garmont vs scarpa AT boots

**pascoe** · 01-02-2007, 04:18 PM

Anyone have alittle experience between the two????

Currently ski in Garmont Ener-G....diving into some AT gear.

I know the Garmont tele boot (in general) fits a wider foot than Scarpa's. Does this remain true for AT boots....I have heard with the AT boots, the reverse is true.......scarpa for wider feet, garmont for narrow????

Thanks all

**Tony** · 01-02-2007, 04:36 PM

Some people say so. I say BS.

I have low-volume, narrow feet with narrow heels and high archs.

My AT boots are Scarpa Matrix (mid-flex).

A good shell fit, a thermo liner and a Comformable insole worked miracles and I have a perfect fit.

Choose the right stiffness but don't forget about weight: Dynafit Aero FR, Scarpa Tornado and Garmont Adrenaline are the stiffest....and heaviest.

I went the middle road 'cause weight was a big issue for me and the type of AT I wanted to do (multi-day hut-to-hut ).

When I want a stiffer boot for sidecountry, I just use my Langes with Freerides.

If you are looking for a one-boot quiver maybe the stiffer boots are the answer.

**marshalolson** · 01-02-2007, 04:44 PM

scarpa AT boots are relatively narrow compared to the garmont AT boots, and fit pretty similarly to the respective tele boots

**Spats** · 01-02-2007, 08:44 PM

The Spirit 3 is much wider than the Garmont Megaride. Don't know about other boots.

**wilcox510** · 01-02-2007, 09:01 PM

I gotta disagree with marshall on this one. Garmonts, at least the g-rides and megarides, are the the narrowest/lowest volume AT boots out there. All the scarpas are higher volume. In a recent thread, somebody commented on how narrow the Dynafit freeride boot is, but when I tried it on I thought it was very high volume.

**uglymoney** · 01-02-2007, 09:10 PM

I have a double wide foot (wide at the ball and toes) and I fit very nicely into my scarpa tornado's. I can actually tighten the front buckles without crushing my foot. My foot also fits well in my old scarpa t2 telebombers. The tornados are much wider and more comfortable than my tecnica's which I can barely buckle at the toes. I'm no help on the comparison to garmonts.

**cowdog** · 01-02-2007, 09:14 PM

I have a wide foot and a high arch. I just picked up some Spirit3s, finding they fit me better than the Megarides. Both would have worked. BTW, the Spirit3 boots have a higher volume than the Denali TTs or the TRace.

I often hear that Garmonts work better for wider feet, but there is more to it than that in my opinion. At least among the tele boots I have tried and used, the Garmonts had a higher forefoot and heel volume (3D). The Scarpas had a more snug side to side heel fit and lower forefoot volume top to bottom. The width differences were less important than these differences to me.

Anymore it seems that you have to compare boot to boot, rather than relying on manufacturer generalities.

**marshalolson** · 01-02-2007, 09:15 PM

i should state that the above statement was based on megaride/g-rides vs. denali's. i have not tried on the spirits. sorry for the confusion.

**corn dog** · 01-02-2007, 09:39 PM

It appears this question can only be answered on an individual basis! Lots of people have tried on or used a range of scarpa and garmont AT boots and the impressions are all over the map

I'll add that I found the G-Rides and GSMs to be lower volume than lasers.

**AltaPowderDaze** · 01-02-2007, 10:39 PM

pascoe,

i have found the same as you w/ regard to scarpa and garmont AT boots. for me, the scarpa's are too wide and the garmonts are just a little too narrow in the forefoot. i own the denali tt and garmont megaride. i have skied and just purchased the dynafit freeride aero, which is almost right in between the aforementioned. i'm not sure what your goal is but for resort access AT, i'd suggest you look at the freeride aero or the garmont endorphin. they are the stiffest AT boots of this season that i've run across. they also weigh a bit more, so take that into consideration.

**Larryl** · 01-02-2007, 11:57 PM

I have narrow feet and high arches. I went to the shop to test out Megaride, Dyanfit Aero TF4 and Scarpa Spirit 4. The Aero is the heaviest of the three, but the stiffest. Spirit 4 is the lightest, but not by much. My feet can fit into all three okay before anything is done to the thermo liners. Ultimately, it is tradeoff among weight, stiffness, trips, etc, etc. Sometimes, I do multi-day trips, and want to carry gear as light as possible. Scarpa finally got my business.

**uncle crud** · 01-03-2007, 10:15 AM

Originally Posted by wilcox510

I gotta disagree with marshall on this one. Garmonts, at least the g-rides and megarides, are the the narrowest/lowest volume AT boots out there. All the scarpas are higher volume. In a recent thread, somebody commented on how narrow the Dynafit freeride boot is, but when I tried it on I thought it was very high volume.

Absolutely. I compared directly the Scarpa Denali & Matrix to the Garmont Mega-Ride and the Scarpa is higher-volume all around the foot.

