or lighter weight tele bindings (Lynx), or maybe a cable binding and ski them gently like vintage wooden XC skis?
Eventually I will transition to NTN as you suggest, but not this season. Still having too much fun with my present gear.
@@WildMidwest1 Wow, you have quite the collection there! I’m more of a one-ski-quiver kind of guy (and sell my old kit). Buy what works for 90% of your tours and you’ll become an expert at that set-up. Too much learning curve for me switching back and forth between gear.
As for the RMUs, yeah- I’d mount them with the Lynx and either wait for this new lighter NTN boot to hit the market, or see if you can find some F1 Race (w/bellows) and try the Michael Bolt-on NTN mod (or TTS) in the meantime. Otherwise, it’s probably cheaper to go Voile Switchback and T2s, but you won’t have the enhanced tour-ability and added control NTN has to offer.
Can we all at least agree on a wide toe box like a Keen boot?
My TX Pros are so comfy I could sleep in them! I’m gonna ‘em until the plastic disintegrates…or some new design comes out. I’m a sucker for gear.
Comfy until you hit mile 5 of a 12 mile tour, or have to pack them on your back from the trailhead to the snow line for any distance. Then AT boots of similar capability and half the weight look a lot more appealing.
I call them TX Pigs.
Boots monopoly is not good for Telemark. The longer Scrapa postpones introducing a lighter weight NTN boot, the more of us will jump ship to AT - and possibly choose a different brand. That said, I want Scarpa to get it right. One more year may be acceptable if that is the ultimate outcome, but it's a risky bet. AT now looks extremely attractive on the uphill. I am unsure what I will do myself when end-of-season binding sales become prevalent?
AT is definitely attractive in the skin track, if not for weight (although that is a motivator for many) then at least for cuff mobility. Personally I do want a lighter weight boot, but not at the expense of the telemark sensation on the down. Afterall, it's all about the down, right? -Dostie
@@FreeheelLife I sense bemused chin-rubbing.
We all want this impasse with Scarpa to be temporary, for tech toes to be present on all shipping NTN boots, and for more design variability (wider or narrower boot lasts, etc.) Bolt-on-duck-butts are not for everyone. As you note, weight may be less important than other fitment issues.
I have to be careful how I say this.
One problem the telemark industry is running up against is that the people who engage in the sport are VERY frugal! Someone on AT gear or on alpine gear is willing to drop $$. Telemarkers wear 30 year old jackets with duct tape on them. It's just a reality. The whitewater kayak industry went through a similar experience.
They're also so old school. I'm a recent adopter of the sport and the number of people I've seen, in doing my research for what to get, arguing that no one needs anything beyond a leather boots with cables...
I understand people who like lighter bcxc on older 3pin leathers, especially considering NNN BC ain't great, but to claim that there is no reason for any of the more recent advancement in the sport seems nuts.
Frugality is not limited to telemarkers. Nor are all telemarkers that frugal. When the Terminator first landed everyone complained about the price, but there were plenty of people willing to pay it, whining or not. -Dostie
Never buy first generation is a pretty good starting point for anything techy. IMHO
Maybe Scarpa could release a first iteration of the new design for the public (1000 pairs) and crowdsource the feedback. Offering any of those 1000 the right to upgrade in 18months after the feedback has been worked into the second iteration.
Sure their was a tele binding manufacturer that did exactly that?
Rainey Designs started the beta program where you paid full pop up front, but then received the revised production product gratis. A revolutionary program, that none can afford to copy any longer. C'est la vie. -Dostie
I do wonder why Scarpa don’t sell a version of the Tx with a lighter, single buckle cuff, which how mine. It would cost very little in new moulds.
Any plans for your comments on the new Voile TTS Transit Telemark binding available fall 2023?
Wait, is there a new boot supposedly coming out?
Haven't you heard? - Madsen
@@FreeheelLife No, I haven't
Just improve their current line. Incremental improvements would be great. Change the color. I love the T2 but hate the yellow. That’s all people are asking at this point.
Tengo un par de T2 eco muy cómodas y razonablemente ligeras, con ellas y unas voile switchback he esquiado 10 años 90% excursión 10% estación de esquí.
Hace 6 años compré rottefella freedom y Scarpa TX de 3 ganchos, no me gustó la sensación y solo he utilizado este equipo para esquiar en la estación. Hace 3 años compré un par de F3 muy usadas por 50€ y con TTS kreuzspitze encontré el sistema perfecto para mí, ligero, ajustable y realmente bueno para descender.
El año pasado el fuelle de las F3 se desintegró casi completamente y tuve la suerte de encontrar otro par de F3 a estrenar por 195€.
Ahora mismo estoy contento pero tengo poca confianza en el plástico de los fuelles que Scarpa usó para las F3.
No son unas botas diseñadas para Telemark pero son las mejores que he probado.
Scarpa podría utilizar los moldes de las F3, poner unos fuelles de Telemark y añadir una suela compatible con NTN, el duckbutt
Sí, tienes una buena configuración para giras con el F3, pero lo que Scarpa está creando irá más allá. La pregunta es cuándo. -Dostie
I have 2 pairs of brand new tx comps in box ready to go. Should last my life time. No more money from me.
With Crispi WC Evos, there is no need for anything else
Except they weigh even more than the Scarpa TX Pigs…er Pros (claimed weight, 1815 gr vs. 1750 gr). Yeeouch.
@@jasonwooden I tour with Kastle Tx 108s and outlaws. What’s another 65 grams. Regularly ski 5-7k each tour
@@bc6881 Well, I'm not saying the TX Pigs are any better than the Evos, just that dropping more than a pound per foot (potential new lightweight Tele boot and swap out those Outlaws for Lynxes) would be a real game changer! If you're doing 5-7k each tour now, you can increase that by 25%, or just not feel as wasted at the end of the day. Of course vert means little without context. Existing uptrack or breaking-trail in deep pow? You quads will thank you for even dropping a pound or so if the later. It's an amazing difference.
(Just don't ever try AT gear, it will spoil you in the uptrack.)
@@jasonwooden I hear you. I have a pair of Lynxes mounted on a Corvus freebird. I had to use an aluminum plate because it was a second mount. I believe the plate is throwing off the balance of the ski and not flexing correctly. Old CF from 2015 but still are good. I did have issues with the slickpins coming out. That was a problem. Haven’t touched them in a while due to these issues. I actually have 2 pair of Lynx. One pair is new or skied once. I’d sell for $250
@@bc6881still got those Lynx’s for sale? Small or large?