An Ode to a Classic: Booster Straps
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In the world of ski gear there’s a constant push to slap new graphics on an existing product, come up with some hyphy marketing copy, and sell away like it’s something totally new and exciting. Booster Strap stands in sharp contrast to that.
Back in 1999 Ray Fougere saw a need for an elastic power strap, or top strap, on ski boots. He wanted to cinch down the upper cuff and improve boot response for his ski race team, so he integrated an elastic element into the front of a strap, complete with a cam buckle to cinch it down. Since then, Ray has been selling essentially the same product, named the Booster Strap, to generation after generation of skiers, from every ability level and discipline, from kids showing up to their first day of ski race team, to some of the world’s strongest freeriders. No hype, no overblown marketing claims, just a simple, affordable product that makes skiing better.
My personal journey with Booster Straps started my second year skiing. My skinny teenager calves made it hard to get precise cuff fit, and my second-hand boots were mushy and unresponsive. I actually won a pair of Booster Straps in a raffle, went home, googled them, and immediately installed them on my boots. From the moment I buckled my boots in the parking lot I could feel the difference. My shin felt more locked against the front of my boot, and I no longer noticed a mushy dead zone at the start of my boot’s flex. I was sold, instantly. Since then, I’ve brought that original set of Booster Straps with me, from boot to boot as I’ve upgraded and grown as a skier. It’s become a constant among the variables, a sign that I’ve fully adopted a boot and committed to it.
What sort of skiers might want to use a Booster Strap?
In my experience there are two types of folks who end up using Booster Straps: those who have issues with their boots that Booster Straps will help allay, and those who generally are getting along with their boots but want a little extra performance boost. Most skiers fall into one of those two categories.
If you’re having trouble keeping your shin pressuring the front of your boot, a good boot fitter will often recommend Booster Straps, along with other measures. The cam buckle allows for a tighter, more cinched down fit, and the elastic allows the boot to flex with you more naturally.
Booster Strap has an easy-to-use chart to help you decide which strap stiffness makes the most sense for your weight and skiing style, and each strap is backwards compatible–you can easily trim an elastic strip to make a stiffer strap softer, but you can’t add a layer of elastic to make a strap stiffer.
In addition to locking your shin to the front of the boot thanks to that cam buckle, Booster Straps also tighten up the initial flex of the boot. They don’t make a boot stiffer–that’s a function of its plastic and design–but they do change how that stiffness manifests itself. They help eliminate the dead zone or initial slop that often occurs in the initial part of the boot’s flex.That makes the boot feel more precise and responsive.
For folks having those sorts of issues with their boots, Booster Straps are a relatively affordable ($49-$53) product that’s easy to install and makes an instantly noticeable change in how your boots fit and ski.
And for the rest of the skiing population, who are generally happy with their boots but want to eke out a little extra performance from their boots, Booster Straps are a great first step. Even if your boots fit well and are generally the right flex for you, a Booster Strap will still make them feel more precise, with more easily controlled power. Even skiers who only ski a few times a season, and are generally happy with their boots will appreciate the immediate impact Booster Straps have on how their boots fit and flex. You can feel the difference from a standard non-elastic power strap in the first turn.
That makes them an especially good upgrade for touring boots. While modern touring boots ski impressively well, there’s still often a sloppy portion of the flex where you’re leaning through the play in the walk mode before the shell flex engages. A Booster Strap can help tighten this up, which helps your boot effectively drive bigger skis with more control, even in variable snow. When I get a new pair of touring boots, a Booster Strap is generally the first upgrade I make, sometimes before even skiing the boot. It’s a big upgrade for a small price.
Boosting into the future.
It’s so easy to get caught up in the new and shiny when it comes to ski gear. Exaggerated marketing language and bold claims abound. But no matter what space age technology my next boots contain, I’m confident that I’ll be pulling off the stock power strap and installing my trusty Booster Straps. Skis come and go, my style as a skier grows and changes, but the one constant through it all are the checkered Booster Straps peeking out the bottom of my pant cuffs.
