Custom Orthotics for Ski Boots?

We do it at Frank J. Santopietro D.P.M.

As an avid skier myself, I get pretty excited when skiers walk into our office looking for relief from foot pain on the mountain.   If you are a skier or rider with pain in the boots while on the slopes or while awkwardly walking in and around the base lodge well, I feel your pain!  Well, actually I don’t feel your pain or even my own pain anymore!

Every ski season, starting around early December and peaking around early February, we get a collection of ski boots in our lab all there for custom orthotics from Dr. Santopietro.  A few weeks ago we had a cross country skier and this week we had a ski instructor with boot heaters who wanted to keep the intricate wired heating devices in her boots!  At first I was a little skeptical but after a moment of consideration I was sure the task could be accomplished.

Working with ski boots is not easy.  Getting the soft boot in-n-out of the hard shell is a challenge of its own accord.  Add a couple of lifts under the orthotics and now a corded heater and it becomes a delicate operation to make sure everything is in the boot squarely.  Delicate – and yet it requires incredible strength to push the boot into the shell.

The heaters are Hottronic Footwarmer Power Plus and can be found online at Amazon and through a Google search for under $200, or you can go to REI and pick up a pair for about $220.  If you would like us to install such a system for you we can order the system and have them prepared for you.  It takes a little bit longer but according to our ski instructor patient, Julie the result is extraordinary.  We use a synthetic suede-like material called Coronet to cover over the orthotic and they feel great!  Julie shared her assessment of the orthotics with us last week:

My boot orthotics have PROFOUNDLY improved my personal skiing – I am able to stay in the balanced, athletic stance I need to be in without pain now.  My boot heaters are working great AND I have instructed for 6 hours a day for the past 5 days without pain which is nothing short of a miracle.

Print that Dave – it is all true!!

Julie

What Julie and other happy patients have discovered in their experience with mountain shops and specialty ski stores offering “custom” orthotics for boots was that these products are often not really custom and frequently fail to meet the basic minimum requirement: eliminate the pain!  We have had more patients come to us after using such devices complaining of no improvement or worse an increase in their pain.  So if you’re considering investing in some “custom” orthotics from anywhere other than a podiatrist… STOP!  Dr. Santopietro and his team are experts at making orthotics and we’re experts at dealing with Ski Boots, but also many other specialty sports footwear including:

• figure skates
• hockey skates
• soccer cleats
• football cleats
• hiking boots
• basketball sneakers
• biking shoes
• name a sport and we probably have put an orthotic in the shoe.

We’re all athletes  ourselves, our technician Nadine is an avid amateur figure skater, Dr. Santopietro plays golf and has even made a pair for his aquatic shoes that he uses when he sails or swims in the ocean.   Personally, I play softball, dodgeball, kickball, soccer, tennis, and my favorite of all I ski!  Before my next trip up to the mountains I’ll be installing a pair of Hottronic Footwarmers into my boots!  Bring your boots in or other custom athletic footwear and we’ll manufacture a product that’s the perfect fit and feel for whatever activity you find yourself doing this winter and spring!