Now, with a thicker replacement liner like an Intuition or ZipFit you might find that there isn't much difference. I'm talking about the boots with their standard liners.

**pascoe** · 01-03-2007, 10:32 AM

Thanks for the input all.

I guess I should have given alittle more background......Been rockin the free-heel the past 6 years....ready to lock down again. Freeride +'s in hand, Mantra's in hand (currently with tele's but thinking of switching...hopefully I can handle after 6 yr hiatus) looking at Adrenalines or Tornadoes or similar. Weight not a big issue for me.....several hut trips a year but would never sacrifice performance. I have always fit great in Garmonts (wide fore-foot, narrow heel)....but remember the alpine boot experience being rough....just chasing problems. BUT....I do feel much more knowledgable and experienced now about boots , just due to spending so much time in them.(pre-2000 days on snow, maybe 75 total......2000-present....500+)

SO....seems like get a comfortable fit at the toe-width, about 1-1.5 finger behind the heel for shell-size, go alittle small for break-in and sustained performance, and dont worry about the scarpa vs garmont bullshit.

I just hope the AT boots are in the same ballpark, comfort-wise, at the Ener-g's. Really.....thanks for the above info all! Its just good to think about it all before I cut off my left-nut for a pair of friggin boots. (actually I could save the balls....telemark-pyrenees has the new adrenaline....420 US shipped) I will try on the scarpa tornados and the garmont adrenalines sometime today and post an opinion.

later

**Tony** · 01-03-2007, 10:42 AM

Originally Posted by pascoe

looking at Adrenalines or Tornadoes or similar. Weight not a big issue for me.....several hut trips a year but would never sacrifice performance.

I don't know how many days your "several hut trips" involve.

If it's not more than a couple, heavy boot is fine.

If they involve more than a couple of days each, then you must never try the lighter models (Matrix, Spirit 3, Megaride) BECAUSE once you do, there is no going back to a Tornado or Adrenaline.

**AltaPowderDaze** · 01-03-2007, 11:49 AM

Originally Posted by pascoe

I just hope the AT boots are in the same ballpark, comfort-wise, at the Ener-g's. Really.....thanks for the above info all! Its just good to think about it all before I cut off my left-nut for a pair of friggin boots. (actually I could save the balls....telemark-pyrenees has the new adrenaline....420 US shipped) I will try on the scarpa tornados and the garmont adrenalines sometime today and post an opinion.

later

i've found that no AT boot is as comfortable as my T-races.

just fyi, the garmont adrenalin has been softened this season. the endorphine has taken its place, and then some.

**pascoe** · 01-04-2007, 06:09 PM

Tried on the Tornado, Adrenalin and Endorphin.....all 28.0

Tornado just didnt feel right.....just alittle too tight all around, mainly in the heel pocket and mid foot area. Adrenalin felt pretty good.....the flex was alittle softer than I expected but comfy no less. Endorphin's were money....nice, even stiff flex. Felt comfy and tight everywhere.

SO....if ya ski garmont tele boots and lookin to make a move to AT....my opinion is stick with garmont. I do think the Scarpa could have worked with alittle riggin.......and I could never get into a scarpa tele boot (5 minutes killed or way too sloppy) SO....alittle more room to work with AT style.

Thanks again for the input all

**BrendanMT** · 01-04-2007, 07:12 PM

I have 28.5 Megarides and find them narrower and lower volume than my previous 28.5 Matrices. I also found the Adrenalins too wide for my foot when I tried them on in the shop. The Megarides weigh a little less than the Matrices (maybe 150 grams or so).

**AltaPowderDaze** · 01-04-2007, 08:50 PM

pascoe, check out the dynafits as well before you throw down on the garmonts. they are nearly as stiff, lighter plus you get the option to use some comforts if your hut trips really go multi-day.

**pascoe** · 01-05-2007, 03:40 PM

Mulit day hut trips ....yes (sometomes over 4 days)

hut-to-hut trips ....no, usually stay at the same hut the entire time.

Either way.....I will defintely try on the Dynafits.....just too much money not to try 'em all.

Again....thanks for the advice.

**PaganSkier** · 02-03-2007, 09:39 PM

I've got Garmont G-rides and Scarpa Denali’s.

The G-rides are definitely lower volume, and IMHO are much more sensitive laterally.

However, the Scarpas appear to be better made, as my G-rides have all kinds of internal laps in the molding process, and both shoe horns have cracked off.

The Scarps second from the top buckle strap wire does this annoying pop thing over the bellows while skinning unless I completely unbuckle it.

The dogs down the street seem to respect me more in my Scarps

**skinnyskier** · 02-04-2007, 11:42 AM

The Garmont shell tends to be oval: wider side-to-side but not as high. The Scarpa shell is rounder. My feet have a high arch and narrow heel, so they do better in Scarpa.