BOA Fit: The New Technology for Ski Boots

There's a new innovation on the ski boot market. With the BOA® fit system, you can adjust your ski boot more easily and much more precisely. Instead of buckles, the boot is tightened using a dial platform with a lace. Find out how the technology works and what advantages it has.

Up to now, most ski boots have been closed with buckles. Depending on the model, you can close and adjust the boot using two to four straps.

With the BOA® system, the buckles on the foot, i.e. at the lower part of the boot, are replaced by a twist lock that controls a thin lace. The lace runs - like a boa - through low-friction guides. By pulling the lace tighter using the dial, the shoe can enclose the foot evenly and adapt individually to the shape of your foot. 

With theH+i1 dial platform, the lace can be micro-adjusted in both directions and therefore offers significantly more adjustment options than conventional ski boot buckles. To take off the shoe, simply pull the dial slightly upwards for a quick release.

More than 50,000 hours went into the development, design and testing of the BOA® Fit System H+i1 for ski boots. In close cooperation with the world's leading ski brands, BOA® has also tapped into the expertise of professional freeride and alpine athletes.

Double Olympic and world champion Benni Raich was also involved in the development process: “As a racer, you are always intensely focused on finding every performance advantage. The BOA alpine project has been an incredible opportunity to leverage this experience and work closely with their team to improve boot fit and skiing performance for the next generation of athletes." 

Some of the best-known ski boot brands already use the BOA® system, for example Fischer, Atomic, K2 and Salomon.

The actual benefits of the system were tested in a scientific study by the BOA® Performance Fit Lab. The results, which are based on feedback from top athletes after almost a thousand hours in the snow, were published in "Frontier in Sports".

Thanks to the millimeter precision and adjustability, the maximum pressure on the top of the foot is 13 percent reduced. The optimized heel hold and improved fit not only make the ski boot more comfortable to wear, they also improve power transmission during turn initiation by ten percent. This ultimately results in more control over the ski and thus more safety.

Special attention was also paid during the tests to ensuring that the material is robust and durable and can withstand even the most extreme alpine conditions. The lace consists of a core made from 19 stainless steel strands, which is wrapped in an additional 90 strands. This gives it a tensile strength of more than 250 kilograms. The H+i1 dial platform offers maximum impact protection thanks to its bayonet and cartridge system.

Consequently, BOA offers a lifetime guarantee on its products. If something does break, BOA will provide you with free spare parts and all the information you need for repairs.

BOA Technology, Inc. is based in the USA, more precisely in Steamboat, Colorado, in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. Founder Gary Hammerslag developed the first BOA® system for a completely new way of tying snowboard boots in 2001. The company now has more than 250 registered patents and has sold over 200 million Fit Systems.

BOA® technology is not only available for ski and snowboard boots. The dial system can also be found in helmets, gloves and cycling shoes, among others.